Kai Sun, Michele A. Battle, Ravi P. Misra, Stephen A. Duncan – 27 April 2009 – Serum response factor (SRF) is a transcription factor that binds to a CarG box motif within the serum response element of genes that are expressed in response to mitogens. SRF plays essential roles in muscle and nervous system development; however, little is known about the role of SRF during liver growth and function. To examine the function of SRF in the liver, we generated mice in which the Srf gene was specifically disrupted in hepatocytes.

Amalia Gastaldelli, Michaela Kozakova, Kurt Højlund, Allan Flyvbjerg, Angela Favuzzi, Asimina Mitrakou, Beverley Balkau, The RISC Investigators – 27 April 2009 – Patients with fatty liver (FL) disease have a high risk of developing diabetes and cardiovascular diseases. The aim was to evaluate the association between FL, insulin resistance (IR), coronary heart disease (CHD) risk, and early atherosclerosis in a large European population (RISC Study).

Chloe L. Thio – 27 April 2009 – Coinfection with human immunodeficiency virus‐1 (HIV) and hepatitis B virus (HBV) is common; worldwide, an estimated 10% of HIV‐infected persons have chronic hepatitis B. Because the incidence of traditional acquired immunodeficiency syndrome–related opportunistic infections has decreased with successful anti‐HIV therapy, liver disease has emerged as a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in HIV‐infected individuals.

Wei Huang, Rishipal Bansode, Madhu Mehta, Kamal D. Mehta – 27 April 2009 – Obesity is an energy balance disorder in which intake is greater than expenditure, with most excess calories stored as triglyceride (TG). We previously reported that mice lacking the β‐isoform of protein kinase C (PKCβ), a diacylglycerol‐ and phospholipid‐dependent kinase, exhibit marked reduction in the whole body TG content, including white adipose tissue (WAT) mass.

Yoann Morice, Maxime Ratinier, Ahmed Miladi, Stéphane Chevaliez, Georgios Germanidis, Heiner Wedemeyer, Syria Laperche, Jean‐Pierre Lavergne, Jean‐Michel Pawlotsky – 27 April 2009 – The existence of hepatitis C virus (HCV) proteins encoded by alternate reading frames overlapping the core‐encoding region has been suggested. Several mechanisms of production have been postulated, and the functions of these proteins in the HCV life cycle remain unknown.

Jessica I. Cohen, Sanjoy Roychowdhury, Patricia M. DiBello, Donald W. Jacobsen, Laura E. Nagy – 27 April 2009 – Ethanol‐induced liver injury is characterized by increased formation of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and inflammatory cytokines, resulting in the development of hepatic steatosis, injury, and cell death by necrosis and apoptosis. Thioredoxin (Trx), a potent antioxidant and antiinflammatory molecule with antiapoptotic properties, protects animals from a number of inflammatory diseases.

Robert J. Fontana – 27 April 2009 – The aim of this review is to summarize the safety profile of the five approved oral nucleoside analogs used to treat chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, focusing on both the class adverse effects and those that have been reported with individual agents, as well as their safety in pregnancy. All nucleoside analogs have a “Black Box” warning because of their potential for inhibition of human DNA polymerase gamma involved in mitochondrial DNA replication.

Haresh Mani, David E. Kleiner – 27 April 2009 – Liver biopsy plays a central role in treatment algorithms in patients with hepatitis B and remains the gold standard for evaluating hepatic pathology. The pathology of hepatitis B is diverse and reflects the natural history of infection. An acute hepatitic pattern with lobular disarray is seen in acute infection, during acute flares of disease, and with acute hepatitis D superinfection. In chronic hepatitis B, inflammation is less pronounced in the immune‐tolerant phase and is prominent during immune‐mediated viral clearance.

Cindy M. Weinbaum, Eric E. Mast, John W. Ward – 27 April 2009 – Early identification of persons with chronic HBV infection enables infected persons to receive necessary care to prevent or delay onset of liver disease, and enables the identification and vaccination of susceptible household contacts and sex partners, interrupting ongoing transmission.

Chien‐Jen Chen, Hwai‐I Yang, Uchenna H. Iloeje, The REVEAL‐HBV Study Group – 27 April 2009 – Serum hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA levels can fluctuate markedly during the course of chronic HBV infection. Both case‐control and cohort studies have shown a significant, dose‐response association between serum HBV DNA levels measured at the time of initial evaluation and the subsequent risk of cirrhosis. A similar direct relationship has been shown for the risk of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in cross‐sectional, case‐control, and cohort studies.