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Introduction: liver enzyme elevation has been reported in SARS-CoV-2 disease (COVID-19) in heterogeneous cohorts, mainly from China. Comprehensive reports from other countries are needed. In this study, we dissect the pattern, evolution, and predictive value of such abnormalities in a cohort from Madrid, Spain., Methods: a retrospective study with a prospective 14-day follow-up of 373 patients with confirmed COVID-19 in five Madrid hospitals, including 50 outpatients. A COVID-19 severe course was defined as the need for mechanical ventilation., Results: a total of 33.1 % of hospitalized patients showed baseline AST elevation and 28.5 % showed ALT elevation, compared with 12 % and 8 % of outpatients (p ≤ 0.001). Baseline AST, ALT and GGT levels correlated with LDH and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels (r ≤ 0.598, p < 0.005). AST elevation was associated with other severity markers such as male sex, lymphopenia, and pneumonia on X-Ray (p < 0.05 for all). ALP and bilirubin levels were rarely increased. Patients with elevated baseline AST showed a progressive normalization of this enzyme and an increase in ALT and GGT levels. Patients with normal baseline AST showed a flattened evolution pattern with levels within the range. Patients with a severe course of COVID-19 more frequently showed elevated baseline AST than those with a milder evolution (54.2 % vs. 25.4 %, p < 0.001). Age, AST and CRP were independent risk factors for a severe course of COVID-19., Conclusion: mild liver enzyme elevation is associated with COVID-19 severity. Baseline AST is an independent predictor of severe COVID-19 course, and tends to normalize over time. ALT and GGT show a late elevation.

Introduction: the presence of donor-specific antibodies (DSA) is thought to affect survival of the allograft and patient after liver transplantation (LT). However, their significance is not well understood., Patients and Methods: a prospective study was performed of 32 adult patients who underwent LT in 2011 to analyze the existence of DSA, associated risk factors and medium-term impact. Immunological determinations were performed immediately before LT and at three, six, 12 months and five years after LT., Results: eight patients (24.2 %) presented pre-formed DSA. However, titers were negative in all patients five years after LT and there were no associated events. Eight out of 24 patients (33.3 %) developed de novo DSA. After five years, only two remained positive; both were class II with high mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) values at diagnosis (over 15,000). No association was found between the development of DSA and the risk of rejection, graft loss or death. However, an increase in liver stiffness values was observed in patients with persistent DSA, and focal sinusoidal deposition of C4d and moderate liver fibrosis were reported., Conclusion: the incidence of DSA is high after LT. In addition, the persistence of de novo DSA could be associated with silent liver fibrosis with a potential impact on graft outcomes.