Complement‐mediated cytotoxicity and inhibition of ligand binding to hepatocytes by woodchuck hepatitis virus–induced autoantibodies to asialoglycoprotein receptor

Jingyu Diao, Norma D. Churchill, Tomasz I. Michalak – 30 December 2003 – Hepadnavirus invasion in woodchucks has been identified as a potent inducer of autoantibodies against asialoglycoprotein receptor (anti‐ASGPR), a molecule essentially unique to hepatocytes that mediate clearance of desialylated serum proteins.

Analysis of the expression pattern of the latent transforming growth factor β binding protein isoforms in normal and diseased human liver reveals a new splice variant missing the proteinase‐sensitive hinge region

Kristin Michel, Sylke Roth, Christian Trautwein, WenRong Gong, P. Flemming, Axel M. Gressner – 30 December 2003 – Latent transforming growth factor β binding protein (LTBP), a component of the extracellular matrix (ECM) of various tissues, is important for the secretion of TGF‐β and, furthermore, for the storage of TGF‐β in ECM. The proteolytic cleavage of LTBP is assumed to be the prerequisite for the activation of TGF‐β.

Risk factors for hepatocellular carcinoma and its incidence after interferon treatment in patients with chronic hepatitis C

Akinori Kasahara, Norio Hayashi, Kiyoshi Mochizuki, Masahide Takayanagi, Kentaro Yoshioka, Shinichi Kakumu, Akihiro Iijima, Akihiko Urushihara, Kendo Kiyosawa, Michiari Okuda, Keisuke Hino, Kiwamu Okita, Osaka Liver Disease Study Group – 30 December 2003 – To elucidate the risk factors for liver carcinogenesis and to examine the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) after interferon therapy, 1,022 chronic hepatitis C patients treated with interferon were followed by ultrasonography for 13 to 97 months (median 36 months).

Increased lipid peroxidation and impaired antioxidant enzyme function is associated with pathological liver injury in experimental alcoholic liver disease in rats fed diets high in corn oil and fish oil

Rathnagiri Polavarapu, Douglas R. Spitz, Julia E. Sim, Mark H. Follansbee, Larry W. Oberley, Amir Rahemtulla, Amin A. Nanji – 30 December 2003 – Increased hepatic oxidative stress with ethanol administration is hypothesized to be caused either by enhanced pro‐oxidant production or decreased levels of antioxidants or both. We used the intragastric feeding rat model to assess the relationship between hepatic antioxidant enzymes and pathological liver injury in animals fed different dietary fats.

Re‐treatment of chronic hepatitis C with consensus interferon

E. Jenny Heathcote, Emmet B. Keeffe, Samuel S. Lee, Saya V. Feinman, Myron J. Tong, K. R. Reddy, Karsten Witt, Lawrence M. Blatt, Consensus Interferon Study Group – 30 December 2003 – A multicenter, open‐label, phase 3 study was conducted in 337 patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection who had either not responded to previous interferon therapy or had relapsed after discontinuation of therapy with either consensus interferon (9 μg) or interferon α‐2b (3 million U) three times a week for 24 weeks.

Safety and immunogenicity of hepatitis A vaccine in patients with chronic liver disease

Emmet B. Keeffe, Sten Iwarson, Brian J. McMahon, Karen L. Lindsay, Raymond S. Koff, Michael Manns, Renate Baumgarten, Manfred Wiese, Marc Fourneau, Assad Safary, Ralf Clemens, David S. Krause – 30 December 2003 – Acute hepatitis A superimposed on chronic liver disease (CLD) has been associated with severe or fulminant hepatitis. An open, multicenter study was performed to compare the safety and immunogenicity of an inactivated hepatitis A vaccine in patients with CLD with that in healthy subjects.

The effects of cholesterol uptake from high‐density lipoprotein subfractions on biliary sterol secretion in rats with essential fatty‐acid deficiency

Jacob Wanon, France Guertin, Sylvain Brunet, Edgard Delvin, Victor Gavino, Daniel Bouthillier, Denis Lairon, Wagner Yotov, Emile Levy – 30 December 2003 – High‐density lipoprotein (HDL) participates in the transfer of cholesterol to the liver, in which it is subsequently excreted into bile as bile acid and cholesterol. In this study, the effect of essential fatty‐acid (EFA) deficiency on cholesterol contribution from HDL subfractions to bile was investigated. Rats that were rendered EFA‐deficient over 4 weeks displayed changes in their plasma HDL subfractions and liver tissue fatty acids.

Interleukin 1β–stimulated production of nitric oxide in rat hepatocytes is mediated through endogenous synthesis of interferon gamma

Rebecca A. Schroeder, Jian S. Gu, Paul C. Kuo – 30 December 2003 – The multiple interlocking regulatory mechanisms that underlie induction of hepatocyte inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) expression are largely unknown. Although previous work has indicated the requirement for multiple proinflammatory cytokines to induce hepatocyte NO production, investigators have recently shown that interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β) alone can initiate iNOS expression. In contrast, interferon gamma (IFN‐γ) serves as the sole initiating factor in other cell systems.

Time dependent changes in the concentration and type of bacterial sequences found in cholesterol gallstones

Alexander Swidsinski, Michael Khilkin, Hartmut Pahlig, Sonja Swidsinski, Friedrich Priem – 30 December 2003 – The role of bacteria in gallstone formation could not be conclusively evaluated until bacterial presence or absence in a stone was consistently shown. Cultural bacteriologic investigations at the time of cholecystectomy, however, led to the assumption that cholesterol gallstones were free of bacteria.

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