A J Czaja, F Cassani, M Cataleta, P Valentini, F B Bianchi – 1 November 1996 – Antibodies to actin have been proposed as diagnostic markers for type 1 autoimmune hepatitis. Our aims were to determine (1) if testing for antibodies to actin is superior to testing for smooth muscle antibodies (SMA); (2) if these antibodies identify patients with distinctive clinical features; and (3) if the production of antibodies to actin is associated with genetic risk factors for autoimmune hepatitis. Sera from 99 patients with type 1 autoimmune hepatitis were tested.

I Kurose, S Miura, H Higuchi, N Watanabe, Y Kamegaya, M Takaishi, K Tomita, D Fukumura, S Kato, H Ishii – 1 November 1996 – Kupffer cells have been implicated in playing an important role in the pathogenesis of endotoxemia‐associated liver injury. The present study was designed to investigate whether Kupffer cell‐derived mediators alter the mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation of hepatocytes in the endotoxemic condition. Liver cells were isolated from male Wistar rats.

F Nomura, M Noda, M Miyake, T Nakai – 1 November 1996 – Adenosine diphosphate (ADP)‐ribosylation is a posttranslational protein modification that, in turn, alters several regulatory proteins in mammalian cells. We demonstrated that long‐term alcohol intake enhanced the ADP‐ribosylation of a 58‐kd protein in rat liver plasma membranes. To assess the biological significance of this phenomenon, we partially purified the 58‐kd acceptor protein from solubilized rat liver homogenates by two sequential preparative high‐pressure liquid chromatographies.

R A Weisiger, D C Rockey – 1 November 1996

K L Lindsay, G L Davis, E R Schiff, H C Bodenheimer, L A Balart, J L Dienstag, R P Perrillo, C H Tamburro, J S Goff, G T Everson, M Silva, W N Katkov, Z Goodman, J Y Lau, G Maertens, J Gogate, B Sanghvi, J Albrecht – 1 November 1996 – To evaluate response rates to 3, 5, or 10 million units (MU) of interferon alfa‐2b, given thrice weekly, and to determine whether higher doses of interferon increase the likelihood or durability of the response, a multicenter, randomized trial was performed at nine academic medical centers in the United States.

D Trere, M Derenzini, V Sirri, L Montanaro, W Grigioni, G Faa, G M Columbano, A Columbano – 1 November 1996 – A qualitative and quantitative analysis of silver‐stained nuclear organizer regions (AgNOR) proteins was performed during hepatocarcinogenesis induced in rats initiated by diethylnitrosamine (DENA) using the resistant‐hepatocyte model.

S Gagandeep, S Gupta – 1 November 1996

S. H. Caldwell, E. E. De Lange, M. J. Gaffey, M. Sue, J. C. Boyd, R. C. Dickson, C. Driscoll, W. C. Stevenson, M. B. Ishitani, C. McCullough, T. L. Pruett – 1 November 1996 – Measurement of liver volume in patients with advanced liver disease is used to gauge the appropriate size of donor organs and may have prognostic value. We sought to determine the accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in measuring liver volume in 19 adult patients under consideration for liver transplantation. We also correlated the liver volume determination to the clinical severity of disease.

Jeffry A. Lowell, Sandy Burgess, Surendra Shenoy, John A. Curci, Marion Peters, Todd K. Howard – 1 November 1996

R E Poupon, P M Huet, R Poupon, A Bonnand, J T Van Nhieu, E S Zafrani – 1 November 1996 – The efficacy of colchicine combined with ursodeoxycholic acid (UDCA) and UDCA alone in the treatment of patients with nonadvanced primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) was evaluated in a 2‐year controlled study. Seventy‐four patients with PBC who had been treated previously with UDCA (at least 8 months) but still had abnormal liver test results, especially elevated alkaline phosphatase activity, were randomized to be administered colchicine (1 mg/d, 5 days per week) (n = 37) or a placebo (n = 37).