Inhibition of establishment and growth of mouse liver metastases after treatment with interferon gamma and β‐1,3‐D‐glucan

Baldur Sveinbjørnsson, Christian Rushfeldt, Rolf Seljelid, Bård Smedsrød – 30 December 2003 – The purpose of this study was to investigate the combined antitumor effect of aminated β‐1,3‐d‐glucan (AG) and interferon‐gamma (IFN‐γ) in an experimental liver metastasis model. Liver metastases were established by inoculation of C‐26 colon carcinoma cells into the superior mesenteric vein of syngeneic mice. Treatment of mice started 24 hours after inoculation of tumor cells by daily intravenous injections of either AG, IFN‐γ, or a combination of both for a duration of 6 days.

Neurovisual impairment: A frequent complication of alpha‐interferon treatment in chronic viral hepatitis

Emanuel K. Manesis, Michael Moschos, Dimitrios Brouzas, John Kotsiras, Constantine Petrou, George Theodosiadis, Stephanos Hadziyannis – 30 December 2003 – Following our earlier observation of clinically evident optic tract neuropathy in patients receiving low‐dose interferon (IFN) therapy, we prospectively evaluated 53 consecutive patients treated for chronic hepatitis B or C with a median dose of 3 MU of IFN‐a2b thrice weekly.

Potassium channels participate in gastric mucosal protection in rats with partial portal vein ligation

Michael K.K. Li, C. P. Tsui, Joseph J.Y. Sung, Oscar U. Scremin, Felix W. Leung – 30 December 2003 – Glybenclamide, an adenosine triphosphate–dependent potassium (K+ATP) channel blocker, lowered portal pressure and attenuated the hyperdynamic splanchnic circulation in rats with partial portal vein ligation (PPVL). The purpose of this report was to confirm these observations and to test the hypothesis that glybenclamide could reduce acidified ethanol‐induced gastric mucosal injury in rats with PPVL.

Continuous human cell lines inducibly expressing hepatitis C virus structural and nonstructural proteins

Darius Moradpour, Petra Kary, Charles M. Rice, Hubert E. Blum – 30 December 2003 – Investigation of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) life cycle and the evaluation of novel antiviral strategies are limited by the lack of an efficient cell culture system. Therefore, continuous human cell lines inducibly expressing the entire HCV open reading frame were generated with use of a tetracycline‐regulated gene expression system. HCV transgenes were found to be chromosomally integrated in a head‐to‐tail configuration.

Frequency and nature of the variant syndromes of autoimmune liver disease

Albert J. Czaja – 30 December 2003 – To determine the frequency and nature of variant syndromes in autoimmune liver disease, 162 patients with type 1 autoimmune hepatitis, 37 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis, and 26 patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis were assessed in a uniform fashion, and the strength of the original diagnosis was evaluated by use of a scoring system. Variant forms, including syndromes with autoimmune hepatitis and primary biliary cirrhosis (7%) or primary sclerosing cholangitis (6%) and autoimmune cholangitis (11%), were common in the 225 patients (18%).

Antibodies against the GB virus C envelope 2 protein before liver transplantation protect against GB virus C de novo infection

Hans Ludger Tillmann, Stefan Heringlake, Christian Trautwein, Doerte Meissner, Bjoern Nashan, Hans‐Juergen Schlitt, Jon Kratochvil, Jeffrey Hunt, Xiaoxing Qiu, Sheng Chang Lou, Rudolf Pichlmayr, Michael Peter Manns – 30 December 2003 – GB virus C (GBV‐C) is a newly discovered RNA virus related to the Flaviviridae family. Although GBV‐C is not yet associated with any cause of liver disease, a humoral immune response against the GBV‐C envelope 2 (E2) protein has been observed.

Suppression of proliferative cholangitis in a rat model with direct adenovirus‐mediated retinoblastoma gene transfer to the biliary tract

Ryuta Terao, Kazuo Honda, Etsuro Hatano, Tetsuya Uehara, Masayuki Yamamoto, Yoshio Yamaoka – 30 December 2003 – Proliferative cholangitis (PC) associated with hepatolithiasis develops the stricture of main bile ducts, and is the main cause of residual and/or recurrent stones after repeated treatments for hepatolithiasis. The aim of this study was to inhibit PC using the cytostatic gene therapy with direct adenovirus‐mediated retinoblastoma (Rb) gene transfer to the biliary tract. PC was induced by introducing a fine nylon thread into the bile duct in a rat model.

Increased cd1d expression on small bile duct epithelium and epithelioid granuloma in livers in primary biliary cirrhosis

Koichi Tsuneyama, Mitsue Yasoshima, Kenichi Harada, Katsushi Hiramatsu, M. Eric Gershwin, Yasuni Nakanuma – 30 December 2003 – Cluster of differentiation 1 (CD1) is a family of four distinct nonpolymorphic major histocompatibility complex class I‐like molecules that can present microbial nonpeptide lipid antigens to T cells. Among the CD1 gene family, CD1d is found in a wide range of tissues including the intestine and liver, and has been proposed to play an important role in mucosal immunity.

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