Xiaodong Wang, Defeng Wu, Lili Yang, Arthur I. Cederbaum – 11 July 2011 – Cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1) induction and tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF‐α) production are key risk factors in alcoholic liver injury. Increased oxidative stress from CYP2E1 induction by pyrazole in vivo sensitizes the liver to TNF‐α‐induced hepatotoxicity by a mechanism involving the activation of c‐jun N‐terminal kinase (JNK) and mitochondrial damage. The aim of this study was to evaluate whether JNK1 or JNK2 plays a role in this potentiated hepatotoxicity.

Claudia O. Zein, Lisa M. Yerian, Prema Gogate, Rocio Lopez, John P. Kirwan, Ariel E. Feldstein, Arthur J. McCullough – 11 July 2011 – The primary aim of this study was to compare the effects of pentoxifylline (PTX) versus placebo on the histological features of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). In all, 55 adults with biopsy‐confirmed NASH were randomized to receive PTX at a dose of 400 mg three times a day (n = 26) or placebo (n = 29) over 1 year.

Richard B. Freeman – 11 July 2011

Paige Porrett, Abraham Shaked – 11 July 2011 – Key Points

Danny Ka Ho Wong, Fung Yu Huang, Ching Lung Lai, Ronnie Tung Ping Poon, Wai Kay Seto, James Fung, Ivan Fan Ngai Hung, Man Fung Yuen – 11 July 2011 – We aimed to investigate the incidence of occult hepatitis B infection (OBI) in patients with “cryptogenic” hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and to study the HBV replicative activity in these patients. Tumorous and adjacent nontumorous liver tissues were obtained from 33 cryptogenic HCC patients and 28 HCC patients with identifiable causes (13 with chronic hepatitis B [CHB], six with chronic hepatitis C, and nine alcohol‐related).

Lucy Golden‐Mason, Kiran M. Bambha, Linling Cheng, Charles D. Howell, Milton W. Taylor, Paul J. Clark, Nezam Afdhal, Hugo R. Rosen, on behalf of the Virahep‐C Study Group – 11 July 2011 – Natural killer (NK) cells constitute a first line of defense against viral infections; their function is governed by the integration of signals from multiple activating and inhibitory surface receptors. We hypothesized that because NKs become rapidly activated by cytokines, response to anti‐hepatitis C virus (HCV) therapy would be predicted by the phenotype and function of NKs.

Hsin‐Yun Sun, Thomas V. Cacciarelli, Marilyn M. Wagener, Nina Singh – 8 July 2011 – Whether the duration of renal replacement therapy (RRT) after liver transplantation influences the rate and types of bacterial infections is not known. In this study, 47 of 299 consecutive liver transplant recipients (16%) required posttransplant RRT. The incidence of bacterial infections was higher in the RRT group versus the non‐RRT group (8.84 versus 1.38 per 1000 patient days, P < 0.001).

Ian Webzell, David Ball, James Bell, Roy A. Sherwood, Andrew Marsh, John G. O'Grady, Nigel D. Heaton – 8 July 2011 – Toxicological urinalysis is a highly sensitive and specific test that detects recent substance use. It has been established for substance misuse treatment but has not been routinely used at liver transplantation (LT) centers. Patients with a history of substance misuse are required to be abstinent from alcohol and illicit drugs before they are listed for LT.

Eric Levesque, Emir Hoti, Meriem Khalfallah, Chady Salloum, Luana Ricca, Eric Vibert, Daniel Azoulay – 8 July 2011 – Several donor and graft characteristics are associated with higher failure rates for deceased donor liver transplantation (LT). The influence of reversible cardiac arrest in the donor on these failure rates is unclear because of scarce and inconsistent data. The aim of this study was to determine whether reversible cardiac arrest in the donor could affect the early postoperative outcome of LT.

Seth A. Waits, Brandon M. Wojcik, Shijie Cai, Amit K. Mathur, Michael J. Englesbe – 8 July 2011 – The effect of occlusive portal vein thrombosis (PVT) on the mortality of pediatric liver transplant candidates and recipients is poorly defined. Using standard multivariate techniques, we studied the relationship between PVT and waiting‐list and posttransplant survival rates with data from the Scientific Registry of Transplant Recipients (September 2001 to December 2007). In all, 5087 liver transplant candidates and 3630 liver transplant recipients were evaluated during the period.