Effects of irsoglandine maleate in an experimentally-induced acute hepatic failure model using mice.

When heat-killed Propionibacterium acnes was intravenously injected into mice followed by an intravenous injection of a small amount of Gram-negative lipopolysaccharide seven days later, most of the mice died of massive hepatic cell necrosis within 24 hours. However, when irsoglandine maleate, an anti-ulcer agent, was administered to mice during the period of experimental induction of acute hepatic failure, the survival rate, serum transaminase levels and histological changes of the liver remarkably improved. These results suggested that irsoglandine maleate may have protective effects on the liver in our experimentally-induced acute hepatic failure model using mice. Therefore, in the absence of a definitive therapy for fulminant hepatitis, irsoglandine maleate may be a promising therapeutic agent.