bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sociological Factors Affecting Agricultural Price Risk Management in Australia*
Authors: Jackson Elizabeth , Quaddus Mohammed , Islam Nazrul , Stanton John
Published: August 2010

Abstract  The highly volatile auction system in Australia accounts for 85 percent of ex‐farm wool sales, with the remainder sold by forward contract, futures, and other hedging methods. In this article, against the background of an extensive literature on price risk strategies, we investigate title behavioral factors associated with producers' adoption of price risk‐management strategies (specifically futures and forward contracts) for selling wool. This research presents a behavioral model based on Diffusion of Innovations, the Theory of Reasoned Action, and the Theory of Planned Behavior. We found that the auction system is used as a price risk‐management tool because other selling methods are considered more risky. We also report on a curious relationship between risk and complexity in terms of wool producers' intentions to use forward contracts. We explored sociological factors in conjunction with focus‐group data in an attempt to understand this relationship. This exercise yielded some interesting findings on the impact that trust, habit, social cohesion, and networks have on decision making in the rural community. The significance of this article lies in its application of core sociological theory in a new research context: the Australian wool industry.
The white pulp in the setting of the septic spleen caused by different bacteria: a comparative morphometric study
Authors: GUNIA SVEN , ALBRECHT KNUT , MAY MATTHIAS , STOSIEK PETER
Published: August 2010

In the past little attention has been paid to histomorphologic changes accompanying the phenomenon of the septic spleen, thus indirectly reinforcing the old axiom that the spleen is an organ of mystery. It is especially noteworthy that the relationship between different causative bacteria and histopathologic abnormalities of the white pulp has not been investigated. In this study morphometric analysis was performed on the white pulp of 30 spleens obtained at autopsy from individuals with premortal sepsis. A strictly defined age‐ and sex‐matched control group was analyzed for statistical comparison. Our findings demonstrate a significant depletion of B‐ and T‐areas in the septic spleen, accompanied by a significant tendency towards reactive germinal center hyperplasia regardless of the type of bacteria responsible. However, depletion of splenic B‐areas was shown to be significantly pronounced in the setting of premortal enterococcemia in comparison with a panel of gram‐negative flagellated bacteria. It is felt that certain bacterial virulence factors (e.g. flagellation and/or structural components of the cell wall) might be pathogenetically involved in the observed changes, reflecting a partially different activation of splenic lymphocytes in the setting of the septic spleen.
ERBB2 kinase domain mutation in a gastric cancer metastasis
Authors: LEE JONG WOO , SOUNG YOUNG HWA , KIM SU YOUNG , PARK WON SANG , NAM SUK WOO , KIM SANG HO , LEE JUNG YOUNG , YOO NAM JIN , LEE SUG HYUNG
Published: August 2010

ERBB2 is a member of the epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) family. Recent studies revealed that the kinase domain of the ERBB2 gene was mutated in human cancers, including gastric cancer. Despite the importance of cancer metastasis in the pathogenesis of cancers, data on the ERBB2 kinase domain mutation in cancer metastasis are lacking. In this study, to explore the possibility that ERBB2 mutation is involved in the metastasis mechanism, we analyzed the kinase domain of ERBB2 for the detection of somatic mutations in 58 gastric adenocarcinomas with lymph node metastasis. We found one ERBB2 mutation, which was detected in the lymph node metastasis, but not in the primary tumor of the same patient. The ERBB2 mutation was a missense mutation which substituted an amino acid in exon 21 (V832I). We simultaneously analyzed the somatic mutations of EGFR, K‐RAS, PIK3CA and BRAF genes in the sample with the ERBB2 mutation, and found that this metastatic carcinoma did not harbor any of the mutations. Our data suggest that ERBB2 kinase domain mutation occasionally occurs in metastatic gastric carcinoma and might play a role in the metastatic process of some gastric carcinomas.
Detection of methicillin resistance in coagulase‐negative staphylococci by cefoxitin disc diffusion and oxacillin Etest
Authors: STIERNA‐JOHNSEN TINA HEDER , SCHØNHEYDER HENRIK C. , PAULSEN KIRSTEN
Published: August 2010

