Claire Terry, Anil Dhawan, Ragai R. Mitry, Sharon C. Lehec, Robin D. Hughes – 26 January 2010 – Cryopreservation of human hepatocytes is important for their use in hepatocyte transplantation. On thawing, cryopreserved hepatocytes often have reduced viability and metabolic function in comparison with fresh cells. The aim of this study was to modify the different steps in the standard cryopreservation procedure in an attempt to improve the overall outcome. Human hepatocytes with a viability of 69% ± SD 16% were isolated from donor livers with a collagenase perfusion technique.

Navdeep Dhillon, Liron Walsh, Bernd Krüger, Anita Mehrotra, Stephen C. Ward, Jim Godbold, Mohamed Radwan, Thomas Schiano, Barbara Murphy, Bernd Schröppel – 26 January 2010 – The complement system has been implicated in the pathogenesis of liver diseases. Human complement component C3 (C3) exists as 2 allotypes, fast (F) and slow (S). We conducted a study to address the influence of these alleles on ischemia‐reperfusion (IR) injury and graft survival in liver transplant recipients. Four hundred thirty patients receiving liver transplants from 2000 to 2004 were included.

26 January 2010

Hsin‐Yun Sun, Thomas V. Cacciarelli, Nina Singh – 26 January 2010 – Whether pretransplant nonviral infections influence outcomes after transplantation in liver transplant recipients in the current era is not well defined. One hundred consecutive patients undergoing liver transplantation in 2005‐2008 were studied. Demographics, posttransplant clinical events, and mortality were compared between recipients with and without infections within 12 months before transplantation.

Johan Friso Lock, Eugen Schwabauer, Peter Martus, Nikolay Videv, Johann Pratschke, Maciej Malinowski, Peter Neuhaus, Martin Stockmann – 26 January 2010 – Initial graft function is a major factor influencing the clinical outcome after liver transplantation (LTX), but a reliable method for assessing and predicting graft dysfunction directly after LTX is not available.

Ismail Ben Mosbah, Joan Roselló‐Catafau, Izabel Alfany‐Fernandez, Antoni Rimola, Pera Puig Parellada, Maria Teresa Mitjavila, Antonin Lojek, Hassen Ben Abdennebi, Olivier Boillot, Juan Rodés, Carmen Peralta – 26 January 2010 – Here we examine the effect of adding carvedilol (CVD) to University of Wisconsin (UW) solution on the preservation of steatotic and nonsteatotic livers during cold ischemia and after normothermic reperfusion. We used an isolated perfused rat liver model. The following protocols were evaluated. Protocol 1 concerned the effect of CVD after cold ischemia.

William Gelson, Matthew Hoare, Sarah Vowler, Arun Shankar, Paul Gibbs, Arne N. Akbar, Graeme J. M. Alexander – 25 January 2010 – Immune senescence is the normal process whereby the human immune system ages, but becomes less effective. We investigated whether liver transplant recipients have features of immune senescence.

Tao Sun, Nan Zhao, Xiu‐lan Zhao, Qiang Gu, Shi‐wu Zhang, Na Che, Xing‐hui Wang, Jing Du, Yi‐xin Liu, Bao‐cun Sun – 25 January 2010 – The up‐regulation and nuclear relocation of epithelial‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) regulator Twist1 have been implicated in the tumor invasion and metastasis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The term vasculogenic mimicry (VM) refers to the unique capability of aggressive tumor cells to mimic the pattern of embryonic vasculogenic networks. However, the relationship between Twist1 and VM formation is not clear.

Lise L. Gluud, Kurt Christensen, Erik Christensen, Aleksander Krag – 25 January 2010 – Vasoconstrictor drugs may improve renal function in hepatorenal syndrome (HRS), but the effect on mortality has not been established. We therefore performed a systematic review of randomized trials on vasoconstrictor drugs for type 1 or type 2 HRS. Mortality was the primary outcome measure. Eligible trials were identified through electronic and manual searches. Intention‐to‐treat random effects meta‐analyses were performed.

Philip N. Newsome – 25 January 2010