Oxidative stress in chronic hepatitis C: not just a feature of late stage disease

Background/Aims: Chronic hepatitis C infection is a major world-wide problem, frequently progressing to cirrhosis, liver failure or hepatoma. The pathological mechanisms of disease progression are unclear but oxidant stress may play a role. Methods: Markers of lipid peroxidation, antioxidant status, hepatic fibrogenesis and liver function were measured in blood or urine from 42 chronic hepatitis C patients. Fibrosis was graded histologically in a subgroup of 33 patients. Results: The lipid peroxidation marker 8-isoprostane and the ratio of oxidized to reduced glutathione were significantly elevated ( P