Xandra Volkmann, Matthias Anstaett, Johannes Hadem, Penelope Stiefel, Matthias J. Bahr, Frank Lehner, Michael P. Manns, Klaus Schulze‐Osthoff, Heike Bantel – 24 January 2008 – Acute liver failure (ALF) has various causes and is characterized by rapid hepatocyte dysfunction with development of encephalopathy in the absence of preexisting liver disease. Whereas most patients require liver transplantation to prevent the high mortality, some patients recover spontaneously and show complete liver regeneration.

Daan van Poll, Biju Parekkadan, Cheul H. Cho, François Berthiaume, Yaakov Nahmias, Arno W. Tilles, Martin L. Yarmush – 24 January 2008 – Orthotopic liver transplantation is the only proven effective treatment for fulminant hepatic failure (FHF), but its use is limited because of organ donor shortage, associated high costs, and the requirement for lifelong immunosuppression. FHF is usually accompanied by massive hepatocellular death with compensatory liver regeneration that fails to meet the cellular losses.

Pallavi B. Limaye, William C. Bowen, Anne V. Orr, Jianhua Luo, George C. Tseng, George K. Michalopoulos – 21 January 2008 – Previous studies from our laboratory have demonstrated that hepatocytes can transdifferentiate into biliary epithelium (BE) both in vivo and in vitro; however, the mechanisms are unclear. The current study was designed to investigate the mechanisms of hepatocyte transdifferentiation in vitro.

Guo‐Xiang Yang, Zhe‐Xiong Lian, Ya‐Hui Chuang, Yuki Moritoki, Ruth Y. Lan, Kanji Wakabayashi, Aftab A. Ansari, Richard A. Flavell, William M. Ridgway, Ross L. Coppel, Koichi Tsuneyama, Ian R. Mackay, M.

Roberto de Franchis, Glenn M. Eisen, Loren Laine, Inaki Fernandez‐Urien, Juan Manuel Herrerias, Russell D. Brown, Laurel Fisher, Hugo E. Vargas, John Vargo, Julie Thompson, Rami Eliakim – 21 January 2008 – Bleeding from esophageal varices (EV) is a serious consequence of portal hypertension. Current guidelines recommend screening patients with cirrhosis with esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) to detect varices. However, the unpleasantness and need for sedation of EGD may limit adherence to screening programs.

Pallavi Singh, Zeynep Z. Coskun, Catriona Goode, Adam Dean, LuAnn Thompson‐Snipes, Gretchen Darlington – 21 January 2008 – Immune dysregulation and inflammation play a major role in the pathology of age‐related disorders. In an earlier study, the microarray data from our laboratory indicated an increase in inflammation‐related gene expression in the liver with age. We further investigated immune‐related changes in the aged liver and found that the levels of inflammatory cytokines, chemokines, and inflammatory genes were higher in aged animals.

Clifford S. Guy, Sherri L. Rankin, Jinguo Wang, Tomasz I. Michalak – 21 January 2008 – The liver displays unique immunological properties including the ability to remove aberrant cells and pathogens and to induce peripheral immunotolerance. We have previously demonstrated that hepatocytes can cause cell death by a CD95 ligand–mediated mechanism. Here, we provide evidence that hepatocytes can kill other cells via a perforin‐dependent pathway.

Roman E. Perri, Michael V. Chiorean, Jeff L. Fidler, Joel G. Fletcher, Jayant A. Talwalkar, Linda Stadheim, Nilay D. Shah, Patrick S. Kamath – 21 January 2008 – Patients with cirrhosis require endoscopic screening for large esophageal varices. The aims of this study were to determine the cost‐effectiveness and patient preferences of a strategy employing abdominal computerized tomography (CT) as the initial screening test for identifying large esophageal varices. In a prospective evaluation,102 patients underwent both CT and endoscopic screening for gastroesophageal varices.

Yongke Lu, Jian Zhuge, Xiaodong Wang, Jingxiang Bai, Arthur I. Cederbaum – 21 January 2008 – Cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1) is suggested to play a role in alcoholic liver disease, which includes alcoholic fatty liver, alcoholic hepatitis, and alcoholic cirrhosis. In this study, we investigated whether CYP2E1 plays a role in experimental alcoholic fatty liver in an oral ethanol‐feeding model. After 4 weeks of ethanol feeding, macrovesicular fat accumulation and accumulation of triglyceride in liver were observed in wild‐type mice but not in CYP2E1‐knockout mice.

Xinping Tan, Youzhong Yuan, Gang Zeng, Udayan Apte, Michael D. Thompson, Benjamin Cieply, Donna B. Stolz, George K. Michalopoulos, Klaus H. Kaestner, Satdarshan P.S. Monga – 21 January 2008 – β‐Catenin, the central component of the canonical Wnt pathway, plays important roles in the processes of liver regeneration, growth, and cancer. Previously, we identified temporal expression of β‐catenin during liver development.