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The proportion of AST to ALT in hepatocytes is about 2.5:1, but because AST is removed from serum by the liver sinusoidal cells twice as quickly (serum half-life t 1/2 = 18 hr) compared to ALT (t 1/2 = 36 hr), so the resulting serum levels of AST and ALT are about equal in healthy individuals, resulting in a normal AST/ALT ratio around 1.
When ALT rises to more than 500 IU/L, causes are usually from the liver. It can be due to hepatitis, ischemic liver injury, and toxins that causes liver damage. The ALT levels in hepatitis C rises more than in hepatitis A and B. Persistent ALT elevation more than 6 months is known as chronic hepatitis.
Alanine transaminase (ALT), also known as alanine aminotransferase (ALT or ALAT), formerly serum glutamate-pyruvate transaminase (GPT) or serum glutamic-pyruvic transaminase (SGPT), is a transaminase enzyme (EC 2.6.1.2) that was first characterized in the mid-1950s by Arthur Karmen and colleagues. [1]
Serum AST level, serum ALT (alanine transaminase) level, and their ratio (AST/ALT ratio) are commonly measured clinically as biomarkers for liver health. The tests are part of blood panels. The half-life of total AST in the circulation approximates 17 hours and, on average, 87 hours for mitochondrial AST. [4]
Most disease processes cause ALT to rise higher than AST; AST levels double or triple that of ALT are consistent with alcoholic liver disease. [citation needed] When the AST is higher than ALT, a muscle source of these enzymes should be considered. For example, muscle inflammation due to dermatomyositis may cause AST>ALT.
AST and ALT blood levels are both elevated, but at less than 300 IU/liter, with an AST:ALT ratio > 2.0, a value rarely seen in other liver diseases. [52] In the United States, 40% of cirrhosis-related deaths are due to alcohol. [33] In non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), fat builds up in the liver and eventually causes scar tissue. [53]
FibroTest, known as FibroSure in the US, is a biomarker test that uses the results of six blood serum tests to generate a score that is correlated with the degree of liver damage in people with a variety of liver diseases. FibroTest has the same prognostic value as a liver biopsy.
The comprehensive metabolic panel, or chemical screen (CMP; CPT code 80053), is a panel of 14 blood tests that serves as an initial broad medical screening tool. The CMP provides a rough check of kidney function, liver function, diabetic and parathyroid status, and electrolyte and fluid balance, but this type of screening has its limitations.