Karen Madsen – 2 April 2008

Boris Görg, Natalia Qvartskhava, Verena Keitel, Hans J. Bidmon, Oliver Selbach, Freimut Schliess, Dieter Häussinger – 28 March 2008 – Oxidative stress plays a major role in cerebral ammonia toxicity and the pathogenesis of hepatic encephalopathy (HE). As shown in this study, ammonia induces a rapid RNA oxidation in cultured rat astrocytes, vital mouse brain slices, and rat brain in vivo.

Rebekka A. Hannivoort, Sandra Dunning, Sara Vander Borght, Ben Schroyen, Jannes Woudenberg, Fiona Oakley, Manon Buist‐Homan, Fiona A. J. van den Heuvel, Mariska Geuken, Albert Geerts, Tania Roskams, Klaas Nico Faber, Han Moshage – 28 March 2008 – Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) survive and proliferate in the chronically injured liver. ATP‐binding cassette (ABC) transporters play a crucial role in cell viability by transporting toxic metabolites or xenobiotics out of the cell.

Hidetaka Hara, Bruno Gridelli, Yih Jyh Lin, Amadeo Marcos, David K. C. Cooper – 26 March 2008 – A critical element restricting the application of liver transplantation is the shortage of human deceased donor organs. Xenotransplantation using pig organs might be a solution to this shortage.

Daniel Shouval – 26 March 2008

Jérémie M. Gras, Sophie Gerkens, Claire Beguin, Magdalena Janssen, Françoise Smets, Jean‐Bernard Otte, Etienne Sokal, Raymond Reding – 26 March 2008 – Corticosteroid‐free immunosuppression (IS) may be potentially beneficial for transplanted patients, particularly children. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the efficacy and cost of such strategy in primary pediatric liver transplantation (LT). Fifty pediatric LT recipients were prospectively treated with a steroid‐free, tacrolimus‐basiliximab–based IS (group TB).

Pierre‐Michel Huet, Lise Giroux, Marina Laurens, Dominique Crenesse – 26 March 2008 – Cirrhosis is known to induce capillarization of the sinusoidal endothelial cells (SECs) and collagenization of the space of Disse, resulting in a reduced access of plasma and plasma‐dissolved substances to hepatocytes due to their limited diffusion in the extravascular space. The aim of the present study was to use a well known effect of cold ischemia–warm reperfusion (CI‐WR) on liver SECs, that is, their retraction and detachment, progressing to a denudation of the SEC lining.

Jun Yu, Qian Tao, Kin F. Cheung, Hongchuan Jin, Fan Fong Poon, Xian Wang, Hongyu Li, Yuen Y. Cheng, Christoph Röcken, Matthias P. A. Ebert, Anthony T. C. Chan, Joseph J. Y. Sung – 26 March 2008 – The ubiquitin carboxyl‐terminal hydrolase L1 (UCHL1) is a carboxyl‐terminal ubiquitin hydrolase regulating cellular ubiquitin levels, recently suggested as a tumor suppressor. However, the role of UCHL1 in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is not clear.

Marcela Castillo‐Rama, Maria Jose Castro, Ivan Bernardo, Juan Carlos Meneu‐Diaz, Almudena Moreno Elola‐Olaso, Sara M. Calleja‐Antolin, Eva Romo, Pablo Morales, Enrique Moreno, Estela Paz‐Artal – 26 March 2008 – The significance of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) compatibility and preformed antibodies in liver transplantation remains unclear. The objectives of this study were to evaluate, in a single‐center cohort comprising 896 liver transplants, whether the degree of donor‐recipient compatibility and preformed antibodies modified graft survival.

Sahar Hassan‐Khabbar, Charles‐Henry Cottart, Dominique Wendum, Françoise Vibert, Jean‐Pierre Clot, Jean‐François Savouret, Marc Conti, Valérie Nivet‐Antoine – 26 March 2008 – Liver ischemia‐reperfusion (I/R) injury occurs in many clinical conditions, including liver surgery and transplantation. Oxygen free radicals generated during I/R reduce endogenous antioxidant systems and contribute to hepatic injury. trans‐Resveratrol (trans‐3,5,4′‐trihydroxystilbene) is reported to have antioxidant properties. We investigated the effect of trans‐resveratrol on liver injury induced by I/R.