Smoking Influence On Periportal Vitamin A-Rich Stellate Cells In Subjects With Hepatitis C

The hepatic stellate cells (SC) storing vitamin A are speculated to regulate differentiation of hepatic parenchymal cells (5). Several epidemiological studies have indicated that smoking is a risk factor of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC)(3, 10).In consideration of the importance of vitamin A in cell differentiation and cancer suppression (2), the smoking influence on the SC was investigated electron microscopically. In 93 cases with CPH (n = 11) and CAH 2A (n = 82) with or without mild portal fibrosis among 130 patients with hepatitis C, the number of periportal vitamin A-rich SC in 29 smokers was significantly smaller than that in 64 non-smokers.Hypoplasia of periportal vitamin A-rich SC was demonstrated in CPH and CAH 2A in the smoking patients with CPH and CAH 2A of chronic hepatitis C. This suggests that smoking habit brings about decrease in vitamin A content in the periportal areas, and consequently alteration of normal microenvironment with high concentration of vitamin A in hepatitis C smokers.