Jens H. Henriksen, Helmer Ring‐Larsen – 1 September 1993

Florence Wong, Sheldon Tobe, Louis Legault, Alexander G. Logan, Karl Skorecki, Laurence M. Blendis – 1 September 1993 – Cirrhotic patients with ascites refractory to diuretics also have blunted response to marked elevations of plasma atrial natriuretic factor levels alone or to moderate intravascular volume expansion by head‐out water immersion. However, these patients usually undergo natriuresis after peritoneovenous shunting.

Toshitaka Akatsuka, Mickhail Donets, Luca Scaglione, Wei‐Mei Ching, J. Wai‐Kuo Shih, Adrian M. Di Bisceglie, Stephen M. Feinstone – 1 September 1993 – Four monospecific antibodies against the hepatitis C virus nucleocapsid protein, which was expressed by recombinant baculovirus, were obtained by Epstein‐Barr virus transformation of B cells from three patients with chronic hepatitis C virus infection. One of these antibodies was IgG and the other three were IgM.

Frederic Oberti, Philippe Sogni, Stephane Cailmail, Richard Moreau, Bernard Pipy, Didier Lebrec – 1 September 1993 – Although prostaglandins are thought to be involved in the hyperdynamic circulation of portal hypertension, the role of this substance has not been elucidated. Dose‐response curves, the hemodynamic effects of prostacyclin (20 μg/kg) and its inhibitor indomethacin and measurements of plasma and urinary levels of 6‐keto‐prostaglandin F1α were compared in three groups of six rats each: normal, with portal vein stenosis and with secondary biliary cirrhosis.

Siddhartha Kar, Ron Jaffe, Brian I. Carr – 1 September 1993 – G‐to‐T transversion at codon 249 of the p53 gene has been shown to be specifically associated with human hepatocellular carcinomas, particularly that subset associated with exposure to the chemical hepatocarcinogen aflatoxin B1. We surveyed 47 North American adult hepatocellular carcinomas and three childhood liver tumors for codon 249 mutation.

1 September 1993

Bheemappa G. Devi, George I. Henderson, Teri A. Frosto, Steven Schenker – 1 September 1993 – Studies have shown that ethanol at moderate concentrations inhibits epidermal growth factor–dependent replication of fetal rat hepatocytes in culture. This may account for the growth/development impairment associated with fetal alcohol syndrome and decreased liver regeneration in alcoholic liver disease.

Rebecca W. Van Dyke, Karen V. Root – 1 September 1993 – Treatment with ethinyl estradiol is known to impair bile formation, bile acid transport and Na,K‐ATPase activity, to alter receptor‐mediated endocytosis and transcytosis of IgA and asialoorosomucoid and to affect membrane lipid composition and fluidity.

Mark G. Swain, John Vergalla, E. Anthony Jones – 1 September 1993 – Endopeptidase 24.11 (enkephalinase), an enzyme known to be present in plasma and liver, is capable of metabolizing a substantial number of bioactive peptides. We measured plasma endopeptidase 24.11 activity in normal subjects and in patients with chronic hepatocellular disease or chronic cholestatic liver disease. The mean level of plasma endopeptidase 24.11 activity was 13 times higher in cholestatic patients than in controls or patients with hepatocellular disease (p < 0.01).

1 September 1993