Quantification of hepatitis B virus DNA over a wide range from serum for studying viral replicative activity in response to treatment and in recurrent infection

Marjut Ranki, Hermann M. Schätzl, Reinhart Zachoval, Mikko Uusi‐Oukari, Päivi Lehtovaara – 1 June 1995 – A new standardized test for hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA with increased sensitivity and range over previous assays (30 to 106 HBV genomes/test) was evaluated in this study. The quantitative results from the test have been validated using international reference specimens of known titer and a reference solution hybridization test. The test has small variability considering the wide dynamic range. The CV was 14% within one experiment and 32% to 39% between independent experiments.

Roles of prostaglandin production and mitogen‐activated protein kinase activation in hepatocyte growth factor—mediated rat hepatocyte proliferation

Takahito Adachi, Shigeru Nakashima, Shigetoyo Saji, Toshikazu Nakamura, Yoshinori Nozawa – 1 June 1995 – Hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) and epidermal growth factor (EGF)—stimulated DNA synthesis in primary cultured rat hepatocytes. HGF‐induced DNA synthesis was concentration‐dependently inhibited by a cyclooxygenase inhibitor, indomethacin. BW755C, a dual inhibitor for cyclooxygenase and lipoxygenase activities, also inhibited hepatocyte growth.

The effects of the 3‐hydroxy, 3‐methylglutaryl coenzyme a reductase inhibitor pravastatin on bile composition and nucleation of cholesterol crystals in cholesterol gallstone disease

Jan W. A. Smit, Karel J. Van Erpecum, Willem Renooij, Mark F. J. Stolk, Patrick Edgar, Heleen Doornewaard, Gerard P. Vanberge‐Henegouwen – 1 June 1995 – 3‐hydroxy, 3‐methylglutaryl coenzyme A (HMG‐CoA) reductase inhibitors reduce biliary cholesterol saturation index (CSI) in duodenal bile in hypercholesterolemic patients and might be useful for gallstone dissolution. However, preliminary data suggest that these drugs are not effective in this respect. We therefore studied 33 patients with radiolucent gallstones in an opacifying gallbladder who were scheduled for elective cholecystectomy.

Interaction of human gallbladder mucin with calcium hydroxyapatite: Binding studies and the effect on hydroxyapatite formation

Sui‐Min Qiu, Gary Wen, Julie Wen, Roger D. Soloway, Roger S. Crowther – 1 June 1995 – Calcium hydroxyapatite (HAP) crystals formed in vitro in the presence of polymeric human gallbladder mucin (1.0 mg/mL) were smaller (0.75 ± 0.39 μm) than control crystals (7.86 ± 2.76 μm), but the mucin did not affect the kinetics of crystal formation or alter the amount of mineral phase present at equilibrium. In contrast, glycopeptide subunits produced by proteolysis of the native mucin had no effect on HAP crystal size.

Overexpression of c‐met protooncogene product and raised Ki67 index in hepatocellular carcinomas with respect to benign liver conditions

Walter F. Grigioni, Michelangelo Fiorentino, Antonia d'Errico, Antonio Ponzetto, Tiziana Crepaldi, Maria Prat, Paolo M. Comoglio – 1 June 1995 – The c‐met protooncogene encodes a 190‐kd transmembrane tyrosine kinase. This molecule is the receptor for the hepatocyte growth factor (HGF), which is an important mitogen for hepatocytes both in vitro and in vivo. In experimental models, the c‐met transcripts appeared strongly expressed by actively proliferating oval cells (OCs).

Increased aortic cyclic guanosine monophosphate concentration in experimental cirrhosis in rats: Evidence for a role of nitric oxide in the pathogenesis of arterial vasodilation in cirrhosis

Michel Niederberger, Pere Ginès, Phoebe Tsai, Pierre‐Yves Martin, Kenneth Morris, André Weigert, Ivan McMurtry, Robert W. Schrier – 1 June 1995 – Arterial vasodilation is considered to be the key factor in the development of sodium and water retention leading to ascites formation in cirrhosis. To determine if nitric oxide (NO) is involved in the pathogenesis of arterial vasodilation in cirrhosis, we measured the concentration of cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP), the second messenger of NO, in arterial tissue from rats with carbon tetrachloride—induced cirrhosis.

Spectrum of liver disease and duck hepatitis B virus infection in a large series of chinese ducks with hepatocellular carcinoma

Agnes Duflot, Raj Mehrotra, Shun‐Zhang Yu, Luc Barraud, Christian Trepo, Lucyna Cova – 1 June 1995 – The striking difference in the geographical distribution of liver cancer in ducks raised the question of whether duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV), like mammalian hepadnaviruses, could be an oncogenic agent. Hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs) have been found only in domestic ducks in Qidong, China, where hepatitis B virus infection and aflatoxin B1 (AFB1) are both risk factors and where a high frequency of human HCCs has been reported.

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