Coagulase‐negative staphylococci (CoNS) are a significant cause of nosocomial bacteraemia and their susceptibility to beta‐lactamase‐stabile penicillins is unpredictable. To ensure appropriate antibiotic therapy reliable methods for detection of methicillin resistance (MR) are needed. The objectives of this study were to determine the frequency of MR in a set of CoNS from cases of monomicrobial bacteraemia and to evaluate two phenotypic assays for detection of MR, the 10 μg cefoxitin disk test on Iso‐Sensitest agar using a semiconfluent inoculum and the oxacillin Etest. MR was determined by a commercial genomic mecA assay. Of 110 CoNS, 75 were mecA positive and 35 mecA negative. Using interpretive zone diameters R<22 mm and S≥27 mm, the cefoxitin disk test had a sensitivity and specificity of 100%. A correct prediction was obtained for 86 isolates, while 23 were indeterminate (≥22 mm; <27 mm). Using CLSI's guidelines, sensitivity and specificity of the oxacillin Etest were 100% and 80%, respectively. A correct prediction was obtained for 102 isolates, while 7 mecA negative isolates were classified as resistant. Thus, the cefoxitin disk test and the oxacillin Etest performed with high accuracy and both seem to be suitable for routine use.
Evidence for a reserpine‐affected mechanism of resistance to tetracycline in Neisseria gonorrhoeae
Authors: RUIZ JOAQUIM , RIBERA ANNA , JURADO ANGELS , MARCO FRANCESC , VILA JORDI
Published: August 2010

The presence of a reserpine‐affected mechanism of tetracycline resistance was investigated in 17 Neisseria gonorrhoeae clinical isolates. To establish this fact the MIC of tetracycline in the presence and absence of reserpine was determined, and, in addition, mechanisms of tetracycline resistance were analyzed by PCR. The results showed that reserpine affects the MIC of tetracycline at least 4‐fold in all isolates, including those containing the tetM gene. An inhibitory effect of reserpine against the MtrCDE efflux system was ruled out by using strains either with an inactive or with an unrepressed MtrCDE system. The results suggest the presence of a constitutive system of resistance to tetracycline, by a possible efflux pump, which may be inhibited by reserpine. Further studies are required to determine the exact nature of the action of reserpine on the MIC of tetracycline.
White variants of Trichophyton violaceum isolated in Ethiopia
Authors: WOLDEAMANUEL Y. , LEEKASSA R. , PETRINI B. , CHRYSSANTHOU E.
Published: August 2010

Certain dermatophytes are geographically restricted and endemic in particular parts of the world, while other species may have a sporadic but worldwide distribution. Trichophyton violaceum is one of the most common dermatophytes causing tinea capitis, and is the predominant cause of tinea in Africa, South America and the Indian subcontinent. Among 1187 dermatophyte isolates collected from Ethiopian patients with various types of tinea, 32 isolates had uncharacteristic phenotypic features. Based on conventional methods complemented by sequence analysis of the rDNA ITS2 region, these isolates were identified as white variants of T. violaceum. This is the first time that white isolates of T. violaceum have been identified in Ethiopia.
Cystic dysplasia of the rete testis
Authors: KAJO K. , MA?OŠKA J. , JAVORKA K. , MACHÁLEKOVÁ K. , TOMAŠKIN R. , KLIMENT K.
Published: August 2010

Cystic dysplasia of the rete testis (CDRT) is a very rare cause of a paediatric scrotal mass often associated with renal and other genitourinary tract anomalies. These complex malformations are probably due to a developmental defect of the mesometanephric system during embryogenesis. A case of asymptomatic scrotal swelling in a 4‐year‐old boy is presented. Ultrasonography, showed a cystic lesion of the left testis associated with absence of the left kidney. Orchiectomy was performed because of extensive gonad involvement. Pathologic examination revealed multiple, anastomosing, irregular cystic spaces of varying sizes and shapes predominantly located in the region of the rete testis. The cysts had spread irregularly, displacing the testicular parenchyma, which was subsequently compressed under the tunica albuginea. Preoperative diagnosis of CDRT is easy if age, precise localisation, characteristic ultrasonographic features and other genitourinary malformations are considered. Other paediatric cystic lesions should be included in the differential diagnosis. It is possible to cure CDRT by orchiectomy or by conservative treatment. Nowadays the later option is preferred, but diagnosis of CDRT must be precisely established and followed by careful monitoring.
Role of mitogen‐activated protein kinases, nuclear factor‐κB, and interferon regulatory factor 3 in Toll‐like receptor 4‐mediated activation of HIV long terminal repeat
Authors: BERG RANDI S. , AGGERHOLM ANNI , BERTELSEN LONE S. , ØSTERGAARD LARS , PALUDAN SØREN R.
Published: August 2010

