Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39812958›Full record

ReviewMetabolic brain disease2025

Ammonia and beyond - biomarkers of hepatic encephalopathy.

Juan-José Gallego, María-Pilar Ballester, Alessandra Fiorillo, Franc Casanova-Ferrer, Adrià López-Gramaje, Amparo Urios, Yaiza María Arenas, María-Pilar Ríos, Lucía Durbán, Javier Megías and 5 more

Abstract readReview
In one paragraph

Review in Metabolic brain disease, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 10 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
10citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

10 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Neurofilament Light Chain in Cerebrospinal Fluid and Blood Identifies Patients With Minimal and Overt Hepatic Encephalopathy.Liver international : official journal of the International Association for the Study of the Liver · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. [Clinical research progress in 2025 for hepatic fibrosis, cirrhosis, and portal hypertension].Zhonghua gan zang bing za zhi = Zhonghua ganzangbing zazhi = Chinese journal of hepatology · 2026
    Article
  5. Article
  6. Review
  7. Review
  8. Article
  9. Article
  10. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

15 authors.

Juan-José Gallego *Fundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
María-Pilar Ballester *Fundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Alessandra FiorilloFundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Franc Casanova-FerrerFundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Adrià López-GramajeDepartamento de Patología, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Amparo UriosFundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Yaiza María ArenasDepartamento de Patología, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
María-Pilar RíosServicio de Medicina Digestiva, Hospital Arnau de Vilanova, 46015, Valencia, Spain.
Lucía DurbánServicio de Medicina Digestiva, Hospital Arnau de Vilanova, 46015, Valencia, Spain.
Javier MegíasDepartamento de Patología, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Teresa San-MiguelDepartamento de Patología, Universidad de Valencia, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Salvador BenllochServicio de Medicina Digestiva, Hospital Arnau de Vilanova, 46015, Valencia, Spain.
Paloma LluchServicio de Medicina Digestiva, Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia, Valencia, 46010, Spain.
Rajiv JalanLiver Failure Group, Institute for Liver and Digestive Health, University College London, Royal Free Campus, London, UK. r.jalan@ucl.ac.uk.
Carmina MontoliuFundación de Investigación Hospital Clínico Universitario de Valencia-INCLIVA, Valencia, 46010, Spain. carmina.montoliu@uv.es.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Ammonia is a product of amino acid metabolism that accumulates in the blood of patients with liver cirrhosis, leading to neurotoxic effects and hepatic encephalopathy (HE). HE manifestations can range from mild, subclinical disturbances in cognition, or minimal HE (mHE) to gross disorientation and coma, a condition referred to as overt HE. Many blood-based biomarkers reflecting these neurotoxic effects of ammonia and liver disease can be measured in the blood allowing the development of new biomarkers to diagnose cirrhosis patients at risk of developing HE. The effect of ammonia on the brain is modulated by severity of systemic inflammation, and both hyperammonemia and inflammation can induce oxidative stress, which may mediate the neurological alterations associated to HE. This review aims to provide the latest evidence on biomarkers of HE beyond ammonia. We present different approaches to predict overt HE based on the combination of blood ammonia with some analytical and clinical parameters. Magnetic resonance analysis of brain images could also provide sensitive diagnostic biomarkers based on neuroimaging parameters. Some reports suggest that markers of systemic inflammation, oxidative stress, and central nervous system-derived components, may serve as additional biomarkers of HE. The involvement of extracellular vesicles and microbiota in the pathophysiology of mHE and HE has recently acquired importance and it would be interesting to explore their usefulness as early biomarkers of the disease. It is important to have a biomarker or a combination of them for early diagnosis of mHE to improve its treatment and prevent progression to overt HE.

Indexed as

AmmoniaHepatic EncephalopathyBiomarkersBrainHumansHyperammonemiaLiver CirrhosisOxidative StressAmmoniaBiomarkersAmmoniaBiomarkerBrain injury markersExtracellular vesiclesHepatic encephalopathyInflammationMicrobiotaMinimal hepatic encephalopathyNeuroimaging

Identifiers

PMID39812958
PMCPMC11735499

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.