Ryoichi Fujiwara, Mathias Haag, Elke Schaeffeler, Anne T. Nies, Ulrich M. Zanger, Matthias Schwab – 23 October 2017 – Neurotoxic bilirubin is the end product of heme catabolism in mammals. Bilirubin is solely conjugated by uridine diphospho‐glucuronosyltransferase 1A1, which is a membrane‐bound enzyme that catalyzes the transfer of glucuronic acid. Due to low function of hepatic and intestinal uridine diphospho‐glucuronosyltransferase 1A1 during the neonatal period, human neonates develop mild to severe physiological hyperbilirubinemia.

Sandra J. Page, Maria M. Rivera, David E. Kleiner, Xiongce Zhao, Sungyoung Auh, Elaine F. Remmers, Theo Heller – 23 October 2017 – Approximately 71 million people are chronically infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV), a potentially lethal pathogen. HCV generates oxidative stress correlating with disease severity. HCV proteins increase reactive oxygen species production by stimulating nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate oxidase (NOX) activity.

Neil Patel, Gemma Sheehan‐Dare, Justin Weir, Suman Verma, Louise Fearfield – 23 October 2017

Emily D. Bethea, Qiushi Chen, Chin Hur, Raymond T. Chung, Jagpreet Chhatwal – 23 October 2017 – It is not standard practice to treat patients with acute hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. However, as the incidence of HCV in the United States continues to rise, it may be time to re‐evaluate acute HCV management in the era of direct‐acting antiviral (DAA) agents. In this study, a microsimulation model was developed to analyze the trade‐offs between initiating HCV therapy in the acute versus chronic phase of infection.

Patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure frequently present to the ICU for care, and the mortality rate for cirrhotic patients requiring ICU approaches 50 percent.  Unique physiologic characteristics in the patient population warrant specialized, multidisciplinary, approaches to care.  The goal of this program is to further develop dialog between surgeons, hepatologists and intensive care unit teams to better deliver care to this complex patient population by focusing on the complex physiology of chronic liver failure.  In addition, we will devote special attention to areas of controver

Identifying best practices in the difficult management of patients with liver disease in the community outpatient setting is an important topic in clinical hepatology. It is particularly important to look at the approach to patients with non-alcoholic liver disease that are not  candidates for research studies, the management of portal hypertension and portal vein thrombosis, and outpatient intervention and monitoring of patients with cirrhosis and renal insufficiency.

Given recent attention to healthcare reform efforts in the U.S., a greater emphasis is being placed on generating and synthesizing evidence to inform policies affecting the clinical practice of hepatology. In turn, this program will review and teach attendees about the most common research designs and analytic methods associated with the conduct of healthcare delivery research.

The future is bright for the continued development of novel gene therapy approaches in liver disease. But, a deeper understanding of off-target effects and immune responses generated in host cells by gene carriers is needed to fully realize their potential. This workshop will provide an overview of current and emerging therapeutic gene editing strategies for liver diseases. Speakers will discuss how novel genome editing techniques and designer nucleases offer the ability to carry out sophisticated gene function studies in vivo.

Recently there is an increased interest and effort in targeting novel pathways to treat cholestatic liver diseases.  Up-to-date science is needed on the new therapeutic targets and the early experiences (successes and failures) of clinical trials to foster discussion of these various approaches and identify priorities for future clinical trials.

This comprehensive program has been designed to improve the treatment and management of patients with liver disease. By highlighting current data to support effective and efficient patient-centered care, attendees will have the ability to utilize medical knowledge and research to provide quality evidence-based practice.