Hans‐jürgen Schlicht, Albrecht von Brunn, Lorenz Theilmann – 1 January 1991 – The relevance of the recently described membrane‐bound form of the HBe protein for the antiviral immune response was examined. The data show that antibodies in anti‐HBe, but not in anti‐HBc—positive human sera efficiently bind to the membrane expressed HBe. No evidence was obtained that the HBc can reach the cell surface in a form that can be detected with human antibodies.

Hironori Tokumo, Nankei Aoyama, Norbert Busch, Daniel J. Mancuso, R. Holzbach Thomas – 1 January 1991 – Non‐bile‐salt cholephilic organic anions are efficiently taken up by the liver. Recent work from our group has suggested the possible importance of relative hydrophobicity among various organic anions in hepatic uptake. To further validate and clarify this, we studied hepatic extraction of five different cholephilic dyes using the isolated perfused rat liver in single‐pass mode.

William G. M. Hardison, Victor L. Heasley, Dale F. Shellhamer – 1 January 1991 – Trihydroxy bile acids with differing nonsterol chain length and charge were synthesized to define the effect of these parameters on the ability to competitively inhibit the Na+‐dependent uptake of 14C taurocholate into isolated rat hepatocytes. Compounds with long side chains (≥ 0.8 nm) beyond carbon‐17 of the sterol nucleus and carrying a negative charge or no charge were potent inhibitors. Introduction of a positive charge into the side chain weakened inhibition.

David H. Perlmutter – 1 January 1991

Geoffrey W. McCaughan, J. Stewart Davies, Jenny A. Waugh, G. Alex Bishop, Bruce M. Hall, Neil D. Gallagher, John F. Thompson, A. G. Ross Sheil, Dorothy M. Painter – 1 December 1990 – The aim of this study was to quantitate T‐cell populations infiltrating portal tracts, bile ducts and hepatic lobules in 82 biopsy specimens from 25 patients after orthotopic liver transplantation. Biopsy specimens taken immediately after revascularization of the graft were used as controls.

Ljusk Siw Eriksson, Charlotte Söderman, Bo‐Göran Ericzon, Lennart Eleborg, John Wahren, Göran Hedenstierna – 1 December 1990 – To examine the effect of liver transplantation on the respiratory and cardiovascular functions, ventilation/perfusion relationships were determined by multiple inert gas elimination technique in six patients with end‐stage liver disease 1 to 19 mo before and 2 to 6 mo after liver transplantation. Cardiac output and pulmonary vascular pressures were measured after catheterization of the pulmonary artery.

Judith Storch – 1 December 1990 – The purpose of this study was to examine the interaction between fatty acids and plasma membranes from liver cells. We were unable to reproduce the reported effect of heating on the capacity of these membranes to bind [3H]oleate (Stremmel et al. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA, 1985;82:4–8). In fact, the distribution of [3H]oleate between plasma membranes and unilamellar vesicles of lipids extracted from these membranes was in favor of the lipids, indicating the absence of a detectable amount of binding to a putative fatty acid binding protein in plasma membranes.

1 December 1990

H. Franklin Herlong, Willis C. Maddrey, Mackenzie Walser, Ljusk Siw Eriksson, Harold O. Conn – 1 December 1990

Ludmila Vitvitski‐Trépo, Alan Kay, Christian Pichoud, Philippe Chevallier, Stéphane de Dinechin, Blanche‐Marie Shamoon, Elisabeth Mandart, Christian Trépo, Francis Galibert – 1 December 1990 – To clarify the significance of the X gene of hepatitis B virus, we have tested for anti‐HBx in the serum and HBxAg in the liver at different stages of the natural history of hepatitis B virus infection. Sera were screened by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay and positive results confirmed by immunoblot. Purified recombinant MS2 Pol‐HBx fusion protein was used as target for both assays.