Hilde Herrema, Maxi Meissner, Theo H. van Dijk, Gemma Brufau, Renze Boverhof, Maaike H. Oosterveer, Dirk‐Jan Reijngoud, Michael Müller, Frans Stellaard, Albert K. Groen, Folkert Kuipers – 23 October 2009 – Diabetes is characterized by high blood glucose levels and dyslipidemia. Bile salt sequestration has been found to improve both plasma glycemic control and cholesterol profiles in diabetic patients. Yet bile salt sequestration is also known to affect triglyceride (TG) metabolism, possibly through signaling pathways involving farnesoid X receptor (FXR) and liver X receptor α (LXRα).

Hisashi Moriguchi, Raymond T. Chung, Chifumi Sato – 22 October 2009

Kenneth E. Sherman, Vincent Soriano, Raymond T. Chung – 22 October 2009

Marina Núñez – 22 October 2009

Takahiro Negishi, Yoko Nagai, Yoichi Asaoka, Mami Ohno, Misako Namae, Hiroshi Mitani, Takashi Sasaki, Nobuyoshi Shimizu, Shuji Terai, Isao Sakaida, Hisato Kondoh, Toshiaki Katada, Makoto Furutani‐Seiki, Hiroshi Nishina – 22 October 2009 – During vertebrate embryogenesis, the liver develops at a precise location along the endodermal primitive gut tube because of signaling delivered by adjacent mesodermal tissues. Although several signaling molecules have been associated with liver formation, the molecular mechanism that regulates liver specification is still unclear.

Wei‐Dong Chen, Yan‐Dong Wang, Lisheng Zhang, Steven Shiah, Meihua Wang, Fan Yang, Donna Yu, Barry M. Forman, Wendong Huang – 22 October 2009 – Elucidating the mechanism of liver regeneration could lead to life‐saving therapy for a large number of patients, especially elderly patients, after segmental liver transplantation or resection of liver tumors. The forkhead box m1b (Foxm1b) transcription factor is required for normal liver regeneration.

Masao Shinohara, Cheng Ji, Neil Kaplowitz – 22 October 2009 – Chronic ethanol infusion resulted in greater serum alanine aminotransferase elevation, lipid accumulation, necroinflammation, and focal hepatic cell death in mice than rats. Mice exhibited a remarkable hyperhomocysteinemia but no increase was seen in rats. Similarly, a high‐methionine low‐folate diet (HMLF) induced less steatosis, serum alanine aminotransferase increase, and hyperhomocysteinemia in rats than in mice.

Xingshun Qi, Guohong Han, Jianhong Wang, Kaichun Wu, Daiming Fan – 22 October 2009

Francois H. T. Duong, Verena Christen, Shanshan Lin, Markus H. Heim – 22 October 2009 – The molecular mechanisms underlying hepatocarcinogenesis in chronic viral hepatitis are poorly understood. A potential tumorigenic pathway could involve protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A) and protein arginine methyltransferase 1 (PRMT1), because both enzymes are dysregulated in chronic hepatitis C, and both enzymes have been involved in chromatin remodeling and DNA damage repair.

Yujuan Xiong, Jian‐Hong Fang, Jing‐Ping Yun, Jine Yang, Ying Zhang, Wei‐Hua Jia, Shi‐Mei Zhuang – 19 October 2009 – Based on microarray data, we have previously shown a significant down‐regulation of miR‐29 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) tissues. To date, the role of miR‐29 deregulation in hepatocarcinogenesis and the signaling pathways by which miR‐29 exerts its function and modulates the malignant phenotypes of HCC cells remain largely unknown.