Cholangiocyte senescence in primary sclerosing cholangitis is associated with disease severity and prognosis
Nora Cazzagon, Samantha Sarcognato, Annarosa Floreani, Giorgia Corrà, Sara De Martin, Vincenza Guzzardo, Francesco Paolo Russo, Maria Guido
Abstract
BACKGROUND & AIMS: Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is a rare cholangiopathy of unknown aetiopathogenesis. The aim of this study was to evaluate cellular senescence (CS) marker expression in cholangiocytes of patients with PSC and their correlation with clinical-pathological features and prognosis. METHODS: = 0.001, respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Cholangiocyte senescence is detectable in all stages of PSC and is associated with histological and clinical disease severity, potentially representing a new prognostic and therapeutic target. LAY SUMMARY: In this study, we showed that cholangiocyte senescence (CS), previously demonstrated in liver of patients with end-stage primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC), is an early event and is detectable in all disease stages. Moreover, we observed that CS is associated with histological and clinical disease severity and patients' outcome. Thus, we suggest that CS may represent a new prognostic tool and a potential therapeutic target in PSC. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: Protocol number 0034435, 08/06/2020.