Monocytes/macrophages are known to represent a potential reservoir of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV‐1), which ensures continuous replication of the virus in patients on highly active antiretroviral therapy (HAART). Infected macrophages are a highly productive source of HIV‐1 during infections with common opportunistic pathogens. Previous studies report that toll like receptors (TLR)s play a role in HIV‐1 replication in macrophages. Here, we investigate the three main pathways activated through TLR4 and the interactions with the HIV‐1 long terminal repeat (LTR), using human embryonic kidney (HEK) 293 cells expressing TLR4 and transfected with a luciferase reporter under the control of the HIV‐1 LTR. Here, we demonstrate, that TLR4‐mediated activation of HIV‐LTR is largely governed by the nuclear factor‐κB pathway. Neither of the mitogen‐activated protein kinases ERK1/2, JNK, or p38 nor the transcription factor interferon regulatory factor 3 were involved in the direct transactivation of HIV‐LTR through stimulation of TLR4.
L1 cell adhesion molecule as a predictor for recurrence in pulmonary carcinoids and large‐cell neuroendocrine tumors
Authors: KIM HYO SONG , YI SEONG YOON , JUN HYUN JUNG , AHN JIN SEOK , AHN MYUNG‐JU , LEE JEEYUN , KIM YOUNGWOOK , CUI ZHENG YUN , HONG HYO JEONG , KIM JIN‐MAN , LI SHENGJIN , HWANG IN GYU , PARK KEUNCHIL
Published: August 2010

Pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors are a distinct subset of neoplasms with indolent to aggressive behavior. This study was conducted to evaluate the prognostic role of L1 cell adhesion molecule (L1CAM) in pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors. We retrospectively analyzed L1 expression in 55 cases of completely resected carcinoids and large‐cell neuroendocrine carcinomas, by the immunohistochemistry with monoclonal antibody A10‐A3 against human L1. L1 immunoreactivity was detected in 34 (61.8%) of 55 specimens. There was a significant correlation between L1 expression and the World Health Organization classification of this tumor (Spearman rank correlation, ρ=0.60, p<0.001). With median follow‐up of 52.0 months, the 5‐year survival rate for patients with low expression of L1 (<20% of tumor cells stained) was significantly better compared with those with high expression of L1 (82.6% vs. 43.7%, p=0.005). L1 was also a significant independent predictor of disease‐free survival, and patients with high L1 expression have a higher risk for recurrence compared with those with low L1 expression (hazard ratio, 3.0; 95% confidence interval, 1.2–8.3; p=0.034). L1 expression is significantly associated with aggressiveness and further studies with larger samples are needed to validate potential prognostic value for pulmonary neuroendocrine tumors.
Vinyl chloride‐induced hepatic lesions in man and rodents. A comparison
Authors: Popper Hans , Maltoni Cesare , Selikoff Irving J.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Histologic sequences in the liver of rodents exposed by inhalation to gaseous vinyl chloride were compared to the lesions in man exposed to the same agent, mainly in vinyl chloride polymerization plants. An identical sequence, starting with circumscribed proliferation of hepatocytes, soon followed by proliferation of a variety of sinusoidal cells and frequently associated with sinusoidal dilatation, progresses to intralobular and more frequently to trabecular angiosarcoma. Predominantly in young animals and rarely in man, hepatocellular carcinoma develops, but never cirrhosis. The sequence represents a dynamic process of competition between proliferating hepatocytes and sinusoidal cells, of hepatocytes with fibroplasia, between perisinusoidal fibrosis and sinusoidal dilatation, and of proliferation of various sinusoidal cells versus angiosarcoma. The great similarity in the evolution in man and rodents, rarely encountered in other experimental models, supports the prediction of human cancer from animal experiments. The precursor nodules differ from the nodules commonly observed in hepatocarcinogenesis by co‐proliferation of sinusoidal cells. The differences in the reactions between man and rodents bespeak a strong fibroblastic reactivity in man. Most important, the precursor lesion of mixed hepatocellular and sinusoidal cell proliferation may be of diagnostic value, being superior to conventional hepatic tests in detection of some initial environmental lesions.
Sclerosing hepatic carcinoma: relationship to hypercalcemia
Authors: Omata Masao , Peters Robert L. , Tatter Dorothy
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— A series of 30 patients is reported whose primary hepatic tumors had a distinctive histologic pattern that we have called “sclerosing hepatic carcinoma” (SHC). Sixty‐nine percent of those tested had hypercalcemia and low levels of serum phosphate. As comparison, 38 control patients who had either classical peripheral cholangiocarcinoma or typical hepatocellular carcinoma were studied. In the control group, only two patients, who also had bone metastases, had hypercalcemia. Sclerosing hepatic carcinoma is characterized by intense fibrosis in which the tubular neoplastic structures are embedded. Although the tumor in each patient superficially resembled peripheral cholangiocarcinoma, on close inspection 63% were found to be of apparent hepatocyte origin, 20% were apparently ductal, and 13% were mixed or not distinguishable. One patient's tumor had the pattern of the rare cholangiolocellular carcinoma. The difficulty of histological diagnosis was well illustrated by the fact that none of premortem biopsies in 16 patients was correctly interpreted unequivocally as primary carcinoma of the liver. Many were misinterpreted as metastatic adenocarcinomas, most frequently of pancreatic origin. We believe that, by describing clinicopathological features, more attention will be drawn to this unique carcinoma of liver origin.
Human non‐A, non‐B hepatitis: ultrastructural alterations in hepatocytes
Authors: De Wolf‐Peeters C. , De Vos R. , Desmet V. , Ray M. B. , Desmyter J. , De Groote G. , Fevery J. , Broeckaert L. , De Groote J.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Ultrastructural investigation of liver biopsies from two patients with non‐A, non‐B hepatitis revealed cytoplasmic and nuclear alterations in the hepatocytes. The lesions in both patients, one with acute and one with chronic hepatitis, were similar and distinct from those previously described in other forms of hepatitis. These findings are compared with the reported findings in chimpanzee liver after inoculation with non‐A, non‐B infective material. The intranuclear findings are similar to the aggregations of 20–27 nm particles described in some infected chimpanzees, and the cytoplasmic alterations seem to be similar to the cytoplasmic structures and tubular arrangements reported in other inoculated chimpanzees. A striking finding of this study is the presence of both alterations together in the same biopsy in two different patients, suggesting that they represent a different stage of viral infection or different parts of the viral agent. It still remains to be proved that the ultrastructural particles indeed contain antigen(s) of the non‐A, non‐B hepatitis virus. The nuclear and cytoplasmic alterations are, however, characteristic for non‐A, non‐B hepatitis and are useful as ultrastructural hallmarks of this form of hepatitis.
Detection by immunofluorescence of a new “core‐like” Ag/Ab system in liver and serum of patients with NANB hepatitis
