Patricia Ponce, Javier Cordero, Marcos Rojkind – 1 May 1981 – Adult rat hepatocytes efficiently attach to intact connective tissue fibers prepared from normal rat liver; this material has been given the name of “biomatrix”. The cells remain alive and differentiated for at least 4 months in culture. The liver biomatrix contains both collagen and noncollagenous glycoproteins. Heretofore, the functions of the different components of the biomatrix in facilitating cell adhesion and promoting survival and differentiation of rat hepatocytes have not been investigated.

George H. Scullard, Ljudevit L. Andres, Harry B. Greenberg, Joseph L. Smith, Vinod K. Sawhney, E. Andrew Neal, Anmol S. Mahal, Hans Popper, Thomas C. Merigan, William S. Robinson, Peter B. Gregory – 1 May 1981 – Twelve of 32 patients lost HBeAg and DNA polymerase from their serum after completing antiviral therapy with interferon and/or adenine arabinoside. Three lost serum HBsAg as well. Loss of corresponding viral markers from hepatic tissue was also seen.

Peter Kryger, Lars R. Mathiesen, Jan Aldershvile, Jens O. Nielsen, The Copenhagen Hepatitis Acuta Programme – 1 May 1981 – To evaluate the clinical implication of IgM antibody against hepatitis B core antigen (anti‐HBc IgM), a consecutive series of 87 patients with acute type B hepatitis and 16 healthy carriers of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) were studied by a newly developed reverse ELISA technique.

Stanley B. Benjamin, Kamal G. Ishak, Hyman J. Zimmerman, Amos Grushka – 1 May 1981 – Phenylbutazone has been reported to produce several forms of hepatic injury. A clinical and histologic review of 23 well‐substantiated cases in conjunction with review of 43 case reports in the literature was undertaken. Utilizing the histologic features and available clinical data, the injury was classified as moderate‐marked hepatocellular injury, minor hepatocellular injury, and other injury. No sexual differences were noted. Most patients had used the drug for less than 6 weeks.

George R. Martin, Hynda K. Kleinman – 1 May 1981

Shizuko Takahashi, Edwin Simpser – 1 May 1981 – Mice infected with Schistosoma mansoni represent a model for study of hepatic fibrosis in humans. Production of trypsin‐activatable inactive collagenase and EDTA‐sensitive neutral protease was measured in the culture medium in which granuloma explants or primary cultures were maintained. Collagenase production was maximal in granulomas obtained from liver of mice 8 weeks postinfection and was inhibited by Actinomycin D or cycloheximide, and enhanced by lymphocyte factor(s) or heparin.

Darrell Doyle, Anh V. Le – 1 March 1981

Hans Popper, James W.‐K. Shih, John L. Gerin, Doris C. Wong, Bill H. Hoyer, William T. London, David L. Sly, Robert H. Purcell – 1 March 1981 – The livers of 33 captive woodchucks were examined histologically in 30 biopsy and 10 autopsy specimens and the findings were correlated with serum determinations for woodchuck hepatitis virus (WHV), surface antigen (WHsAg) and antibody (anti‐WHs), and WHV DNA and DNA polymerase.

Ferruccio Bonino, Bill Hoyer, Eugenie Ford, J. Wai‐Kuo Shih, Robert H. Purcell, John L. Gerin – 1 March 1981 – The hepatitis B virus‐associated delta antigen was detected in the serum of a young female drug addict with acute hepatitis and a previous history of hepatitis B surface antigen carrier. Delta antigen was associated with a 35‐ to 37‐nm subpopulation of hepatitis B surface antigen particles which banded at a density of 1.25 gm per cm3 of CsCl and contained a small RNA of approximately 5.5 × 105 molecular weight.

Z. Reno Vlahcevic, Marc Goldman, Charles C. Schwartz, Jan Gustafsson, Leon Swell – 1 March 1981 – The present report has been directed toward providing additional information on the major defects in the bile acid pathways present in patients with cirrhosis and its relevance to the problem of how bile acid synthesis is regulated in man. An unusual patient with severe liver disease and a completely broken enterohepatic circuit was studied. The synthesis of cholic and chenodeoxycholic acids was examined over a 5‐d period.