Diagnostics Department, Yamasa Corporation, Choshi, Chiba, Japan.
J Gastroenterol Hepatol. 2010 Feb;25(2):413-9. doi: 10.1111/j.1440-1746.2009.05969.x. Epub 2009 Sep 27.
As ornithine carbamyltransferase (OCT) has proved to be a sensitive serum marker in the detection of hepatotoxicity in several models, it is important to confirm its application to the diagnosis of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.
C57BL/6, KK-Ta and KK-Ay mice were fed a high-fat diet for 8 weeks and serum enzyme markers were examined. Serum OCT and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were also measured in diabetic obese ob/ob and db/db mice fed a normal diet. Liver damage in these mice was evaluated by the hepatic content of tumor necrosis factor-alpha.
Serum levels of OCT increased in KK-Ay fed a high-fat diet compared with the normal diet-fed group, whereas C57BL/6 and KK-Ta mice were not affected. In ob/ob mice, the relative increase was always greater in OCT than in ALT. In contrast, in db/db mice, the relative increase was always greater in ALT. Hepatic tumor necrosis factor-alpha was significantly elevated in ob/ob mice, but not in db/db mice.
Serum OCT seemed to reflect tumor necrosis factor-alpha-mediated hepatic damage when compared with ALT in diabetic obese mice and could be useful in the application for non-alcoholic fatty liver disease with features of metabolic syndrome, such as obesity and diabetes.
精氨酸转氨甲酰酶（OCT）已被证明是几种模型中检测肝毒性的敏感血清标志物，因此确认其在非酒精性脂肪性肝病诊断中的应用非常重要。
用高脂肪饮食喂养 C57BL/6、KK-Ta 和 KK-Ay 小鼠 8 周，检测血清酶标志物。用正常饮食喂养肥胖型糖尿病 ob/ob 和 db/db 小鼠，同时检测血清 OCT 和丙氨酸氨基转移酶（ALT）。通过肝组织肿瘤坏死因子-α评估这些小鼠的肝损伤。
与正常饮食喂养组相比，高脂肪饮食喂养的 KK-Ay 小鼠血清 OCT 水平升高，而 C57BL/6 和 KK-Ta 小鼠不受影响。在 ob/ob 小鼠中，OCT 的相对增加始终大于 ALT。相反，在 db/db 小鼠中，ALT 的相对增加始终大于 OCT。ob/ob 小鼠的肝组织肿瘤坏死因子-α显著升高，但 db/db 小鼠没有。
与肥胖型糖尿病小鼠中的 ALT 相比，血清 OCT 似乎能反映肿瘤坏死因子-α介导的肝损伤，对于代谢综合征相关的非酒精性脂肪性肝病（如肥胖和糖尿病）的应用可能有用。
