Analysis of liver fibrosis in schistosomiasis

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Among various types of anionic polymers and/or poly-ion-complex, homopolymer of acrylic acid (HOMO-AP) alone had an action to stimulate the liver fibrosis in schistosomiasis. Therefore, the mice administered with HOMO-AP were utilized for the purification of fibrogenic factor. Although the purification of fibrogenic factor from liver extract could not succeed, it could be partially purified from the culture medium of egg granulomas isolated from S.mansoni-infected mice treated with HOMO-AP by DEAE ion-exchange chromatography and gel filtration.Hepatic fibrosis in murine schistosomiasis mansoni involve the excessive deposition of collagen fiber on the egg granulomas. The hepatic collagen incereased rapidly during the 7th to 11th weeks of infection, when host granulomatous response against shistosome eggs was most prominent. During this period, hepatic contents of procollagen mRNA and free proline, and in vitro collagen-synthetic activity in the infected mice showed a significantly higher values than those of uninfected controls. After the 12th week of infection, the accumulation rate of hepatic collagen drastically changed to much more slowly. The exact reason of such a drastic change in collagen accumulation remains unknown. High level of hepatic procollage mRNA and in vitro collagen sythetic activity were demonstrated in the infected mice after the 12th week of infection, but hepatic free proline concentration decreased to the level of uninfected controls. Moreover, the activity of in vitro collagen synthesis by liver slice was dependent on the concetnration of free proline. It is, therefore, likely that hepatic free proline may play a major role in the mechanism of liver fibrosis in schistosomiasis.