Serum cytosolic-mitochondrial enzyme ratio: a tool for the estimation of the severity of acute hepatitis.

The serum levels of the mitochondrial enzymes), aspartate transatninase II, malate dehydrogenase II and glutamate dehydrogenase were studied in 82 cases of acute hepatitis. The activity ratio alanine transaminase/glutamate dehydrogenase and the C/M-ratios of aspartate transaminase and malate dehydrogenase were also studied. The serum levels of the mitochondrial en2ymes glutamate dehydrogenase, aspartate transaminase Π and m'alate dehydrogenase II were "per se" useless in defining the severity of acute hepatitis. Conversely, the activity ratio alanine transaminase/glutamate dehydrogenase and the C/M-ratio) of aspartate transaminase proved to be very helpful for this purpose. These cytoplasmic/mitochondrial (C/M) ratios were very high in patients \vho later made a good recovery, while they were surprisingly low in those cases which progressed toward acute liver atrophy.