Bommayya Narayanaswamy, Christopher Gonde, J. Michael Tredger, Munther Hussain, Diego Vergani, Mark Davenport – 27 June 2007 – Biliary atresia (BA) may be characterized as an occlusive cholangiopathy affecting both intra‐ and extra‐hepatic parts of the biliary tree, together with a pronounced inflammatory response consisting of hepatic infiltration of (predominantly) CD4+ lymphocytes and macrophages. Soluble cellular adhesion molecules are also known to be raised at the time of portoenterostomy, presumably reflecting intrahepatic disease.

Agnieszka Banas, Takumi Teratani, Yusuke Yamamoto, Makoto Tokuhara, Fumitaka Takeshita, Gary Quinn, Hitoshi Okochi, Takahiro Ochiya – 27 June 2007 – Recent observations indicate that several stem cells can differentiate into hepatocytes; thus, cell‐based therapy is a potential alternative to liver transplantation. The goal of the present study was to examine the in vitro hepatic differentiation potential of adipose tissue‐derived mesenchymal stem cells (AT‐MSCs).

Ian Homer Y. Cua, Jason M. Hui, Priyanka Bandara, James G. Kench, Geoffrey C. Farrell, Geoffrey W. McCaughan, Jacob George – 27 June 2007 – The role of tumor necrosis factor α, interleukin 6, leptin, and adiponectin in the pathogenesis of hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐associated insulin resistance (IR) remains controversial.

Wei‐Hong Wen, Jia‐Yun Liu, Wei‐Jun Qin, Jing Zhao, Tao Wang, Lin‐Tao Jia, Yan‐Ling Meng, Hui Gao, Cai‐Fang Xue, Bo‐Quan Jin, Li‐Bo Yao, Si‐Yi Chen, An‐Gang Yang – 27 June 2007 – RNA interference is highly effective at inhibiting HBV gene expression and replication. However, before small interfering RNA (siRNA) can be used in the clinic, it is essential to develop a system to target their delivery. Antibody‐mediated delivery is a novel approach for targeting siRNA to appropriate cells. In this report, we asked whether this siRNA delivery strategy would be effective against HBV.

Valerie S. Calvert, Rochelle Collantes, Hazem Elariny, Arian Afendy, Ancha Baranova, Michael Mendoza, Zachary Goodman, Lance A. Liotta, Emanuel F. Petricoin, Zobair M. Younossi – 27 June 2007 – Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common cause of chronic liver disease. Omental adipose tissue, a biologically active organ secreting adipokines and cytokines, may play a role in the development of NAFLD. We tested this hypothesis with reverse‐phase protein microarrays (RPA) for multiplexed cell signaling analysis of adipose tissue from patients with NAFLD.

Jonel Trebicka, Martin Hennenberg, Wim Laleman, Nataliya Shelest, Erwin Biecker, Michael Schepke, Frederik Nevens, Tilman Sauerbruch, Jörg Heller – 27 June 2007 – In cirrhosis, increased RhoA/Rho‐kinase signaling and decreased nitric oxide (NO) availability contribute to increased intrahepatic resistance and portal hypertension. Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) regulate intrahepatic resistance. 3‐Hydroxy‐3‐methylglutaryl coenzyme A reductase inhibitors (statins) inhibit synthesis of isoprenoids, which are necessary for membrane translocation and activation of small GTPases like RhoA and Ras.

Masahiko Koda, Yoshikazu Murawaki – 27 June 2007

Wenchen Kenneth Wu, Mei Sheng Duh, Patrick Lefebvre – 27 June 2007

Abigail Fraser, Shah Ebrahim, George Davey Smith, Debbie A. Lawlor – 27 June 2007 – Associations between biomarkers of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) alanine aminotransferase (ALT), and gamma‐glutamyltransferase (GGT), with 3 separate measures of glucose homeostasis: fasting glucose, fasting insulin and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) were studied and compared between women with and without diabetes in order to gain insight into the documented associations between NAFLD, insulin resistance and diabetes.

Brent A. Neuschwander‐Tetri – 27 June 2007