Raymond J. Lenhoff, Carolyn A. Luscombe, Jesse Summers – 30 December 2003 – A variant avian hepadnavirus that has been shown to destroy hepatocytes in vitro was found to be cytopathic in vivo. A single amino acid change of glycine to glutamic acid at position 133 (G133E) in the preS protein of duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) caused an increase in the intranuclear pool of viral covalently closed circular DNA (cccDNA), resulting in a transient elevation of viral replication and eventual hepatocyte destruction.

Bonnie L. Burgess‐Beusse, Nikolai A. Timchenko, Gretchen J. Darlington – 30 December 2003 – Both CCAAT/enhancer binding protein α (C/EBPα) and C/EBPβ are intronless, yet can create various N‐terminally truncated protein products with distinct DNA binding and transactivation potentials. These proteins can be generated via two distinct mechanisms, one translational and the other post‐translational.

Mitugi Yasuda, Ichiro Shimizu, Masako Shiba, Susumu Ito – 30 December 2003 – As a model for the analysis of the fibrosuppressive role of estradiol, hepatic fibrosis was induced in male and female rats by the administration of a single dose of dimethylnitrosamine (DMN). The fibrotic response of the male liver after DMN treatment was significantly stronger than that of the female liver.

Shi‐Ming Lin, I‐Shyan Sheen, Rong‐Nan Chien, Chia‐Ming Chu, Yun‐Fan Liaw – 30 December 2003 – To examine the long‐term effect of interferon (IFN) therapy in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection, particularly on survival and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) prevention, 101 male patients with chronic hepatitis B in a randomized controlled trial were followed up for 1.1 to 11.5 years after the end of therapy.

Maria Teresa Bardella, Maurizio Vecchi, Dario Conte, Ersilio Del Ninno, Mirella Fraquelli, Stefania Pacchetti, Eliseo Minola, Marina Landoni, Bruno Mario Cesana, Roberto De Franchis – 30 December 2003 – In a subset of patients attending liver units, a chronic increase in serum transaminases may remain of undetermined cause despite thorough investigations. On the other hand, elevated levels of serum transaminases have been reported in about 40% of adult celiac patients.

Daniel Rost, Jürgen Kartenbeck, Dietrich Keppler – 30 December 2003 – Administration of phalloidin, one of the toxic peptides of the mushroom Amanita phalloides, leads to rapid and sustained cholestasis in rats. Although attributed to the interaction of phalloidin with microfilaments, the events leading to cholestasis are incompletely understood. The adenosine triphosphate (ATP)‐dependent, apical conjugate export pump, termed multidrug resistance protein 2 (Mrp2) or canalicular multispecific organic anion transporter, is the major driving force for bile salt‐independent bile flow.

Arun J. Sanyal, Faridoddin Mirshahi – 30 December 2003 – The phenotype of the endothelial cells (ECs) in the pseudointima of transjugular intrahepatic portasystemic shunts (TIPS) and the mechanisms of pseudointima formation after TIPS were unknown. We hypothesized that TIPS were lined by hepatic sinusoidal ECs, which stimulated the migration of smooth muscle cells (SMCs) into the pseudointima and their proliferation.

Stephen H. Caldwell, David H. Oelsner, Julia C. Iezzoni, Elizabeth E. Hespenheide, Emily H. Battle, Carolyn J. Driscoll – 30 December 2003 – We characterized 70 consecutive patients with cryptogenic cirrhosis to assess major risks for liver disease. Each patient was reevaluated for past alcohol exposure, scored by the International Autoimmune Hepatitis (IAH) score and assessed for viral hepatitis risks and risks for nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH).

José García de la Asunción, María L. del Olmo, Juan Sastre, Federico V. Pallardó, José Viña – 30 December 2003 – Zidovudine (3′‐azido‐2′,3′‐dideoxythymidine [AZT]) inhibits human immunodeficiency virus replication and delays progression of acquired immune deficiency syndrome. We have recently found that, in muscle, AZT causes oxidative damage to mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) and other signs of mitochondrial oxidative damage. The aim of this work was to test if AZT causes oxidative damage to liver mtDNA.

Charles M. Rice – 30 December 2003