Yan Wu, Dong‐Ming Kuang, Wei‐Dong Pan, Yun‐Le Wan, Xiang‐Ming Lao, Dian Wang, Xue‐Feng Li, Limin Zheng – 7 December 2012 – Defects in natural killer (NK) cell functions are necessary for tumor immune escape, but their underlying regulatory mechanisms in human cancers remain largely unknown. Here we show, in detailed studies of NK cells in 294 untreated patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), that accumulation of functional NK cells in HCC tissues could predict improved survival of patients.

Rishi Agarwal, Joseph Buell, Nathan J. Shores – 7 December 2012

Leon A. Adams, Scott W. White, Julie A. Marsh, Stephen J. Lye, Kristin L. Connor, Richard Maganga, Oyekoya T. Ayonrinde, John K. Olynyk, Trevor A. Mori, Lawrence J. Beilin, Lyle J. Palmer, Jeffrey M. Hamdorf, Craig E. Pennell – 5 December 2012 – Genetic factors account for a significant proportion of the phenotypic variance of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD); however, very few predisposing genes have been identified.

Sung Keun Park, Mi Hae Seo, Ho Cheol Shin, Jae‐Hong Ryoo – 5 December 2012 – There have been several reports about the clinical association between type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM) and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, most of the studies were about the unilateral effects of type 2 DM on NAFLD, and studies on the reverse relation are rare. Thus, this study was designed to investigate the effect of NAFLD on type 2 DM. We conducted a prospective cohort study on 25,232 Korean men without type 2 DM for 5 years.

Davide Bitetto, Nadia Bortolotti, Edmondo Falleti, Sara Vescovo, Carlo Fabris, Giovanna Fattovich, Annarosa Cussigh, Sara Cmet, Ezio Fornasiere, Elisa Ceriani, Mario Pirisi, Pierluigi Toniutto – 5 December 2012 – Recent data suggest that vitamin A modulates the expression of type I interferon receptor enhancing the antireplication effect of interferon‐α on hepatitis C virus (HCV).

Sandra Westhaus, Dorothea Bankwitz, Stefanie Ernst, Katrin Rohrmann, Ilka Wappler, Clemens Agné, Maren Luchtefeld, Bernhard Schieffer, Christoph Sarrazin, Michael P. Manns, Thomas Pietschmann, Sandra Ciesek, Thomas von Hahn – 5 December 2012 – Oxidized low‐density lipoprotein (oxLDL) has been reported as an inhibitor of hepatitis C virus (HCV) cell entry, making it the only known component of human lipid metabolism with an antiviral effect on HCV.

Sachiyo Yoshio, Tatsuya Kanto, Shoko Kuroda, Tokuhiro Matsubara, Koyo Higashitani, Naruyasu Kakita, Hisashi Ishida, Naoki Hiramatsu, Hiroaki Nagano, Masaya Sugiyama, Kazumoto Murata, Takasuke Fukuhara, Yoshiharu Matsuura, Norio Hayashi, Masashi Mizokami, Tetsuo Takehara – 5 December 2012 – The polymorphisms in the interleukin (IL)‐28B (interferon‐lambda [IFN]‐λ3) gene are strongly associated with the efficacy of hepatitis C virus (HCV) clearance.

David S. Goldberg, Amanda Camp, Alvaro Martinez‐Camacho, Lisa Forman, Brett Fortune, K. Rajender Reddy – 5 December 2012 – Patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) are at increased risk for bacterial cholangitis because of biliary strictures and bile stasis. A subset of PSC patients suffer from repeated episodes of bacterial cholangitis, which can lead to frequent hospitalizations and impaired quality of life.

Stephen J. Polyak, Peter Ferenci, Jean‐Michel Pawlotsky – 5 December 2012

A. Sidney Barritt, Stephen A. Telloni, Clarence W. Potter, David A. Gerber, Paul H. Hayashi – 5 December 2012 – Prior studies have examined the impact of demographic factors on liver transplant outcomes. These factors may be surrogate markers for access to medical care. We investigated physician density in referred patients' hospital service areas (HSAs) as a factor in patients' probability of receiving a liver transplant. We performed a retrospective review of patients referred for liver transplantation from 2002 through 2010.