Angelo Luca, Juan Carlos Garí‐Pagán, Faust Feu, Juan Carlos Lopez‐Talavera, Mercedes Fernández, Concepció Bru, Jaime Bosch, Juan Rodés – 1 January 1995 – This study investigated the correlation between changes in hepatic and systemic hemodynamics and femoral blood flow (FBF), measured by dual‐beam pulsed wave Doppler, in 58 portal hypertensive patients receiving propranolol (0.15 mg/Kg intravenously; n = 44) or placebo (n = 14) under double‐blind conditions. Placebo administration had no effects.

Filip Braet, Ronald De Zanger, Marijke Baekeland, Evelyne Crabbé, Patrick Van Der Smissen, Eddie Wisse – 1 January 1995 – This article describes the cytoskeleton associated with fenestrae and sieve plates of rat liver sinusoidal endothelial cells. Fenestrae control the exchange between the blood and parenchymal cells. We present evidence indicating that several agents that change the fenestrae and sieve plates also cause changes in the cytoskeleton. Cultured liver endothelial cells (LECs) were slightly fixed and treated with cytoskeleton extraction buffer.

Hans Peter Dienes, Guido Gerken, Bernd Goergen, Klaus Heermann, Wolfram Gerlich, K. H. Meyer zum Büschenfelde – 1 January 1995 – A number of naturally occurring hepatitis B virus (HBV) mutants unable to synthesize the hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) have been identified in patients characterized by HBV DNA and anti‐HBe in their serum. Because the analysis of the HBV‐associated DNA and antigens in the liver tissue is still not complete, we investigated the precore sequence of HBV DNA and its encoded proteins in the liver tissue of 32 patients positive for HBV DNA and anti‐HBe in their serum.

Anna S. F. Lok, Ulus S. Akarca, Sheila Greene – 1 January 1995 – We previously reported two mutually exclusive mutations in the precore region of hepatitis B virus: M1 (T‐1856, proline‐serine substitution at codon 15) and M2 (A‐1896, stop codon at codon 28). This study was conducted to determine if the presence of precore mutants affect spontaneous or interferon (IFN)‐induced hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg) clearance.

Gerd‐Achim Kullak‐Ublick, Gustav Paumgartner, Frieder Berr – 1 January 1995 – Comparative studies between different patient groups have suggested that cholecystectomy enhances bacterial dehydroxylation of the primary bile acid cholic acid (CA) to the secondary bile acid deoxycholic acid (DCA). DCA may exert a cocarcinogenic effect on the colonic mucosa. In a short‐term follow‐up study on nine female patients we found no alterations of the CA or DCA pools after cholecystectomy.

Carmen García‐Ruiz, Albert Morales, Anna Colell, Antonio Ballesta, Joan Rodés, Neil Kaplowitz, José C. Fernández‐Checa – 1 January 1995 – Mitochondrial glutathione plays an important role in maintaining a functionally competent organelle. Previous studies have shown that ethanol feeding selectively depletes the mitochondrial glutathione pool, more predominantly in mitochondria from perivenous hepatocytes.

Jean‐Pierre Campion, Nicole Porchet, Jéan‐Pierre Aubert, Annie L'Helgoualch, Bruno Clément – 1 January 1995 – In orthotopic liver transplantation, extended cold ischemia of the graft may induce cell damage, particularly in biliary epithelium. We have investigated the effects of a cold University of Wisconsin (UW) solution on cultured human gallbladder biliary epithelial cells (GBEC) exposed or not exposed to stagnant bile. In UW solution, morphological alterations of cultured GBEC were not prominent under light microscopy after 16 hours at 4°C, being more striking after 24 to 48 hours.

Eric E. Mast, Michael A. Purdy – 1 January 1995 – Many epidemics of water‐borne hepatitis have occurred throughout India. These were thought to be epidemics of hepatitis A until 1980, when evidence for an enterically transmitted non‐A, non‐B hepatitis was first reported. Subsequently, hepatitis E virus was discovered and most recent epidemics of enterically transmitted non‐A, non‐B hepatitis have been attributed to hepatitis E virus infection. However, only a limited number of cases have been confirmed by immuno electron microscopy, polymerase chain reaction, or seroconversion.

Raymond S. Koff – 1 January 1995

Ruth B. Purtilo – 1 January 1995