Plasma from cirrhotic patients induces inotropic changes on cultured rat heart cells

Cultured monolayers of newborn rat heart cells were perfused with plasma from patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis. The results showed that cirrhotic plasma, when compared to control plasma, depressed contractility of beating cardiac cells. The in-vitro deleterious effects of plasma from cirrhotic subjects on cell cultures were neither related to hemodynamic parameters nor to the levels of plasmatic catecholamines. This study suggests the presence in the plasma of patients with alcoholic liver cirrhosis, of humoral factor(s) which cause depressive effects on rat heart cells in culture.