Annika Bergquist, Hans Glaumann, Bo Persson, Ulrika Broomé – 30 December 2003 – The reason why 10% to 20% of all patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) develop cholangiocarcinoma (CC) remains unknown. The aim of this study was to compare the clinical and biochemical presentation in PSC patients with and without hepatobiliary malignancy and to look for risk factors for developing hepatobiliary carcinoma in PSC.

Marc G. Ghany, Brick Ayola, Federico G. Villamil, Robert G. Gish, Sergio Rojter, John M. Vierling, Anna S. Lok – 30 December 2003 – Long‐term hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG) has been shown to reduce hepatitis B virus (HBV) reinfection in patients transplanted for hepatitis B. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of HBV S gene mutations in liver transplant recipients who developed recurrent hepatitis B despite HBIG prophylaxis, and to determine if these mutations can revert after withdrawal of HBIG.

Kunihiko Ohnishi, Hisashi Yoshioka, Susumu Ito, Kenji Fujiwara – 30 December 2003 – To assess whether ultrasound‐guided percutaneous acetic acid injection is superior to percutaneous ethanol injection in the treatment of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), 60 patients with one to four HCCs smaller than 3 cm were entered onto a randomized controlled trial. Thirty‐one and 29 patients, respectively, were treated by percutaneous acetic acid injection using 50% acetic acid or by percutaneous ethanol injection using absolute ethanol.

A Alberti, L Chemello, F Noventa, L Cavalletto, GianLuca De Salvo – 30 December 2003 – The long‐term benefit of interferon therapy in chronic hepatitis C is limited. During therapy, serum alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels decrease to normal and hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA decreases in 40% to 60% of patients. However, most patients relapse after therapy withdrawal, so that no more than 15% to 25% achieve a sustained response.

R L Carithers, S S Emerson – 30 December 2003 – We performed an independent meta‐analysis of all available randomized clinical trials of interferon alfa‐2b in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Articles published between 1986 and 1996 had to include previously untreated patients who were randomly allocated to therapy with at least 2 million units (MU) of interferon alfa‐2b three times weekly for 24 weeks. A total of 32 trials met the inclusion criteria.

Adrian M Di Bisceglie – 30 December 2003 – Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is now recognized to be a major risk factor for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), evidenced by finding both antibody to HCV (anti‐HCV) and HCV RNA in serum of a substantial proportion of patients with HCC around the world and by the progression of liver disease to cirrhosis and HCC in individual patients infected with HCV. There seems to be an incubation period of two to three decades on average in most cases of HCV‐related HCC.

L Rabeneck – 30 December 2003

W Block, C Reichel, F Traber, T Skodra, R Lamerichs, B Kreft, U Spengler, T Sauerbruch, H Schild – 30 December 2003 – Experimental and clinical studies have led to the hypothesis that the phosphodiester signal obtained by 31P magnetic resonance (MR) spectroscopy may be a specific marker for the hepatic induction of oxidative metabolism (P450 induction) by phenobarbitone or ethanol. Systematic studies in humans are lacking.

T Kawamura, S Toyabe, T Moroda, T Iiai, H Takahashi‐Iwanaga, M Fukada, H Watanabe, H Sekikawa, S Seki, T Abo – 30 December 2003 – In a recent series of studies, we demonstrated that stress in humans and animals, with resultant sympathetic nerve strain, induces severe granulocytosis, because granulocytes carry adrenergic receptors on the surface. Because activated granulocytes produce free radicals and superoxides, they sometimes induce tissue damage if the stress is too strong or continuous. Human neonates are also known to show high levels of granulocytes in the peripheral blood.

I H McKillop, C M Schmidt, P A Cahill, J V Sitzmann – 30 December 2003 – The mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade acts as a focal point for signal transduction following activation of both G‐protein‐linked and tyrosine kinase growth factor receptors. A common intermediate between both of these diverse receptor subtypes includes the small guanosine triphosphate (GTP)‐binding protein, p21ras.