Relationship between procollagen III aminoterminal propeptide and hyaluronan serum levels and histological fibrosis in primary biliary cirrhosis and chronic viral hepatitis C.

The diagnostic values of aminoterminal propeptide of type III procollagen and hyaluronan serum levels were compared as markers of liver fibrosis in two chronic liver diseases of different etiologies and pathophysiologies, namely primary biliary cirrhosis and chronic viral hepatitis C. The results were analysed in terms of the histological extent of fibrosis. Both serum procollagen-III peptide and hyaluronan were elevated in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis and chronic viral hepatitis C (p < 0.0001) relative to control values. A positive correlation was found between serum procollagen-III peptide levels and the histological grade of fibrosis in primary biliary cirrhosis (p < 0.001) but not in chronic viral hepatitis C, while a strong correlation was found between serum hyaluronan levels and histological fibrosis in both primary biliary cirrhosis and chronic viral hepatitis C (p < 0.001), independent of age. These results suggest that, in chronic liver diseases, serum hyaluronan levels could be an important indicator of the extent of fibrosis and should be assayed to monitor the response to treatment in controlled clinical trials.