Daniel Hartmann, Ujala Srivastava, Michaela Thaler, Karin N. Kleinhans, Gisèle N'Kontchou, Annika Scheffold, Kerstin Bauer, Ramona F. Kratzer, Natalia Kloos, Sarah‐Fee Katz, Zhangfa Song, Yvonne Begus‐Nahrmann, Alexander Kleger, Guido von Figura, Pavel Strnad, André Lechel, Cagatay Günes, Andrej Potthoff, Katja Deterding, Heiner Wedemeyer, Zhenyu Ju, Ge Song, Feng Xiao, Sonja Gillen, Hubert Schrezenmeier, Thomas Mertens, Marianne Ziol, Helmut Friess, Michael Jarek, Michael P. Manns, Michel Beaugrand, K.

Byoung Kwon Yoo, Prasanna K. Santhekadur, Rachel Gredler, Dong Chen, Luni Emdad, Sujit Bhutia, Lewis Pannell, Paul B. Fisher, Devanand Sarkar – 10 February 2011 – There is virtually no effective treatment for advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and novel targets need to be identified to develop effective treatment. We recently documented that the oncogene Astrocyte elevated gene‐1 (AEG‐1) plays a seminal role in hepatocarcinogenesis.

Jung Min Lee, Sang Hoon Ahn, Hyon Suk Kim, Hana Park, Hye Young Chang, Do Young Kim, Seong Gyu Hwang, Kyu Sung Rim, Chae Yoon Chon, Kwang‐Hyub Han, Jun Yong Park – 10 February 2011 – Quantitative hepatitis B surface antigen (qHBsAg) and quantitative hepatitis B e antigen (qHBeAg) titers are emerging as useful tools for measuring viral loads and for predicting the virological response (VR) and serological response (SR) to pegylated interferon therapy. However, the clinical utility of these assays in patients taking entecavir (ETV) is largely unknown.

Luca Di Tommaso, Annarita Destro, Valentina Fabbris, Gaia Spagnuolo, Anna Laura Fracanzani, Silvia Fargion, Marco Maggioni, Carlo Patriarca, Roberto Maria Macchi, Michela Quagliuolo, Mauro Borzio, Massimo Iavarone, Angelo Sangiovanni, Massimo Colombo, Massimo Roncalli – 10 February 2011 – The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases guidelines recommend the use of all available markers for improving the accuracy of the diagnosis of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Andrew King, Gail Masterton, Bridget Gunson, Simon Olliff, Doris Redhead, Kamarjit Mangat, Gabriel Oniscu, Peter Hayes, Dhiraj Tripathi – 4 February 2011 – The role of transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunt (TIPS) insertion in managing the complications of portal hypertension is well established, but its utility in patients who have previously undergone liver transplantation is not well documented. Twenty‐two orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) patients and 44 nontransplant patients (matched controls) who underwent TIPS were analyzed.

Cristiano Quintini, Giuseppe D'Amico, Chase Brown, Federico Aucejo, Koji Hashimoto, Dympna M. Kelly, Bijan Eghtesad, Mark Sands, John J. Fung, Charles M. Miller – 4 February 2011 – Refractory ascites (RA) is a challenging complication after orthotopic liver transplantation. Its treatment consists of the removal of the precipitating factors. When the etiology is unknown, supportive treatment can be attempted. In severe cases, transjugular intrahepatic portosystemic shunts, portocaval shunts, and liver retransplantation have been used with marginal results.

Andreas Pfannkuche, Katrin Büther, Juliane Karthe, Marion Poenisch, Ralf Bartenschlager, Mirko Trilling, Hartmut Hengel, Dieter Willbold, Dieter Häussinger, Johannes Georg Bode – 31 January 2011 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) is a leading cause of chronic liver disease worldwide and establishes a persistent infection in more than 60% of infected individuals. This high frequency of persistent infection indicates that HCV has evolved efficient strategies to interfere with the adaptive and innate immune response and to occupy and use host cell infrastructure.

Maria Stepanova, Zobair M. Younossi – 31 January 2011

Waka Ohishi, Saeko Fujiwara, John B. Cologne, Gen Suzuki, Masazumi Akahoshi, Nobuo Nishi, Masataka Tsuge, Kazuaki Chayama – 31 January 2011 – In cohort studies of atomic bomb survivors and Mayak nuclear facility workers, radiation‐associated increases in liver cancer risk were observed, but hepatitis B virus (HBV) and hepatitis C virus (HCV) infections were not taken strictly into account. We identified 359 hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) cases between 1970 and 2002 in the cohort of atomic bomb survivors and estimated cumulative incidence of HCC by radiation dose.

Liang Shen – 31 January 2011