Decreased superoxide (O2-)-generating activity of blood monocytes from patients with hepatic cirrhosis

The superoxide-generating activity of blood monocytes from patients with hepatic cirrhosis was studied by the rapid and sensitive method using cytochalasin E and wheat germ agglutinin as triggering agents. The initial rates of superoxide generation by the patients' monocytes were 0.110 +/- 0.072 n mol/min/10(5) cells (mean +/- SD, n = 22) after sequential treatment with cytochalasin E and wheat germ agglutinin, while those of controls were 0.305 +/- 0.123 n mol/min/10(5) cells (mean +/- SD, n = 33) (P less than 0.001). The activity correlated inversely with indocyanine green retention rates; the regression line was Y = 0.220-0.0028 X (Y; superoxide-generating activity, n mol/min/10(5) cells, X; indocyanine green retention rate, per cent), whose test of significance of the regression coefficient was 0.010 less than P less than 0.025. The presence of ascites, a decreased in the number of white blood cells, and increased serum total bilirubin, also inversely correlated with the superoxide-generating activity. These show that in cirrhotic patient, the superoxide-generating activity of blood monocyte, which may reflect NAD(P)H oxidase activity, is impaired in proportion as the grade of hepatic cirrhosis increases.