Sheng‐Chieh Hsu, Wan‐Jr Syu, I‐Jane Sheen, Hui‐Ting Liu, King‐Song Jeng, Jaw‐Ching Wu – 30 December 2003 – The mechanisms that link genotypes of hepatitis D virus (HDV) with clinical outcomes have not yet been elucidated. Genotypic variations are unevenly distributed along the sequences of hepatitis delta antigens (HDAgs). Of these variations, the packaging signal at the C‐terminus has a divergence of 74% between genotypes I and II.

Maria B. Arvelo, Jeffrey T. Cooper, Christopher Longo, Soizic Daniel, Shane T. Grey, Jerome Mahiou, Eva Czismadia, Graziella Abu‐Jawdeh, Christiane Ferran – 30 December 2003 – Apoptosis of hepatocytes is a seminal feature of fulminant hepatic failure. We show that the anti‐apoptotic protein A20 is upregulated in hepatocytes by pro‐inflammatory stimuli and functions to protect from apoptosis and limit inflammation by inhibiting NF‐κB.

Liliane Dubuisson, Alexis Desmoulière, Boris Decourt, Laetitia Evadé, Christiane Bedin, Liliane Boussarie, Laurence Barrier, Michel Vidaud, Jean Rosenbaum – 30 December 2003 – The effect of adrenergic innervation and/or circulating catecholamines on the function of liver fibrogenic cells is poorly understood. Our aim was to investigate the effects of noradrenergic antagonism on carbon tetrachloride (CCl4)‐induced liver fibrosis in rats. Two weeks of CCl4 induced a ∼5‐fold increase in the area of fibrosis as compared with controls.

Nuria A. Callejas, Marta Casado, Lisardo Boscá, Paloma Martín‐Sanz – 30 December 2003 – Stimulation of fetal hepatocytes with proinflammatory cytokines and lipopolysaccharide promotes the expression of cyclooxygenase‐2 (COX‐2) and nitric oxide synthase‐2 (NOS‐2), whereas the hepatoma cell line HepG2 exhibits a behavior similar to that described for adult hepatocytes and only expresses NOS‐2.

Hirofumi Kawanaka, Michael K. Jones, Imre L. Szabo, Dolgor Baatar, Rama Pai, Kouji Tsugawa, Keizo Sugimachi, I. James Sarfeh, Andrzej S. Tarnawski – 30 December 2003 – Activation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) in portal hypertensive (PHT) gastric mucosa leads to hyperdynamic circulation and increased susceptibility to injury. However, the signaling mechanisms for eNOS activation in PHT gastric mucosa and the role of TNF‐α in this signaling remain unknown.

Michael Fuchs, Boris Ivandic, Oliver Mueller, Carmen Schalla, Juergen Scheibner, Petra Bartsch, Eduard F. Stange – 30 December 2003

Natalia Nieto, Scott L. Friedman, Arthur I. Cederbaum – 30 December 2003 – The alcohol‐inducible cytochrome P450 2E1 (CYP2E1) is expressed mainly in hepatocytes and generates reactive oxygen species (ROS). To better understand how hepatic stellate cells (HSC) become activated in the presence of oxidative stress and evaluate whether CYP2E1‐derived ROS activate stellate cells, we coincubated primary stellate cells with HepG2 cells, which do (E47 cells) or do not (C34 cells) express CYP2E1.

Fritz von Weizsäcker, Josef Köck, Stefan Wieland, Jürgen Beck, Michael Nassal, Hubert E. Blum – 30 December 2003 – Hepadnaviral replication requires the concerted action of the polymerase and core proteins to ensure selective packaging of the RNA pregenome into nucleocapsids. Virus assembly is initiated by cis‐preferential binding of polymerase to the encapsidation signal ϵ, present on pregenomic RNA. Using the duck hepatitis B virus (DHBV) model, we analyzed how core protein is recruited to the RNA/polymerase preassembly complex.

Mylène Sebagh, Karin Blakolmer, Bruno Falissard, Bruno Roche, Jean‐Francois Emile, Henri Bismuth, Didier Samuel, Michel Reynès – 30 December 2003 – Chronic rejection (CR) after liver transplantation is thought to be a dynamic and potentially reversible process. The Banff working group has developed recommendations for its histopathologic staging.

Adrian Reuben – 30 December 2003