Shuye Zhang, Karen Kodys, Gregory J. Babcock, Gyongyi Szabo – 10 May 2012 – Recognition of hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐infected hepatocyes and interferon (IFN) induction are critical in antiviral immune response. We hypothesized that cell‐cell contact between plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs) and HCV‐infected cells was required for IFN‐α induction through the involvement of cell‐surface molecules.

Frank Grünhage, Katrin Hochrath, Marcin Krawczyk, Aksana Höblinger, Barbara Obermayer‐Pietsch, Jürgen Geisel, Michael Trauner, Tilman Sauerbruch, Frank Lammert – 10 May 2012 – Recently, genome‐wide studies identified genetic variants that affect serum 25‐hydroxyvitamin D levels in healthy populations (rs12785878, near dehydrocholesterol reductase, DHCR7; rs10741657, at CYP2R1; and rs7041, at vitamin D binding protein, GC).

Masanobu Tsuda, Weici Zhang, Guo‐Xiang Yang, Koichi Tsuneyama, Yugo Ando, Kazuhito Kawata, Ogyi Park, Patrick S.C. Leung, Ross L. Coppel, Aftab A. Ansari, William M. Ridgway, Bin Gao, Zhe‐Xiong Lian, Richard Flavell, Xiao‐Song He, M.Eric Gershwin – 10 May 2012 – Mice with a dominant‐negative transforming growth factor β receptor restricted to T cells (dnTGFβRII mice) develop an inflammatory biliary ductular disease that strongly resembles human primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC).

Anupama Raghuram, Alejandro Restrepo, Saman Safadjou, Jennifer Cooley, Mark Orloff, Dwight Hardy, Sam Butler, Christine E. Koval – 10 May 2012 – Invasive fungal infections (IFIs) are associated with a high mortality rate for liver transplantation (LT) recipients. To study the incidence of and risk factors for IFIs in LT recipients and the associated mortality rates, we retrospectively reviewed the records of first‐time deceased donor LT recipients (January 2003 to December 2007). The incidence of IFIs was 12%.

Vincenzo Cardinale, Guido Carpino, Alfredo Cantafora, Lola M. Reid, Eugenio Gaudio, Domenico Alvaro – 10 May 2012

Marie Sinclair, Mathis Grossmann, Paul Gow, Peter Angus – 10 May 2012

Edward William Holt – 10 May 2012

Shinya Maekawa, Minoru Sakamoto, Mika Miura, Makoto Kadokura, Ryota Sueki, Kazuki Komase, Hiroko Shindo, Nobutoshi Komatsu, Kuniaki Shindo, Asuka Kanayama, Takako Ohmori, Fumitake Amemiya, Shinichi Takano, Tatsuya Yamaguchi, Yasuhiro Nakayama, Takatoshi Kitamura, Taisuke Inoue, Shunichi Okada, Nobuyuki Enomoto – 10 May 2012 – To comprehensively characterize the contribution of virological factors as well as interleukin‐28B (IL28B) single‐nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in determining treatment responses in pegylated‐interferon plus ribavirin (Peg‐IFN/RBV) therapy for chronic hepatitis C vir

Lauren E. Holz, Joo Chun Yoon, Sukanya Raghuraman, Susan Moir, Michael C. Sneller, Barbara Rehermann – 4 May 2012 – Mixed cryoglobulinemia (MC) is the most common extrahepatic manifestation of chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Although the formation of inflammation‐triggering immune complexes is driven by clonal expansions of autoreactive B cells, we found total B cell numbers paradoxically reduced in HCV‐infected patients with MC.

Xiao Qi Wang, Chung Mau Lo, Lin Chen, Cindy K.Y. Cheung, Zhen Fan Yang, Yong Xiong Chen, Michael N. Ng, Wan Ching Yu, Xiaoyan Ming, Wu Zhang, David W.Y. Ho, See Ching Chan, Sheung Tat Fan – 27 April 2012 – Liver transplantation (LT) is a cure for many liver diseases. Blood chimerism of donor origin can develop after LT, which raises the possibility of the existence of hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) in the liver. We characterized the blood chimerism in a large cohort of 249 LT patients and analyzed putative HSPCs in adult human livers.