Abstract

Autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) is a necroinflammatory liver disease of unknown etiology. It has been proposed that certain herbs such as black cohosh and dai-saiko might trigger AIH. Khat is an ever green tree whose leaves have been chewed by people in Yemen where AIH is common. Aim of present study was to measure antinuclear antibodies (ANA) and anti-smooth muscle antibodies (ASMA) as serum markers for AIH type1 in healthy people who chew and do not chew khat. It also aimed to determine some other risk factors for ANA and ASMA positivity. A total of 100 healthy individuals were enrolled in this study. They were divided into: Daily khat chewers and non-khat chewers. Three ml peripheral blood was withdrawn from each participant. Blood samples were tested for ANA and ASMA using indirect immunofluorescence assay.The age of khat chewers ranged from 30-60 years with mean age 40.4±7.6 years. Non-khat chewers age ranged from 30-57 years with mean age 39.9±6.2 years. The majority of khat chewers and non-chewers were in age groups 30-39 and 40-49 years old. There is no association between khat chewing and ANA or ASMA serum positivity (χ2 = 0.33, P = 0.39 and χ2 = 1.5, P = 0.16; respectively). However, ANA and ASMA positivity were significantly increased with age of the participants (χ2 = 7.79, P = 0.044 and χ2 = 10.6, P = 0.011, respectively). khat chewing has no association with ANA and ASMA positivity. Nevertheless, ANA and ASMA positivity has an association with aging.

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