Sun‐Young Kong, Joong‐Won Park, Jung An Lee, Jung Eun Park, Kyung Woo Park, Eun Kyung Hong, Chang‐Min Kim – 27 July 2007 – Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) plays an important role in angiogenesis and progression of tumor, including hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and elevated VEGF levels in serum and tissues have been known to be related with poor prognosis in patients with HCC. However, the effect of such polymorphisms of the VEGF gene on HCC prognosis has not been elucidated.

Anna S.F. Lok, Brian J. McMahon – 27 July 2007

27 July 2007

Arun Sanyal, Nisha Chand – 27 July 2007

Kurt Lenz, Christine Kapral, Fritz Firlinger, Fritz Wewalka – 27 July 2007

Henry L. Y. Chan, Hong Ren, Wan C. Chow, Theodore Wee, Interferon beta‐1a Hepatitis C Study Group – 27 July 2007 – The standard of care for chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, pegylated interferon (IFN) alpha plus ribavirin, results in a sustained virologic response (SVR) in approximately 50%‐60% of patients. IFN beta is a potential alternative to IFN alpha. The aim of this study was to investigate the efficiency and durability of IFN beta and its combination with ribavirin in the naïve setting of chronic hepatitis C in Asian patients.

Chee‐Kin Hui, Nancy Leung, Siu‐Tsan Yuen, Hai‐Ying Zhang, Kar‐Wai Leung, Lei Lu, Stephen K. F. Cheung, Wai‐Man Wong, George K. Lau, Hong Kong Liver Fibrosis Study Group – 27 July 2007 – In view of the findings that high hepatitis B virus (HBV) deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) is associated with increased risk of chronic hepatitis B (CHB)–related complications, disease progression in CHB patients in the immune‐tolerant phase is uncertain. We evaluated disease progression in 57 immune‐tolerant CHB patients with high HBV DNA. Each subject underwent an initial liver biopsy.

Ingrid Hickman, Graeme Macdonald – 27 July 2007

Stephen H. Caldwell, James T. Patrie, Elizabeth M. Brunt, Jan A. Redick, Christine A. Davis, Sang H. Park, Brent A. Neuschwander‐Tetri – 27 July 2007 – Rosiglitazone, a thiazolidinedione peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor gamma ligand, reduces disease activity in nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a disease associated with hepatocyte mitochondrial crystalline inclusions that are not seen in animal models of NASH. In human and animal studies of adipose tissue, thiazolidinediones may induce mitochondrial biogenesis and associated morphological changes.

David L. Suskind, Karen F. Murray – 27 July 2007