J. Eileen Hay, Keith D. Lindor, Russell H. Wiesner, E. Rolland Dickson, Ruud A. F. Krom, Nicholas F. Larusso – 1 August 1991 – The incidence and severity of osteopenic bone disease in primary sclerosing cholangitis is poorly defined. Clinical, biochemical and radiographic assessment and bone mineral density measurements of the lumbar spine were carried out in two groups of patients. Group 1 consisted of 30 patients with advanced primary sclerosing cholangitis; group 2 consisted of 18 patients with newly diagnosed primary sclerosing cholangitis. Only one patient had bone pain.

Peter Nagy, Zsuzsa Schaff, Károly Lapis – 1 August 1991 – Transforming growth factor‐β1 was localized by means of immunohistochemical reaction in liver biopsy specimens taken from patients having different chronic liver diseases with extending fibrosis. Two polyclonal antibodies that were produced in rabbits were directed against the amino terminal of transforming growth factor‐β1.

Gordon Baskin – 1 August 1991 – Molecular mechanisms that mediate signal transduction by growth inhibitory cytokines are poorly understood. Type I (α and β) interferons (IFNs) are potent growth inhibitory cytokines whose biological activities depend on induced changes in gene expression. IFN‐α induced transient activation of phospholipase A2 in 3T3 fibroblasts and rapid hydrolysis of [3H]‐arachidonic acid (AA) from prelabeled phospholipid pools.

1 August 1991

Faleh Z. Al‐Faleh, E. Ayobanji Ayoola, Mohammed Al‐Jeffry, Rashed Al‐Rashed, Mohammed Al‐Mofarreh, Mohammed Arif, Sami Ramia, Mohammed Al‐Karawi, Mohammed Al‐Shabrawy – 1 August 1991 – In a population‐based survey, 39 (0.90%) of 4,496 Saudi Arabian children (ages 1 to 10) were positive for antibody to hepatitis C virus. No significant difference was seen between the prevalence rate in males (0.9%) and females (0.8%) or between urban (0.7%) and rural dwellers (1.0%). A significant variation of rates (0% to 5.7%) was seen from one region to another.

Flemming Bendtsen, Niels Juel Christensen, Thorkild I. A. Sørensen, Jens H. Henriksen – 1 August 1991 – Circulating catecholamines are increased in cirrhosis with portal hypertension, and increase further after propranolol. In 23 cirrhotic patients, plasma norepinephrine and epinephrine were determined in an artery, the azygos vein, the right renal vein and a hepatic vein before and after an oral 80‐mg dose of propranolol.

Peter G. Langley, Rick Keays, Robin D. Hughes, Alastair Forbes, Ullrich Delvos, Roger Williams – 1 August 1991 – Previous studies have shown that antithrombin III levels are low in fulminant hepatic failure, and heparin kinetics are abnormal, making control of heparinization difficult during hemodialysis of these patients who are at risk of bleeding.

Yuka Akashi, Chizu Koreeda, Shigeki Enomoto, Shozo Uchiyama, Takako Mizuno, Yasuko Shiozaki, Yoshiko Sameshima, Kyoichi Inoue – 1 August 1991 – A multivariate analysis of data from 90 patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma was performed using Cox's regression model to identify factors possibly affecting their prognoses. Thirty‐one patients underwent arterial anticancer chemotherapy, and the remaining 59 patients received transcatheter arterial embolization with anticancer agents.

Kim A. Sathre, Monica L.‐S. Tsang, James A. Weatherbee, Clifford J. Steer – 1 August 1991 – Cellular processing of 125I‐labeled transforming growth factor‐β1 was investigated in the human hepatoma cell lines Hep G2 and Hep 3B. Binding of 125I‐transforming growth factor‐β1 to cell surface receptors was specific, saturable and calciumindependent. Both cell lines exhibited a single class of high‐affinity (Kd = 2.2 × 10−10 mol/L) binding sites (4.5 × 103 for the Hep G2 cell; 1.5 × 103 for the Hep 3B cell) for both human and porcine transforming growth factor‐β1.

Miriam J. Alter – 1 August 1991