Gisa Gerold, Charles M. Rice, Alexander Ploss – 23 November 2010 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) naturally infects only humans and chimpanzees. The determinants responsible for this narrow species tropism are not well defined. Virus cell entry involves human scavenger receptor class B type I (SR‐BI), CD81, claudin‐1 and occludin. Among these, at least CD81 and occludin are utilized in a highly species‐specific fashion, thus contributing to the narrow host range of HCV.

Sen‐Yung Hsieh, Jung‐Ru He, Chih‐Yun Hsu, Wan‐Ju Chen, Rabindranath Bera, Kuo‐Yang Lin, Tsung‐Chieh Shih, Ming‐Chin Yu, Yu‐Jr Lin, Chee‐Jen Chang, Wen‐Hui Weng, Shiu‐Fen Huang – 19 November 2010 – Intrahepatic metastasis is the primary cause of the high recurrence and poor prognosis of human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). However, neither its molecular mechanisms nor markers for its prediction before hepatectomy have been identified. We recently revealed up‐regulation of erythroblastic leukemia viral oncogene homolog 3 (ERBB3) in human HCC.

Andreas Lanitis, Christian Toso – 19 November 2010

Evaggelia Liaskou, Marika Karikoski, Gary M. Reynolds, Patricia F. Lalor, Chris J. Weston, Nick Pullen, Marko Salmi, Sirpa Jalkanen, David H. Adams – 19 November 2010 – Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) and autoimmune hepatitis are hepatic complications associated with inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The expression of mucosal addressin cell adhesion molecule 1 (MAdCAM‐1) on mucosal endothelium is a prerequisite for the development of IBD, and it is also detected on the hepatic vessels of patients with liver diseases associated with IBD.

Rachel A. Lindor, Keith D. Lindor – 19 November 2010

Tao Li, Xu‐Ting Zhi, San‐Yuan Hu – 19 November 2010

Nicolas Moniaux, Haiyan Song, Marion Darnaud, Kévin Garbin, Michelle Gigou, Claudia Mitchell, Didier Samuel, Laure Jamot, Paul Amouyal, Gilles Amouyal, Christian Bréchot, Jamila Faivre – 19 November 2010 – Acute liver failure (ALF) is a rare syndrome with a difficult clinical management and a high mortality rate. During ALF, several molecular pathways governing oxidative stress and apoptosis are activated to induce massive tissue injury and suppress cell proliferation.

Joseph Tam, Jie Liu, Bani Mukhopadhyay, Resat Cinar, Grzegorz Godlewski, George Kunos – 18 November 2010 – Endocannabinoids are lipid mediators of the same cannabinoid (CB) receptors that mediate the effects of marijuana. The endocannabinoid system (ECS) consists of CB receptors, endocannabinoids, and the enzymes involved in their biosynthesis and degradation, and it is present in both brain and peripheral tissues, including the liver. The hepatic ECS is activated in various liver diseases and contributes to the underlying pathologies.

R. Todd Stravitz, Jay H. Lefkowitch, Robert J. Fontana, M. Eric Gershwin, Patrick S. C. Leung, Richard K. Sterling, Michael P. Manns, Gary L. Norman, William M. Lee, and the Acute Liver Failure Study Group – 18 November 2010 – Identifying autoimmune hepatitis as the etiology of acute liver failure (ALF) is potentially important, because administering corticosteroids might avoid the need for liver transplantation. However, clinical and histological criteria of autoimmune ALF (AI‐ALF) have not been defined.

Andrea Snow‐Lampart, Brandi Chappell, Maria Curtis, Yuao Zhu, Florence Myrick, James Schawalder, Kathryn Kitrinos, Evguenia S. Svarovskaia, Michael D. Miller, Jeff Sorbel, Jenny Heathcote, Patrick Marcellin, Katyna Borroto‐Esoda – 18 November 2010 – Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) is a nucleotide analogue with potent activity against human immunodeficiency virus type 1 and hepatitis B virus (HBV). To date, no reports of HBV clinical resistance to TDF have been confirmed.