Transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt for the treatment of sinusoidal obstruction syndrome in a liver transplant recipient and review of the literature

Isabel Campos‐Varela, Lluís Castells, Cristina Dopazo, Mercedes Pérez‐Lafuente, Helena Allende, Oscar Len, Lluís Llopart, Victor Vargas, Ramón Charco – 7 June 2011 – Sinusoidal obstruction syndrome (SOS) is a rare, life‐threatening clinical syndrome resulting from sinusoidal congestion, and it is characterized by hepatomegaly, ascites, weight gain, and jaundice. The frequency of this condition after liver transplantation (LT) is low, but when SOS is severe and refractory to medical therapy, the ultimate solution is retransplantation.

Hepatocyte cytotoxicity is facilitated by asialoglycoprotein receptor

Clifford S. Guy, Sherri L. Rankin, Tomasz I. Michalak – 7 June 2011 – It has been recently identified that hepatocytes can act as cytotoxic effectors and can kill contacted cells by way of CD95 ligand–CD95 and perforin‐dependent pathways. However, it remained unknown whether hepatocyte‐mediated cell killing is indiscriminant or is directed toward targets with particular cell surface characteristics, as well as whether hepatocytes have the capacity to directly eliminate contacted lymphocytes.

Social barriers to listing for adult liver transplantation: Their prevalence and association with program characteristics

Anna Flattau, Manhal Olaywi, Paul J. Gaglio, Paula Marcus, Paul Meissner, Emily B. L. Dorfman, John F. Reinus – 7 June 2011 – Social barriers to effective medical care are mandated to be routinely assessed as part of an evaluation for liver transplantation. This study explores how frequently liver transplant programs encounter these barriers in patients undergoing an evaluation and whether programs with higher proportions of Medicaid patients, historically disadvantaged minority patients, and rural patients encounter social barriers more frequently.

The reduction of SIRT1 in livers of old mice leads to impaired body homeostasis and to inhibition of liver proliferation

Jingling Jin, Polina Iakova, Yanjun Jiang, Estela E. Medrano, Nikolai A. Timchenko – 2 June 2011 – Age declines liver functions, leading to the development of age‐associated diseases. A member of the sirtuins family, SIRT1, is involved in the control of glucose homeostasis and fat metabolism. Because aging livers have alterations in glucose and fat metabolism, we examined a possible role of SIRT1 in these alterations. We found that aged livers have a reduced expression of SIRT1 and have lost proper control of the regulation of SIRT1 after partial hepatectomy (PH).

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