The application of image analysis and neural network technology to the study of large‐cell liver‐cell dysplasia and hepatocellular carcinoma

C S An, L M Petrovic, I Reyter, T Tolmachoff, L D Ferrell, S N Thung, S A Geller, A M Marchevsky – 30 December 2003 – Liver cell dysplasia (LCD) is considered a preneoplastic lesion, whose characterization and differentiation from hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and from the reactive changes seen in cirrhosis has been controversial. We studied 12 cases of LCD (large cell type) with image analysis techniques (IA) and compared the findings with those of HCC (n = 40), and a spectrum of non‐neoplastic hepatic lesions including normal liver and cirrhosis (n = 49).

Evidence of functional and structural cardiac abnormalities in cirrhotic patients with and without ascites

M Pozzi, S Carugo, G Boari, V Pecci, S de Ceglia, S Maggiolini, G B Bolla, L Roffi, M Failla, G Grassi, C Giannattasio, G Mancia – 30 December 2003 – Cirrhosis is associated with cardiovascular abnormalities. Scanty information is available as to whether these include left ventricle diastolic dysfunction and wall thickness increase.

Human liver transplant perfusate: An abundant source of donor liver–associated leukocytes

J R Jonsson, P G Hogan, G A Balderson, L L Ooi, S V Lynch, R W Strong, E E Powell – 30 December 2003 – In vitro studies designed to examine the mechanisms of immune tolerance after liver transplantation in humans have been hampered by the difficulty in obtaining sufficient numbers of donor liver‐associated leukocytes (LALs). We have investigated whether the ex vivo perfusion of donor livers releases a population of LALs that can be readily retrieved from the waste fluid.

Tumor‐dependent activation of rodent hepatic stellate cells during experimental melanoma metastasis

E Olaso, A Santisteban, J Bidaurrazaga, A M Gressner, J Rosenbaum, F Vidal‐Vanaclocha – 30 December 2003 – In this work we report the presence of intrametastatic smooth‐muscle iso‐α‐actin (SMA)‐expressing cells which appeared from the early stages of the hepatic metastasis process of intrasplenically injected B16 melanoma (B16M) cells. They formed a network of stromal cells among B16M cells, a very low percentage of them expressing desmin.

Biological effects of human insulin receptor substrate‐1 overexpression in hepatocytes

S Tanaka, L Mohr, E V Schmidt, K Sugimachi, J R Wands – 30 December 2003 – The human insulin receptor substrate‐1 (hIRS‐1) is a key intracellular protein involved in various cytokine signaling pathways associated with cell growth. We have previously demonstrated that stable transfection and overexpression of hIRS‐1 in human hepatoblastoma cells in vitro leads to the constitutive activation of the mitogen‐activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascade. In this setting, hIRS‐1 acts as a dominant oncogene and will induce neoplastic transformation of NIH 3T3 cells.

Different changes in expression and function of connexin 26 and connexin 32 during DNA synthesis and redifferentiation in primary rat hepatocytes using a DMSO culture system

T Kojima, M Yamamoto, C Mochizuki, T Mitaka, N Sawada, Y Mochizuki – 30 December 2003 – In the present study, we determined in detail the changes of liver gap junctions, connexin 26 (Cx26), and connexin 32 (Cx32), during DNA synthesis and redifferentiation of hepatocytes in vitro. We used primary rat hepatocytes that expressed the liver gap junction proteins, which were cultured in the medium containing epidermal growth factor (EGF) with 2% dimethylsulfoxide (DMSO) and 10‐7 mol/L glucagon (a DMSO culture system), as we previously reported.

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