Changed Profile of Serum Transferrin Isoforms in Liver Diseases

Background: The aim of the study was to assess the effect of liver diseases on the serum profile of transferrin isoforms. Methods: Patients with alcoholic cirrhosis (AC) - 63 subjects, non-alcoholic cirrhosis (NAC) - 28, and toxic hepatitis (HT) - 32 were studied. The cirrhotic patients were classified according to the Child-Pugh scale. Samples were analyzed by capillary electrophoresis with the MINICAP system. Results: Significant differences were noted in the relative concentrations of disialotransferrin in HT patients (mean SD; 1.216 +/- 0.900%) and in the levels of trisialotransferrin in AC (6.433 +/- 3.131%) and NAC patients (5.311 +/- 2.401%), as compared to the control group (0.984 +/- 1.161%; 3.615 +/- 1.156%, respectively). The levels of di-, tri- and tetrasialotransferrin appeared to differ between liver diseases. The mean relative concentration of disialotransferrin was significantly higher in patients with HT than in the NAC group, whereas trisialotransferrin level was lower in HT (4.074 +/- 1.597%) than in AC and NAC. Tetrasialotransferrin was higher in HT (78.474 +/- 4.393%) and NAC (77.932 +/- 4.161%) in comparison with AC (75.290 +/- 4.720%). Eleven percent of cirrhotic samples showed di-tri bridging and two samples displayed genetic variants of transferrin isoforms. There were significant differences in tri-, tetra-, and pentasialotransferrin according to the Child-Pugh score. The level of trisialotransferrin was significantly higher in class C of liver cirrhosis (7.219 +/- 3.107%) than in class A (4.590 +/- 1.851%), and tetrasialotransferrin relative concentration was lower in class C (69.048 +/- 14.251%) as compared to class B (76.929 +/- 3.931%) and A (78.990 +/- 2.995%). The level of pentasialotransferrin was higher in class C (23.078 +/- 15.898%) than in B (16.455 +/- 4.491%) and A (15.680 +/- 2.333%). Conclusions: In conclusion, the serum profile of transferrin isoforms shows alterations in liver diseases, varies according to the disease, and changes depending on the cirrhosis stage.