In vivo adaptation of hepatitis C virus in chimpanzees for efficient virus production and evasion of apoptosis

Mohsan Saeed, Masaaki Shiina, Tomoko Date, Daisuke Akazawa, Noriyuki Watanabe, Asako Murayama, Tetsuro Suzuki, Haruo Watanabe, Nobuhiko Hiraga, Michio Imamura, Kazuaki Chayama, Youkyung Choi, Krzysztof Krawczynski, T. Jake Liang, Takaji Wakita, Takanobu Kato – 29 April 2011 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) employs various strategies to establish persistent infection that can cause chronic liver disease.

Hypoxia‐inducible transcription factor 2α promotes steatohepatitis through augmenting lipid accumulation, inflammation, and fibrosis

Aijuan Qu, Matthew Taylor, Xiang Xue, Tsutomu Matsubara, Daniel Metzger, Pierre Chambon, Frank J. Gonzalez, Yatrik M. Shah – 29 April 2011 – Oxygen dynamics in the liver is a central signaling mediator controlling hepatic homeostasis, and dysregulation of cellular oxygen is associated with liver injury. Moreover, the transcription factor relaying changes in cellular oxygen levels, hypoxia‐inducible factor (HIF), is critical in liver metabolism, and sustained increase in HIF signaling can lead to spontaneous steatosis, inflammation, and liver tumorigenesis.

Metabolic syndrome increases the risk of primary liver cancer in the United States: A study in the SEER‐medicare database

Tania M. Welzel, Barry I. Graubard, Stefan Zeuzem, Hashem B. El‐Serag, Jessica A. Davila, Katherine A. McGlynn – 29 April 2011 – Incidence rates of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) have increased in the United States. Metabolic syndrome is recognized as a risk factor for HCC and a postulated one for ICC. The magnitude of risk, however, has not been investigated on a population level in the United States. We therefore examined the association between metabolic syndrome and the development of these cancers.

Novel engineered targeted interferon‐gamma blocks hepatic fibrogenesis in mice

Ruchi Bansal, Jai Prakash, Eduard Post, Leonie Beljaars, Detlef Schuppan, Klaas Poelstra – 29 April 2011 – Liver fibrogenesis is a process tightly controlled by endogenous anti‐ and pro‐fibrogenic factors. Interferon gamma (IFNγ) is a potent antifibrogenic cytokine in vitro and might therefore represent a powerful therapeutic entity. However, its poor pharmacokinetics and adverse effects, due to the presence of IFNγ receptors on nearly all cells, prevented its clinical application so far.

Hepatitis C virus–infected women have a higher risk of advanced fibrosis and graft loss after liver transplantation than men

Jennifer C. Lai, Elizabeth C. Verna, Robert S. Brown, Jacqueline G. O'Leary, James F. Trotter, Lisa M. Forman, Jeffrey D. Duman, Richard G. Foster, R. Todd Stravitz, Norah A. Terrault, for the Consortium to Study Health Outcomes in HCV Liver Transplant Recipients (CRUSH‐C) – 28 April 2011 – In natural history studies of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, women have a lower risk of disease progression to cirrhosis. Whether female sex influences outcomes of HCV in the posttransplantation setting is unknown.

Hepatic organic anion transporting polypeptide transporter and thyroid hormone receptor interplay determines cholesterol and glucose homeostasis

Henriette E. Meyer zu Schwabedissen, Joseph A. Ware, David Finkelstein, Amarjit S. Chaudhry, Sara Mansell, Matilde Leon‐Ponte, Stephen C. Strom, Hani Zaher, Ute I. Schwarz, David J. Freeman, Erin G. Schuetz, Rommel G. Tirona, Richard B. Kim – 28 April 2011 – The role of organic anion transporting polypeptides (OATPs), particularly the members of OATP1B subfamily, in hepatocellular handling of endogenous and exogenous compounds is an important and emerging area of research.

Critical role of tumor necrosis factor receptor 1, but not 2, in hepatic stellate cell proliferation, extracellular matrix remodeling, and liver fibrogenesis

Núria Tarrats, Anna Moles, Albert Morales, Carmen García‐Ruiz, José C. Fernández‐Checa, Montserrat Marí – 26 April 2011 – Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has been implicated in the progression of many chronic liver diseases leading to fibrosis; however, the role of TNF in fibrogenesis is controversial and the specific contribution of TNF receptors to hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation remains to be established.

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