D Colledge, S Locarnini, T Shaw – 30 December 2003 – Lamivudine ([‐]‐β‐L‐2′,3′‐dideoxy‐3′‐thiacytidine [3TC]) and penciclovir (9‐[2‐hydroxy‐1‐(hydroxymethyl)ethoxymethyl]guanine [PCV]) are potent inhibitors of hepatitis B virus (HBV) replication. Both drugs have entered phase III clinical trials for treatment of chronic HBV infection. 3TC and PCV are deoxycytidine and deoxyguanosine analogs, respectively, and their modes of action and how they interact are matters of both theoretical and practical interest.

P W L Thimister, W P Hopman, R F C van Roermund, H L Willems, G Rosenbusch, R Woestenborghs, J B Jansen – 30 December 2003 – Loperamide, a peripherally acting opiate receptor agonist with antidiarrheal action, inhibits ileal and colonic motor function. It was determined whether loperamide also affects gallbladder emptying and pancreatic enzyme secretion in humans.

Y Bacq, T Sapey, M Brechot, F Pierre, A Fignon, F Dubois – 30 December 2003 – The aim of this prospective study was to analyze the characteristics of intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP) in a French population. From 1989 to 1995 we studied 50 consecutive pregnant women with ICP (41 single, 7 twin, and 2 triplet pregnancies) referred for hepatologic consultation. All patients suffered from pruritus and/or jaundice associated with elevated fasting serum levels of total bile acids (mean 49 micromol/L, range 7‐290).

B Ringe – 30 December 2003

C Gerlach, D Y Sakkab, T Scholzen, R Daßler, M R Alison, J Gerdes – 30 December 2003 – Antibodies to the cell‐cycle‐associated Ki‐67 protein have been widely used for more than a decade as markers of proliferative cells. The prototype antibody Ki‐67 reacted only with snap‐frozen human tissue, but a novel antibody, MIB‐1, was able to detect the Ki‐67 antigen in paraffin wax‐embedded human tissue.

C Li, A A Nanji, A N Siakotos, R C Lin – 30 December 2003 – Liver proteins form adducts with acetaldehyde and are modified by products of lipid peroxidation in alcohol‐fed animals. It has been hypothesized that the formation of these modified liver proteins may contribute to liver injury in alcoholic liver disease. The present work was performed to determine the extent of protein modification in rats with experimental alcoholic liver disease. Rats were fed ethanol intragastrically with medium chain triglycerides (MCTs), palm oil, corn oil, or fish oil.

P Ott, L Bass, S Keiding – 30 December 2003 – The influence of binding protein concentration and hematocrit on hepatic uptake of indocyanine green (ICG) was studied in anesthetized pigs during constant infusion of ICG. By exchange transfusions, we either substituted plasma protein with dextran 70 (n = 8) or changed hematocrit (n = 8). Intrinsic hepatic clearance of ICG, K, was calculated from plasma flow rate and concentrations in peripheral artery and liver vein after correction for extrahepatic distribution.

M J Tong, K R Reddy, W M Lee, P J Pockros, J C Hoefs, E B Keeffe, F B Hollinger, E J Hathcote, H White, R T Foust, D M Jensen, E L Krawitt, H Fromm, M Black, L M Blatt, M Klein, J Lubina – 30 December 2003 – This multicenter, randomized, controlled, double‐blind, phase III study in 704 patients with chronic hepatitis C infection compared treatment with consensus interferon (CIFN), a non‐natural recombinant type‐1 interferon, with a standard regimen of recombinant interferon alfa‐2b (IFN‐α2b).

V Guadagnino, T Stroffolini, M Rapicetta, A Costantino, L A Kondili, F Menniti‐Ippolito, B Caroleo, C Costa, G Griffo, L Loiacono, V Pisani, A Foca, M Piazza – 30 December 2003 – In 1996 the prevalence, risk factors, and genotype distribution of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection were assessed in the general population of a town in southern Italy. The sample was selected from the census by a systematic 1:4 sampling procedure. The participation rate was 96.6%. Among the 1,352 subjects enrolled, 195 (14.4%) tested reactive to antibody to HCV (anti‐HCV) with enzyme immunoassay (EIA 3).

S P Pereira, J O'Donohue, J Wendon, R Williams – 30 December 2003 – Acute fatty liver of pregnancy (AFLP) and the syndrome of hemolysis, elevated liver enzyme levels, and low platelet count (HELLP) are rare but major disorders of the third trimester of pregnancy. Over a 10‐year period, 46 women (median age, 30 years; range, 17‐41 years) developed hepatic dysfunction severe enough to require transfer to our Liver Failure Unit. Three quarters of the women were nulliparous, and 5 had twin pregnancies; the median gestational age was 35 weeks (range, 24‐40 weeks).