Randomized comparison of long‐term carvedilol and propranolol administration in the treatment of portal hypertension in cirrhosis

Rafael Bañares, Eduardo Moitinho, Ana Matilla, Juan Carlos García‐Pagán, José Luis Lampreave, Carlos Piera, Juan G. Abraldes, Alejandro De Diego, Agustín Albillos, Jaime Bosch – 7 March 2007 – Short‐term carvedilol administration is more powerful than propranolol in decreasing hepatic venous pressure gradient (HVPG) in cirrhotic patients, but induces arterial hypotension that may prevent its long‐term use in portal hypertensive patients. This study compared the HVPG reduction and safety of long‐term carvedilol and propranolol.

Hepatoma‐derived growth factor is highly expressed in developing liver and promotes fetal hepatocyte proliferation

Hirayuki Enomoto, Kenya Yoshida, Yoshihiko Kishima, Taisei Kinoshita, Mitsunari Yamamoto, Allen D. Everett, Atsushi Miyajima, Hideji Nakamura – 7 March 2007 – Hepatoma‐derived growth factor (HDGF) is a heparin‐binding protein, which has been purified from the conditioned media of HuH‐7 hepatoma cells. Recent studies have suggested the involvement of HDGF in development of the kidney and cardiovascular systems. In the present study, we investigated the possibility that HDGF was also involved in liver development.

Hepatitis C virus and lymphomagenesis: Another piece of evidence

O Hermine, F Lefrere, Jp Bronowicki, X Mariette, K Jondeau, V Eclache‐Saudreau, B Delmas, F Valensi, P Cacoub, C Brechot, B Varet, X Troussard, Francesco Negro – 7 March 2007 – Some epidemiologic studies suggest a link between hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and some B‐cell non‐Hodgkin's lymphomas. We undertook this study after a patient with splenic lymphoma with villous lymphocytes had a hematologic response after antiviral treatment of HCV infection.

Long‐term interleukin 10 therapy in chronic hepatitis C patients has a proviral and anti‐inflammatory effect

David R. Nelson, Zhengkun Tu, Consuelo Soldevila‐Pico, Manal Abdelmalek, Haizhen Zhu, Yi Ling Xu, Roniel Cabrera, Chen Liu, Gary L. Davis – 7 March 2007 – An imbalance in Th1 and Th2 cytokine production is implicated in disease progression of HCV. Our aim was to determine the effect of IL‐10 administration in patients with HCV‐related liver disease. Thirty patients with advanced fibrosis who had failed antiviral therapy were enrolled in a 12‐month treatment regimen with SQ IL‐10 given daily or thrice weekly. Liver biopsies were performed before and after therapy.

Identification of a Ribavirin‐resistant NS5B mutation of hepatitis C virus during ribavirin monotherapy

Kung‐Chia Young, Karen L. Lindsay, Ki‐Jeong Lee, Wen‐Chun Liu, Jian‐Wen He, Susan L. Milstein, Michael M. C. Lai – 7 March 2007 – Ribavirin (RBV), a guanosine analogue, has been suggested to exert an antiviral action against hepatitis C virus (HCV) by causing lethal mutations and suppressing RNA polymerase in vitro, but the mechanism of its clinical therapeutic effects is currently unknown.

Ex Vivo transduced liver progenitor cells as a platform for gene therapy in mice

Sihong Song, Rafal P. Witek, Yuanqing Lu, Young‐Kook Choi, Donghang Zheng, Marda Jorgensen, Chengwen Li, Terence R. Flotte, Byron E. Petersen – 7 March 2007 – Allogeneic stem cell‐based transplants may be limited by allograft rejection, as is seen with conventional organ transplantation. One way to avert such a response is to use autologous stem cells, but that may carry the risk of recurrence of the original disease, particularly in the context of a genetic defect.

Aging does not reduce the hepatocyte proliferative response of mice to the primary mitogen TCPOBOP

Giovanna M. Ledda‐Columbano, Monica Pibiri, Costanza Cossu, Francesca Molotzu, Joseph Locker, Amedeo Columbano – 7 March 2007 – It has been shown that the magnitude of DNA synthesis and the time at which maximal DNA synthesis occurs after two‐thirds partial hepatectomy (PH) is greatly reduced in the liver of aged rodents compared to young animals. This reduction could represent an intrinsic defect in proliferation or a more specialized change in the response to PH.

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