Endotoxin and liver diseases. High titres of enterobacterial common antigen antibodies in patients with alcoholic cirrhosis.

We have measured antibodies to the enterobacterial common antigen (ECA) in sera of 86 patients with various liver diseases. ECA is a component of the cell wall of all enteric bacteria, and ECA antibodies are a specific indication of the presence of enterobacterial components. Patients with alcoholic cirrhosis with or without signs of alcoholic hepatitis had significantly raised anti-ECA titres compared with healthy control subjects. Other groups of patients (alcoholic hepatitis and/or fatty liver, primary biliary cirrhosis, chronic active hepatitis, or liver metastases) did not differ significantly from controls in the height of their anti-ECA titres. The results support the concept that Gram-negative bacterial components may have some role in the pathophysiology of alcoholic cirrhosis.