Abstract
We evaluated the expression of human glucocorticoid receptor beta (hGRβ) in patients with severe autoimmune hepatitis (AIH). The subjects were 27 patients with AIH, including 6 with severe type (prothrombin time [PT] <40%) and 21 with non-severe type (PT ≥ 40%). Total RNA extracted from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) was reversed using reverse transcriptase. The resultant complementary DNA was amplified by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) using specific primers for hGR α and β. The six patients with severe AIH were female ; three presented fulminant hepatic failure with hepatic encephalopathy. In all patients with AIH, hGR α was detected. The incidence of hGR β expression in patients with non-severe type was 42.9% (9/21) ; it was 100% (6/6) in those with severe type. The positive ratio was significantly higher in severe-type patients. These results suggest that hGR β expression in PBMCs is a novel predictor of AIH severity.
