Yaron Ilan, Arnon Nagler, Ruth Adler, Elizabeth Naparstek, Reuven Or, Shimon Slavin, Chaim Brautba, Daniel Shouva – 1 August 1993 – Recipients of allogeneic bone marrow transplantation are pancytopenic for several weeks and immunosuppressed for many months as a result of myeloablative therapy required to eliminate the basic disease and to prevent allograft rejection. After bone marrow transplantation, these patients remain profoundly immunosuppressed by the chemotherapy and immunotherapy used as prophylaxis against graft‐vs.‐host disease, treatment of established disease or both.

Albert Tran, Jean François Quaranta, Sylvia Benzaken, Valerie Thiers, Hoang Trong Chau, Patrick Hastier, Daniel Regnier, Gilles Dreyfus, Christian Pradier, Jean‐Louis Sadoul, Xavier Hebutern, Patrick Rampa – 1 August 1993 – After describing two cases of Hashimoto's thyroiditis associated with chronic hepatitis C, we set up a prospective study to assessthe prevalence of thyroid autoantibodies (thyroglobulin and thyroid microsomal autoantibodies) in 72 chronic hepatitis C patients (43 men and 29 women; mean age = 51 ± 2.1 yr) before interferon therapy admitted between January and December 199

Li Yang, Ronald A. Faris, Douglas C. Hixson – 1 August 1993 – Hybridomas were produced with immune spleen cells generated by immunization of Balb/c mice with oval cell antigen (OC.2)–positive 17‐day fetal liver cells isolated on antibody‐coated magnetic beads. A primary screen by indirect immunofluorescence on frozen sections of fetal and adult liver identified several hybridomas secreting antibodies reactive with bile ducts and oval cells.

Taizo Hijioka, Moritaka Goto, John J. Lemasters, Ronald G. Thurma – 1 August 1993 – Kupffer cells, the resident hepatic macrophages, are activated by calcium, and several reports indicate that their function (e.g., phagocytosis and cytokine production) is altered by ethanol. We recently found that Kupffer cells contain L‐type voltage‐dependent Ca2+ channels. The purpose of this study, therefore, was to evaluate the effect of short‐term ethanol treatment on voltage‐dependent Ca2+ channels in Kupffer cells.

Domenico Sansonno, Franco Dammacco – 1 August 1993 – A pool of murine monoclonal antibodies developed against c100 antigen, a hepatitis C virus–associated protein encoded by the NS3/NS4 virus genome, was used to detect hepatitis C virus in liver biopsy specimens from patients with acute and chronic hepatitis C virus infection. The antigen was present in the cytoplasm of liver cells only. The immunoreactive signal appeared as large, distinct, brilliant fluorescent granules with no clear relationship to cellular structures. No obvious membrane c100 antigen accumulation was observed.

Shinichi Kakumu, Kentaro Yoshioka, Takaji Wakita, Tetsuya Ishikawa, Masahiro Takayanagi, Yasuyuki Higashi – 1 August 1993 – Ribavirin is a nucleoside analog that inhibits the replication of many DNA and RNA viruses. To evaluate the efficacy of oral ribavirin, we randomly assigned 24 HBeAg‐positive patients with chronic active hepatitis to a 12‐wk course of treatment with 0.8 to 1.0 gm/ribavirin day, 3 mU interferon‐β three times a week intravenously or a combination of those drugs.

Toshiji Saibara, Takashi Maeda, Masako Miyazaki, Saburo Onishi, Yasutake Ymamot – 1 August 1993 – Hegpatocellular carcinomas 1 cm in diameter with high or low echogenicity can be detected on ultrasonography and confirmed on fine‐needle biopsy, but it is still very difficult to detect small hepatocellular carcinomas with isoechogenicity. In this study, we assessed lymphokine‐activated killer cell activity and interferon‐γ production prospectively every 1 to 3 mo for 23 ± 4 mo (mean ± 1 S.D.) in 227 patients with cirrhosis.

Gustav Steinhoff, Matthias Behrend, Bettina Schrader, Rudolf Pichlmayr – 1 August 1993 – Recently it has become clear that the inflammatory response of immune cells to target cells and extracellular matrix is regulated by several receptor‐ligand molecules. Three main classes of molecules mediating intercellular adhesion and activation processes have been identified: the integrin, immunoglobulin and selectin families. This study surveys the expression of adhesion molecules on resident and infiltrating cells in human liver grafts.

Paul D. Berk – 1 August 1993

Raymond S. Koff – 1 August 1993