Shuhei Nishiguchi, Tetsuo Kuroki, Tadashi Takeda, Shinya Nakajima, Susumu Shiomi, Shuichi Seki, Isao Matsui‐Yuasa, Shuzo Otani, Kenzo Kobayashi – 1 August 1990 – We studied the effects of putrescine on acute liver failure caused in rats by two injections of 1 gm/kg D‐galactosamine. The hepatic polyamine level rose only slightly in the D‐galactosamine–injected rats treated with glucagon and insulin, and [3H]thymidine incorporation into DNA increased little; these hormones did not improve the survival rate.

Rolando Hernández‐muñoz, Mauricio Díaz‐muñoz, Jorge Suárez, Victoria Chagoya de Sánchez – 1 August 1990 – Adenosine administration was tested in rats with carbon tetrachloride–induced hepatic fibrosis and was able to partially prevent the enlargement of liver and spleen induced by the toxin. This amelioration of the hepatomegaly was accompanied by a 50% reduction of the liver collagen deposition and preservation of content of glycosaminoglycans. A stimulated hepatic collagenase activity is apparently the mechanism for reduction of collagen accumulation.

1 August 1990

Irwin M. Arias – 1 July 1990

Riccardo Volpes, Joost J. van den Oord, Valeer J. Desmet – 1 July 1990 – Using monoclonal antibodies and in situ immunohistochemistry, we studied the distribution of “accessory” adhesion molecules (i.e., intercellular adhesion molecule‐1 and leukocyte function–associated antigen‐3) in 114 liver biopsy specimens with various inflammatory liver diseases and in 12 control liver biopsy samples without inflammation.

Tadashi Terada, Yasuni Nakanuma – 1 July 1990 – It remains unclear whether atypical epithelial lesions, including carcinomas and precancerous lesions, develop in intraheptic peribiliary glands. This question was tested in this study. One thousand livers from consecutive autopsies were surveyed and 201 livers with bile duct carcinomas or metastatic malignant neoplasms were excluded because atypical epithelial lesions of the glands were difficult to distinguish from the primary or metastatic malignant cells.

Gotaro Yamada, Kouichi Takaguchi, Kazuhiro Matsueda, Hiroshi Nishimoto, Michiko Takahashi, Shigeatsu Fujiki, Motowo Mizuno, Shingo Kinoyama, Takao Tsuji – 1 July 1990 – Immune light and electron microscopic studies using monoclonal antibodies have been applied to localize HBeAg in liver biopsy specimens of 19 patients with chronic hepatitis B. Under the light microscope, HBeAg was demonstrated in nuclei, cytoplasm and on the cell surface of hepatocytes. The number of HBeAg‐positive hepatocytes correlated well with the serum levels of HBeAg (enzyme immunoassay) and DNA‐polymerase.

R. Batey, Harold O. Conn – 1 July 1990 – After consuming comparable amounts of ethanol, women have higher blood ethanol concentrations than men, even with allowance for differences in size, and are more susceptible to alcoholic liver disease. Recently, we documented significant “first‐pass metabolism” of ethanol due to its oxidation by gastric tissue. We report a study of the possible contribution of this metabolism to the sex‐related difference in blood alcohol concentrations in 20 men and 23 women. Six in each group were alcoholics.

Marie Borum, Hans Fromm – 1 July 1990 – We studied the effect of ursodeoxycholic acid on 18 women and 2 men with primary biliary cirrhosis, mainly stages I and II. After a 3‐mo observation period, patients were randomized to a 9‐mo treatment period with ursodeoxycholic acid, 10 mg/kg · day, or placebo. Two patients on placebo left the study.

H. J. R. Bussey – 1 July 1990 – Two cases of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with familial polyposis coli (FPC) have recently been reported in the literature. Hepatoblastoma was also reported in five children with maternal ancestors with FPC. We report a case of hepatoblastoma in a female infant whose father has FPC as further evidence of an association between hepatoblastoma and FPC.