Primary biliary cirrhosis after liver transplantation: Influence of immunosuppression and human leukocyte antigen locus disparity

Pinelopi Manousou, Vasiliki Arvaniti, Emmanuel Tsochatzis, Graziella Isgro, Kate Jones, Graham Shirling, Amar P. Dhillon, James O'Beirne, David Patch, Andrew K. Burroughs – 28 October 2009 – Patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), despite excellent outcomes after liver transplantation (LT), may develop recurrent primary biliary cirrhosis (rPBC). The impact of immunosuppression and HLA mismatches on rPBC is unclear. We evaluated 103 consecutive PBC patients who underwent transplantation (follow‐up ≥ 10 months) with serial protocol biopsies.

Factors influencing liver transplant length of stay at two large‐volume transplant centers

W. Kenneth Washburn, Nicholas A. Meo, Glenn A. Halff, John P. Roberts, Sandy Feng – 28 October 2009 – Length of stay (LOS) is considered a reliable surrogate for liver transplant resource utilization. Little information exists about how donor and recipient variables interact to affect transplant LOS. Data for adult, non–status 1 transplants (1998–2005), including the donor risk index (DRI) and Model for End‐Stage Liver Disease (MELD) scores, were collected from 2 institutions (n = 745 for center A and n = 710 for center B).

Is the immediate reversal of diastolic dysfunction of cirrhotic cardiomyopathy after liver transplantation a sign of the metabolic etiology?

Kyota Fukazawa, Edward Gologorsky, Vinaya Manmohansingh, Seigo Nishida, Michael M. Vigoda, Ernesto A. Pretto – 28 October 2009 – Cirrhotic cardiomyopathy currently is believed to be a multifactorial entity. This communication describes a case of immediate intraoperative recovery of diastolic function following liver transplantation. This suggests that an underlying metabolic inhibition of myocardial metabolism is an important factor in the development of cardiomyopathy in end‐stage liver disease. Liver Transpl 15:1417–1419, 2009. © 2009 AASLD.

Exaggerated up‐regulation of tumor necrosis factor α–dependent apoptosis in the older mouse liver following reperfusion injury: Targeting liver protective strategies to patient age

Markus Selzner, Nazia Selzner, Limin Chen, Ivan Borozan, Jing Sun, Max Xue‐Zhong, Jianhua Zhang, Ian D. McGilvray – 28 October 2009 – Although it is becoming increasingly common to accept livers from older donors for transplantation, old livers are more damaged by hepatic ischemia and reperfusion injury (HIRI) than young livers. We hypothesized that this age‐related susceptibility to HIRI is due to increased hepatocellular apoptosis driven by tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα).

Report of the first international liver transplantation society expert panel consensus conference on renal insufficiency in liver transplantation

Michael R. Charlton, William J. Wall, Akinlolu O. Ojo, Pere Ginés, Stephen Textor, Fuad S. Shihab, Paul Marotta, Marcelo Cantarovich, James D. Eason, Russell H. Wiesner, Michael A. Ramsay, Juan C. Garcia‐Valdecasas, James M. Neuberger, Sandy Feng, Connie L. Davis, Thomas A. Gonwa – 28 October 2009

A20 protects mice from lethal liver ischemia/reperfusion injury by increasing peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor‐α expression

Haley E. Ramsey, Cleide G. Da Silva, Christopher R. Longo, Eva Csizmadia, Peter Studer, Virendra I. Patel, Scott M. Damrauer, Jeffrey J. Siracuse, Soizic Daniel, Christiane Ferran – 28 October 2009 – The nuclear factor‐κB inhibitory protein A20 demonstrates hepatoprotective abilities through combined antiapoptotic, anti‐inflammatory, and pro‐proliferative functions. Accordingly, overexpression of A20 in the liver protects mice from toxic hepatitis and lethal radical hepatectomy, whereas A20 knockout mice die prematurely from unfettered liver inflammation.

Liver graft exposure to carbon monoxide during cold storage protects sinusoidal endothelial cells and ameliorates reperfusion injury in rats

Atsushi Ikeda, Shinya Ueki, Atsunori Nakao, Koji Tomiyama, Mark A. Ross, Donna B. Stolz, David A. Geller, Noriko Murase – 28 October 2009 – Hepatic ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury significantly influences short‐term and long‐term outcomes after liver transplantation (LTx). The critical step initiating the injury is known to include sinusoidal endothelial cell (SEC) alteration during the cold preservation period.

Incidence of abdominal wall numbness post–liver transplantation and its complications

Ashokkumar Jain, Pauline Nemitz, Rajeev Sharma, Baber Sheikh, Saman Safadjou, Marry Vetter, Leah Brayan, Pam Batzold, Randeep Kashyap, Mark Orloff – 28 October 2009 – Liver transplantation (LTx) is a life‐saving procedure for end‐stage liver disease. However, LTx remains a major surgical procedure with a significant amount of morbidity and mortality.

Changes in the expression of methionine adenosyltransferase genes and S‐adenosylmethionine homeostasis during hepatic stellate cell activation

Komal Ramani, Heping Yang, John Kuhlenkamp, Lauda Tomasi, Hidekazu Tsukamoto, José M. Mato, Shelly C. Lu – 27 October 2009 – Hepatic stellate cell (HSC) activation is an essential event during liver fibrogenesis. Methionine adenosyltransferase (MAT) catalyzes biosynthesis of S‐adenosylmethionine (SAMe), the principle methyl donor. SAMe metabolism generates two methylation inhibitors, methylthioadenosine (MTA) and S‐adenosylhomocysteine (SAH).

Insulin‐like growth factor I gene transfer to cirrhotic liver induces fibrolysis and reduces fibrogenesis leading to cirrhosis reversion in rats

Luciano Sobrevals, Carlos Rodriguez, José Lorenzo Romero‐Trevejo, Gabor Gondi, Iñaki Monreal, Astrid Pañeda, Nerea Juanarena, Sara Arcelus, Nerea Razquin, Laura Guembe, Gloria González‐Aseguinolaza, Jesús Prieto, Puri Fortes – 27 October 2009 – We investigated whether gene transfer of insulin‐like growth factor I (IGF‐I) to the hepatic tissue was able to improve liver histology and function in established liver cirrhosis.

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