Liver transplantation in patients with end‐stage liver disease requiring intensive care unit admission and intubation

Jan Knaak, Mark McVey, Fateh Bazerbachi, Nicolás Goldaracena, Vinzent Spetzler, Nazia Selzner, Mark Cattral, Paul Greig, Les Lilly, Ian McGilvray, Gary Levy, Anand Ghanekar, Eberhard Renner, David Grant, Laura Hawryluck, Markus Selzner – 10 April 2015 – Data regarding transplantation outcomes in ventilated intensive care unit (ICU)–dependent patients with end‐stage liver disease (ESLD) are conflicting. This single‐center cohort study investigated the outcomes of patients with ESLD who were intubated with mechanical support before liver transplantation (LT).

First experience of liver transplantation with type 2 donation after cardiac death in France

Eric Savier, Federica Dondero, Eric Vibert, Daniel Eyraud, Hélène Brisson, Bruno Riou, Fabienne Fieux, Salima Naili‐Kortaia, Denis Castaing, Jean‐Jacques Rouby, Olivier Langeron, Safi Dokmak, Laurent Hannoun, Jean‐Christophe Vaillant, the Donation After Cardiac Death Study Group – 10 April 2015 – Organ donation after unexpected cardiac death [type 2 donation after cardiac death (DCD)] is currently authorized in France and has been since 2006. Following the Spanish experience, a national protocol was established to perform liver transplantation (LT) with type 2 DCD donors.

Modeling correction of severe urea cycle defects in the growing murine liver using a hybrid recombinant adeno‐associated virus/piggyBac transposase gene delivery system

Sharon C. Cunningham, Susan M. Siew, Claus V. Hallwirth, Christine Bolitho, Natsuki Sasaki, Gagan Garg, Iacovos P. Michael, Nicola A. Hetherington, Kevin Carpenter, Gustavo de Alencastro, Andras Nagy, Ian E. Alexander – 9 April 2015 – Liver‐targeted gene therapy based on recombinant adeno‐associated viral vectors (rAAV) shows promising therapeutic efficacy in animal models and adult‐focused clinical trials.

Prevention of acute exacerbation of chronic hepatitis B infection in cancer patients receiving chemotherapy in a hepatitis B virus endemic area

Ping‐I Hsu, Kwok‐Hung Lai, Jin‐Shiung Cheng, Sung‐Shuo Kao, Yuan‐Rung Li, Wei‐Chih Sun, Wen‐Chi Chen, Kung‐Hung Lin, Chih‐An Shin, Po‐Hung Chiang, Yun‐Da Li, Wei‐Ting Ou, Hui‐Chun Chen, Hsien‐Chung Yu – 9 April 2015 – Reactivation of hepatitis B viral (HBV) infection in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy may cause interruption of chemotherapy and lead to liver failure and death. In our institute, a computerized order entry–based alert system was introduced in September 2011 to remind healthcare providers of HBV testing when prescribing chemotherapy.

The severity of steatosis influences liver stiffness measurement in patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease

Salvatore Petta, Marcello Maida, Fabio Salvatore Macaluso, Vito Di Marco, Calogero Cammà, Daniela Cabibi, Antonio Craxì – 9 April 2015 – In nonalcoholic fatty liver disease, the influence of severity of steatosis on liver stiffness measurement (LSM) is poorly studied and still debated. We assessed the impact of steatosis severity and its ultrasonographic (US) sign, severe bright liver echo pattern, on LSM values and on transient elastography accuracy for the diagnosis of liver fibrosis in a cohort of consecutive patients with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease.

Hepatic lipid droplet biology: Getting to the root of fatty liver

Douglas G. Mashek, Salmaan A. Khan, Aishwarya Sathyanarayan, Jonathan M. Ploeger, Mallory P. Franklin – 8 April 2015 – Hepatic steatosis is defined by the accumulation of lipid droplets (LDs). Once thought to be only inert energy storage depots, LDs are increasingly recognized as organelles that have important functions in hepatocytes beyond lipid storage. The lipid and protein composition of LDs is highly dynamic and influences their intrinsic metabolism and signaling properties, which ultimately links them to the changes in hepatic function.

The biliary epithelium presents antigens to and activates natural killer T cells

Elisabeth Schrumpf, Corey Tan, Tom H. Karlsen, Jon Sponheim, Niklas K. Björkström, Olav Sundnes, Kristian Alfsnes, Arthur Kaser, Douglas M. Jefferson, Yoshiyuki Ueno, Tor J. Eide, Guttorm Haraldsen, Sebastian Zeissig, Mark A. Exley, Richard S. Blumberg, Espen Melum – 8 April 2015 – Cholangiocytes express antigen‐presenting molecules, but it has been unclear whether they can present antigens. Natural killer T (NKT) cells respond to lipid antigens presented by the major histocompatibility complex class I‐like molecule CD1d and are abundant in the liver.

Damage‐associated molecular pattern–activated neutrophil extracellular trap exacerbates sterile inflammatory liver injury

Hai Huang, Samer Tohme, Ahmed B. Al‐Khafaji, Sheng Tai, Patricia Loughran, Li Chen, Shu Wang, Jiyun Kim, Timothy Billiar, Yanming Wang, Allan Tsung – 8 April 2015 – Innate immunity plays a crucial role in the response to sterile inflammation such as liver ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury. The initiation of liver I/R injury results in the release of damage‐associated molecular patterns, which trigger an innate immune and inflammatory cascade through pattern recognition receptors.

Meeting report of the 2014 joint international congress of the International Liver Transplantation Society, Liver Intensive Care Group of Europe, and European Liver and Intestinal Association

Geraldine Diaz, Josh Levitsky, Gabriel Oniscu – 8 April 2015 – The 2014 Annual Meeting of the International Liver Transplantation Society was held in London, England. This was the 20th meeting of the Society and was marked by a joint meeting including the European Liver and Intestinal Association as well as the Liver Intensive Care Group of Europe. The meeting included symposia, invited lectures, debates, oral presentations, and posters. The principal themes were living donation, expanding the deceased donor pool, machine preservation, and new oral therapies for hepatitis C virus.

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