Hugo R. Rosen, Derek G. Doherty, Laura Madrigal‐Estebas, Cliona O'Farrelly, Lucy Golden‐Mason – 27 December 2007 – Cluster of differentiation (CD)56+ lymphocytes are believed to play important roles in the innate immune response to viral infections by production of interferon (IFN)‐γ and/or the recognition of virally infected cells, but their role in liver transplantation (LT) has not been characterized. Here, for the first time, we examine the phenotypic and functional features of these cells in patients undergoing LT for hepatitis C virus (HCV)‐related liver failure.

Alejandro Forner, Jordi Bruix – 27 December 2007

Federico N. Aucejo, Koji Hashimoto, Cristiano Quintini, Dympna Kelly, David Vogt, Charles Winans, Bijan Eghtesad, Mark Baker, John Fung, Charles Miller – 27 December 2007 – Ligation of portosystemic shunts in patients with cirrhosis undergoing liver transplantation has been recommended to avoid insufficient portal vein (PV) flow. Shunts are not always recognized pretransplantation because intraoperative PV flow assessment is not routinely attempted.

Ibrahim A. Hanouneh, Charles Miller, Federico Aucejo, Rocio Lopez, Mary Kay Quinn, Nizar N. Zein – 27 December 2007 – Sustained virologic response (SVR) in the treatment of recurrent hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection after liver transplantation (LT) remains suboptimal. We evaluated efficacy of pegylated interferon alfa (PEG) and ribavirin (RBV) (PEG/RBV) combination therapy in LT recipients with recurrent HCV and predictive values of rapid virological response (RVR) and early virologic response (EVR).

Jacek B. Cywinski, Edward Mascha, Charles Miller, Bijan Eghtesad, Shunichi Nakagawa, Joseph P. Vincent, Nick Pesa, Jie Na, John J. Fung, Brian M. Parker – 27 December 2007 – Previous studies have shown that donor hypernatremia and possibly recipient hyponatremia negatively impact graft function after orthotopic liver transplant (OLT). The purpose of this retrospective investigation was to determine whether measured differences in serum sodium values between cadaveric donors and OLT recipients (ΔNa+) influence immediate postoperative allograft function and short‐term patient outcomes.

Christine Kortsalioudaki, Rachel M. Taylor, Paul Cheeseman, Sanjay Bansal, Giorgina Mieli‐Vergani, Anil Dhawan – 27 December 2007 – Acute liver failure (ALF) carries a high mortality in children. N‐acetylcysteine (NAC), an antioxidant agent that replenishes mitochondrial and cytosolic glutathione stores, has been used in the treatment of late acetaminophen‐induced ALF and non‐acetaminophen‐induced ALF. In our unit, NAC was introduced as additional treatment for non‐acetaminophen‐induced ALF in 1995.

Rohan A. Joseph, Blythe D. Shepard, George T. Kannarkat, Tara M. Rutledge, Dean J. Tuma, Pamela L. Tuma – 27 December 2007 – We have been using polarized hepatic WIF‐B cells to examine ethanol‐induced liver injury. Previously, we determined microtubules were more highly acetylated and more stable in ethanol‐treated WIF‐B cells. We proposed that the ethanol‐induced alterations in microtubule dynamics may explain the ethanol‐induced defects in membrane trafficking that have been previously documented.

Robert P. Myers – 27 December 2007

Ivo Giovannini, Carlo Chiarla, Felice Giuliante, Maria Vellone, Francesco Ardito, Gennaro Nuzzo – 27 December 2007

Masayuki Kurosaki, Namiki Izumi – 27 December 2007