Wolfgang E. Fleig, Gerhard Hoss – 1 February 1989 – The active principle of a cytosol extract from weanling rat liver representing a putative liver‐specific growth factor was partially purified and characterized. “Hepatic stimulator substance” was extracted from the livers of 40‐ to 60‐gm male rats by heat treatment of a homogenate in 35% (w/v) phosphate‐buffered saline and subsequent ultracentrifugation. This “heat supernatant” and fractions derived from the subsequent purification steps were tested for growth stimulatory activity in two rat hepatoma cell lines.

Kiyohiko Kurai, Shiro Iino, Kazuhiko Koike, Keiji Mitamura, Yasuo Endo, Hiroshi Oka – 1 February 1989 – The peptide which is encoded by the pre‐S(2) region of hepatitis B virus DNA, the pre‐S(2) antigen, was determined quantitatively by an enzyme immunoassay system employing monoclonal antibodies. The prevalence and titer of pre‐S(2)Ag were 91.9% (91/99) and 10,356 ± 19,053 units (mean ± S.D., arbitrary units) for hepatitis B e antigen (HBeAg)‐positive patients with acute and chronic HBV infection and 86.0% (74/86) and 952 ± 1,565 units for HBeAg‐negative subjects.

F. Trevisani, M. Bernardi, G. Gasbarrini, Udaya M. Kabadi – 1 February 1989

M. James Phillips – 1 February 1989

Robert T. Schoen – 1 February 1989 – Lyme disease, a multi‐system disorder caused by the tick‐borne spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi, is characterized by malaise, fever, headache, arthralgia, myalgia, stiff neck, lymphadenopathy, paresthesias, and a distinctive rash, erythema chronicum migrans (ECM) in its early phase. Neurologic, cardiac, and joint abnormalities may follow within weeks to months. A patient is described in whom acute recurrent Lyme disease occurred and in which spirochetes were identified in the skin and liver histologically.

Roger H. Miller, Shuichi Kaneko, Cathie T. Chung, Rosina Girones, Robert H. Purcell – 1 February 1989 – The genome of hepatitis B virus (HBV) is a circular DNA molecule approximately 3,200 base pairs (bp) in length. Relative to other double‐stranded DNA viruses capable of independent replication, HBV possesses the smallest genome of any virus known to infect man. Therefore, it is not surprising that HBV utilizes its genetic material economically.

Abraham Koshy, Catherine Girod, Samuel S. Lee, Antoine Hadengue, Raimondo Cerini, Didier Lebrec – 1 February 1989 – The effects of increasing doses of propranolol were studied in awake portal hypertensive rats in order to elucidate the relative effects of the β‐blocker on systemic and splanchnic circulation. Hemodynamic responses to 0.1, 0.2 and 0.4 mg per min infusions of propranolol were compared with placebo in awake rats with portal hypertension due to portal vein stenosis. Heart rate significantly and progressively decreased from 356 ± 13 to 293 ± 10 beats per min (mean ± S.E.).

Geneviève Leray, Yves Deugnier, Anne‐Marie Jouanolle, Dominique Lehry, Jean‐François Bretagne, Jean‐Plerre Campion, Pierre Brissot, André Le Treut – 1 February 1989 – Biochemical characteristics of α‐L‐fucosidase (α–L–fu–coside hydrolase, EC 3.2.1.51) were studied in tumorous and nontumorous human hepatocellular carcinoma (n=14). Five parameters were studied: (i) specific activity, (ii) thermostability, (iii) enzyme affinity for an artificial substrate (Km), (iv) isoenzyme patterns of the glycosi‐dase before and after neuraminidase treatment and (v) pH influence on enzyme activity.

Ava Lobo‐Yeo, Claire McSorley, Barbara M. McFarlane, Giorgina Mieli‐Vergani, Alex P. Mowat, Diego Vergani – 1 February 1989 – A radioimmunometric technique for the detection of autoantibodies to liver membrane antigens has been developed using Alexander cells, a human hepatocellular carcinoma cell line. After incubation of Alexander cells with serum, antimembrane antibodies were detected by addition of 125I‐labeled Protein A.

Mark Abramovitz, Seishi Ishigaki, Irving Listowsky – 1 February 1989 – Specific cDNA probes were used to determine steady‐state mRNA levels for the multiple glutathione S‐trans‐ferases in primary hepatocyte cultures. In the first 24 hr of culture, gene transcripts for the Ya family decreased sharply, Yb3 disappeared completely, but changes in levels of mRNA for Yb1 and Yb2 were smaller. These results suggest that the isoenzymes are regulated independently.