Alan F. Hofmann, Salam F. Zakko, Marco Lira, Carlo Clerici, Lee R. Hagey, K. Karel Lambert, Joseph H. Steinbach, Claudio D. Schteingart, Peter Olinga, Geny M. M. Groothuis – 29 November 2005 – Experiments were performed in 2 volunteers to define the biotransformation and physiological properties of norursodeoxycholic acid (norUDCA), the C23 (C24‐nor) homolog of UDCA. To complement the in vivo studies, the biotransformation of norUDCA ex vivo using precision‐cut human liver slices was also characterized.

Christoph G. Dietrich, Andreas Geier – 29 November 2005

Pietro Lampertico, Mauro Viganò, Elena Manenti, Massimo Iavarone, Giovanna Lunghi, Massimo Colombo – 29 November 2005 – Progression of hepatitis B in patients with lamivudine‐resistant strains is slowed down by adefovir dipivoxil (ADV). Whether the time point of ADV administration (genotypic vs. phenotypic resistance) influences the outcome of therapy is unknown. We compared the outcome of ADV therapy in hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)‐negative chronic hepatitis B patients with genotypic and phenotypic resistance to lamivudine.

Daniel A. Langer, Vijay H. Shah – 29 November 2005

Jin‐Won Youn, Su‐Hyung Park, Dimitri Lavillette, Francois‐Loic Cosset, Se‐Hwan Yang, Chang Geun Lee, Hyun‐Tak Jin, Chang‐Min Kim, Mohamed Tarek M. Shata, Dong‐Hun Lee, Wolfram Pfahler, Alfred M. Prince, Young Chul Sung – 29 November 2005 – Immune correlates of protection against hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are not well understood. Here we investigated 2 naive and 6 immunized chimpanzees before and after intravenous challenge, 12 weeks after the last immunization, with 100 50% chimpanzee infectious doses (CID50) of heterologous genotype 1b HCV.

Hajime Isomoto, Shogo Kobayashi, Nathan W. Werneburg, Steve F. Bronk, Maria Eugenia Guicciardi, David A. Frank, Gregory J. Gores – 29 November 2005 – Interleukin 6 (IL‐6) contributes to the pathogenesis of cholangiocarcinoma by upregulating myeloid cell leukemia‐1 (Mcl‐1), a key antiapoptotic Bcl‐2 family member protein. IL‐6 can alter gene transcription via Janus kinases (JAK) and signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) signal cascade. We examined this cascade in IL‐6 regulation of Mcl‐1 transcription in human cholangiocarcinoma cell lines.

Theo Heller, Leonard B. Seeff – 29 November 2005

William C. Grant, Ravi R. Jhaveri, John G. McHutchison, Kevin A. Schulman, Teresa L. Kauf – 29 November 2005 – Chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection affects approximately 3 million people in the United States and places tremendous demands on the health care system. As many observers have predicted, the disease burden continues to grow as the infected population ages. In this study, we analyzed inpatient data from the Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project, outpatient data from the National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey, and drug data from the Verispan Source Prescription Audit.

Egbert Sieders, Bouke G. Hepkema, Paul M.J.G. Peeters, Elisabeth M. TenVergert, Koert P. de Jong, Robert J. Porte, Charles M.A. Bijleveld, Aad P. van den Berg, Simon P.M. Lems, Annette S.H. Gouw, Maarten J.H. Slooff – 28 November 2005 – The aim of this study was to analyze the effect of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) class I and HLA‐DR mismatching, sharing cross‐reactive antigen groups (CREGs), and sharing HLA‐DR antigens on the outcome after pediatric liver transplantation. Outcome parameters were graft survival, acute rejection, and portal fibrosis.

Maureen M. Jonas – 28 November 2005