Raymond J. Lynch, Fei Ye, Quanhu Sheng, Zhiguo Zhao, Seth J. Karp – 14 March 2019 – Allocation of livers for transplantation faces regulatory pressure to move toward broader sharing. A current proposal supported by the United Network for Organ Sharing Board of Directors relies on concentric circles, but its effect on socioeconomic inequities in access to transplant services is poorly understood.

Yun‐Long Wang, Jin‐Yu Liu, Jin‐E Yang, Xiao‐Man Yu, Zhan‐Li Chen, Ya‐Jing Chen, Ming Kuang, Ying Zhu, Shi‐Mei Zhuang – 13 March 2019 – Although thousands of long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) have been annotated, only a limited number of them have been functionally characterized. Here, we identified an oncogenic lncRNA, named lnc‐UCID (lncRNA up‐regulating CDK6 by interacting with DHX9). Lnc‐UCID was up‐regulated in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), and a higher lnc‐UCID level was correlated with shorter recurrence‐free survival of HCC patients.

Noriki Okada, Yukihiro Sanada, Yasuharu Onishi, Taizen Urahashi, Yoshiyuki Ihara, Naoya Yamada, Yuta Hirata, Takumi Katano, Toshimi Imai, Kentaro Ushijima, Keiko Ogaki, Shinya Otomo, Koichi Mizuta – 13 March 2019 – Early relaparotomy of adult recipients after living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) is significantly associated with poor prognosis. However, there are few reports focusing on pediatric recipients after LDLT. The aim of this study is to clarify the causes and outcomes of early relaparotomy after pediatric LDLT.

Daniel Rizzolo, Kyle Buckley, Bo Kong, Le Zhan, Jianliang Shen, Mary Stofan, Anita Brinker, Michael Goedken, Brian Buckley, Grace L. Guo – 12 March 2019 – Bile acids (BAs) are diverse molecules that are synthesized from cholesterol in the liver. The synthesis of BAs has traditionally been shown to occur through two pathways. Cholesterol 7α‐hydroxylase (CYP7A1) performs the initial and rate‐limiting step in the classical pathway, and sterol 27‐hydroxylase (CYP27A1) initiates the hydroxylation of cholesterol in the alternative pathway.

Ryutaro Hirose – 12 March 2019

Erik L. Lum, Andrés Cárdenas, Paul Martin, Suphamai Bunnapradist – 12 March 2019 – On August 10, 2017, a formal policy was enacted in the United States that defined listing criteria for simultaneous liver‐kidney transplantation and priority for patients who received a liver transplantation (LT) and subsequently developed significant kidney disease after LT. This article reviews and summarizes the rationale for such policies, the policies themselves, and the potential impact on LT candidates.

Manisha Verma, Jay Horrow, Victor Navarro – 12 March 2019 – Alcohol use disorder, substance abuse, and depression are illnesses that deteriorate the quality of life (QOL) of patients with chronic liver disease (CLD). Screening and behavioral health programs integrated into routine practice can mitigate the deleterious effects of such illnesses but have not been adopted in hepatology practices. We implemented a behavioral health program based on the Screening, Brief Intervention, and Referral to Treatment (SBIRT) model and assessed its acceptability and effectiveness in improving QOL.

Page Axley, Zunirah Ahmed, Sumant Arora, Allen Haas, Yong‐Fang Kuo, Patrick S. Kamath, Ashwani K. Singal – 12 March 2019 – Acute‐on‐chronic liver failure (ACLF) is characterized by multiple organ failure (OF) with high short‐term mortality. There is lack of population‐based data on trends on etiology specific ACLF related burden. National Inpatient Sample (2006‐2014) was queried using ICD‐09 codes for admissions with cirrhosis and ACLF (≥2 extrahepatic OF).

Eva Román, Juan Camilo Nieto, Cristina Gely, Sílvia Vidal, Marta Pozuelo, Maria Poca, Cándido Juárez, Carlos Guarner, Chaysavanh Manichanh, Germán Soriano – 12 March 2019 – Probiotics can modulate gut microbiota, intestinal permeability, and immune response and could therefore improve cognitive dysfunction and help avoid potential consequences, such as falls, in patients with cirrhosis. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of a multistrain probiotic on cognitive function, risk of falls, and inflammatory response in patients with cirrhosis.

Viniyendra Pamecha, Ankur Vagadiya, Piyush Kumar Sinha, Rommel Sandhyav, Kumaraswamy Parthasarathy, Shridhar Sasturkar, Nihar Mohapatra, Ashok Choudhury, Rakhi Maiwal, Rajeev Khanna, Seema Alam, Chandra Kant Pandey, Shiv Kumar Sarin – 12 March 2019 – In countries where deceased organ donation is sparse, emergency living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) is the only lifesaving option in select patients with acute liver failure (ALF). The aim of the current study is living liver donor safety and recipient outcomes following LDLT for ALF.