Kun L. Ma, Xiong Z. Ruan, Stephen H. Powis, Yaxi Chen, John F. Moorhead, Zac Varghese – 27 May 2008 – The prevailing theory in non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the “two‐hit” hypothesis. The first hit mainly consists of lipid accumulation, and the second is subsequent systemic inflammation. The current study was undertaken to investigate whether inflammatory stress exacerbates lipid accumulation in liver and its underlying mechanisms.

Andrew D. Yeoman, Thawab Al‐Chalabi, John B. Karani, Alberto Quaglia, John Devlin, Giorgina Mieli‐Vergani, Adrian Bomford, John G. O'Grady, Phillip M. Harrison, Michael A. Heneghan – 27 May 2008 – Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has traditionally been considered a rare complication of cirrhosis secondary to autoimmune hepatitis (AIH), yet the true incidence remains unknown due to a lack of published data. Consequently, some professional guidelines do not mandate routine surveillance for HCC in this condition.

Pavel Strnad, Guo‐Zhong Tao, Phillip So, Kenneth Lau, Jim Schilling, Yuquan Wei, Jian Liao, M. Bishr Omary – 27 May 2008 – The cytoplasmic hepatocyte inclusions, Mallory‐Denk bodies (MDBs), are characteristic of several liver disorders, including alcoholic and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis. In mice, MDBs can be induced by long‐term feeding with 3,5‐diethoxycarbonyl‐1,4‐dihydrocollidine (DDC) for 3 to 4 months or rapidly reformed in DDC‐induced then recovered mice by DDC refeeding or exposure to a wide range of toxins for only 5 to 7 days.

Sara Crumm, Montserrat Cofan, Egle Juskeviciute, Jan B. Hoek – 27 May 2008 – Liver regeneration after partial hepatectomy (PHx) is orchestrated by multiple signals from cytokines and growth factors. We investigated whether increased energy demand on the remnant liver after PHx contributes to regenerative signals. Changes in the tissue's energy state were determined from adenine nucleotide levels.

Takanobu Kato, Youkyung Choi, Gamal Elmowalid, Ronda K. Sapp, Heidi Barth, Akihiro Furusaka, Shunji Mishiro, Takaji Wakita, Krzysztof Krawczynski, T. Jake Liang – 27 May 2008 – The identification of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) strain JFH‐1 enabled the successful development of infectious cell culture systems. Although this strain replicates efficiently and produces infectious virus in cell culture, the replication capacity and pathogenesis in vivo are still undefined.

Hervé Laumonier, Paulette Bioulac‐Sage, Christophe Laurent, Jessica Zucman‐Rossi, Charles Balabaud, Hervé Trillaud – 16 May 2008 – Hepatocellular adenomas (HCAs) are a group of benign tumors forming three molecular pathological subgroups: (1) hepatocyte nuclear factor 1α (HNF‐1α)–inactivated, (2) β‐catenin–activated, and (3) inflammatory. Some HCAs present both β‐catenin activation and inflammation. We analyzed magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data for correlations between features on imaging and pathological classification of HCAs.

Pere Ginès, Mónica Guevara – 16 May 2008 – Hyponatremia is a frequent complication of advanced cirrhosis related to an impairment in the renal capacity to eliminate solute‐free water that causes a retention of water that is disproportionate to the retention of sodium, thus causing a reduction in serum sodium concentration and hypo‐osmolality. The main pathogenic factor responsible for hyponatremia is a nonosmotic hypersecretion of arginine vasopressin (or antidiuretic hormone) from the neurohypophysis related to circulatory dysfunction.

Patrick Marcellin, Ting‐Tsung Chang, Seng G. Lee Lim, William Sievert, Myron Tong, Sarah Arterburn, Katyna Borroto‐Esoda, David Frederick, Franck Rousseau – 16 May 2008 – Treatment of 171 patients with hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)‐positive chronic hepatitis B (CHB) with adefovir dipivoxil (ADV) 10 mg over 48 weeks resulted in significant histological, virological, serological, and biochemical improvement compared with placebo. The long‐term efficacy and safety of ADV in a subset of these patients was investigated for up to 5 years.

Alexander Evans, Antonio Riva, Helen Cooksley, Sandra Phillips, Smrithi Puranik, Amit Nathwani, Sara Brett, Shilpa Chokshi, Nikolai V. Naoumov – 16 May 2008 – Hyperexpression of the programmed death 1 (PD‐1) molecule is a hallmark of exhausted T‐cells, having a negative impact on T‐cell activation and function.

Nidal Muhanna, Sarit Doron, Ori Wald, Amjad Horani, Ahmed Eid, Orit Pappo, Scott L. Friedman, Rifaat Safadi – 16 May 2008 – Increased CD8‐T lymphocytes and reduced natural killer (NK) cells contribute to hepatic fibrosis. We have characterized pathways regulating the interactions of human hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) with specific lymphocyte subsets in vivo and in vitro.