Authors: Trepo C. , Vitvitski L. , Hantz O. , Chevallier P. , Lehman H. , Schlaak M. , Sepetjan M.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Using direct immunofluorescence, a nuclear antigen was found in liver of chronic hepatitis patients with circulating NANBe Ag or anti‐NANBe, and selected sera from either group were used as source of conjugates. The new Ag/Ab system was designated NANBc Ag and anti‐NANBc since it behaved like the core Ag of HBV. N ANBc Ag was detected in coded frozen liver biopsies from patients with chronic persistent 15/25 (60 %) or active 27/50 (54 %) hepatitis and cryptogenic cirrhosis 16/30 (53.3%) devoid of HBV markers. Only 2/30 alcoholic cirrhosis cases (7%) used as controls were positive (p≤0.001). The homologous anti‐NANBc antibody was always detectable by indirect immunofluorescence in the patients' serum when N ANBc Ag was found in the liver. It was also found in 11/135 (8%) additional cases without any other NANB marker. A correlation was observed between coded detection of the NANBc Ag/Ab system by immunofluorescence and demonstration of NANBe Ag or anti‐NANBe by immunodiffusion. In acute post‐transfusion NANB hepatitis, anti‐NANBc was first detectable 14 days after transfusion and persisted as long as ALT remained elevated, or longer. IgM anti‐NANBc present at onset became associated with an increasing proportion of IgG after the 28th day. The prevalence of anti‐NANBc in sporadic NANB hepatitis (11/50 = 22%) was significantly lower (p≤0.001) than in cases with parenteral exposure such as post‐transfusion, occupational or drug addict hepatitis (47/72 = 65%). Immunofluorescent tests for NANBc Ag and Ab are promising assays for the serological diagnosis of NANB hepatitis.
Abnormalities of mononuclear cell regulation in vitro in primary biliary cirrhosis1
Authors: Dienstag Jules L. , Weake Jeffrey R. , Wands Jack R.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— In primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) enhanced lymphocyte cytotoxicity, disruption by mononuclear cells of intrahepatic bile ducts, as well as high levels of circulating autoantibodies, immunoglobulins and immune complexes are found. These observations suggest the presence in PBC of defective regulation of immune functions. To evaluate immune regulation of T‐cell and B‐cell function in PBC, we measured the capability of suppressor cells generated by concanavalin A (Con A) from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) to inhibit allogeneic T‐cell proliferative responses as well as B‐cell immunoglobulin synthesis in vitro. The inhibitory effect of Con A‐induced suppressor cells on T‐cell proliferation was significantly reduced in PBC patients compared to controls. This immunoregulatory defect did not correlate with indicators of disease activity and was not seen in patients with chronic extrahepatic biliary obstruction. In contrast, Con A‐induced suppressor cells from PBC patients inhibited in vitro IgG and IgM synthesis normally. Finding that the potential to generate suppressor cell activity of B‐cell immunoglobulin synthesis was preserved in PBC, we explored other mechanisms for elevated globulins in this disease. Comparing in vitro immunoglobulin synthesis by unstimulated and pokeweed mitogen‐stimulated PBMC from PBC patients and controls, we found that baseline IgG synthesis in vitro was normal but baseline IgM synthesis significantly depressed in PBC. On the other hand, whereas PBMC from PBC patients responded normally to pokeweed mitogen stimulation of IgM synthesis, the same PBMC were refractory to pokeweed mitogen stimulation of IgG synthesis in vitro. These studies suggest that in PBC there is a dissociation between inducible suppressor cell activity of T‐cell function, which is impaired, and inducible suppressor cell activity of B‐cell immunoglobulin synthesis, which is preserved. Whereas a defect in regulation of cellular immune function may provide a permissive environment for initiation or perpetuation of cell‐mediated autoimmune hepatobiliary injury in PBC, our studies failed to identify an extrinsic immunoregulatory defect to account for humoral immune aberrations, which may result, instead, from altered responsiveness intrinsic to B‐cell progeny.
Differential in vitro immune responses to biliary tract antigens in primary biliary cirrhosis and chronic active hepatitis
Authors: Wojcicka‐McFarlane B. M. , McFarlane I. G. , Amoroso P. , Williams Roger
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Cellular immune reactions against normal biliary tract antigens have been investigated in 21 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and 18 with chronic active hepatitis (CAH) using the leucocyte migration inhibition test with partially purified antigens from normal human gall‐bladder bile. Four antigen fractions, containing (either separately or together) three previously‐described biliary antigens, were employed: (1) Antigen I; (2) Canalicular antigen; (3) Canalicular and Ductular antigens; (4) All three antigens. Seventeen (81%) of the PBC patients showed migration inhibition with all four fractions. Five (28%) of the CAH patients showed inhibition with three fractions but none exhibited sensitization to the fraction containing only the antigen derived from the bile canalicular portion of the hepatocyte membrane. In experiments with purified lymphocyte sub‐populations from PBC patients, leucocyte migration inhibitory factor production was shown to be a function of T‐lymphocytes. The antigenic selectivity with respect to the responses in CAH patients suggests that sensitization to biliary tract antigens is probably not a secondary phenomenon resulting from »unmasking« of antigens after bile duct damage has occurred but may be more directly related to the disease process.
A histochemical study on the distribution of injected canine intestinal alkaline phosphatase in rat liver
Authors: Scholtens H. B. , Meijer D. K. F. , Hardonk M. J.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— After intravenous administration to rats, the distribution of injected canine intestinal alkaline phosphatase in the liver was studied morphologically by means of histochemical and cytochemical methods on liver sections and pellets of homogenized livers. The interference of various sugars, sugar polymers and glycoproteins with the receptor‐bound injected enzyme was investigated in rat liver sections. Injected canine intestinal alkaline phosphatase, being an asialoglycoprotein, is captured by the galactose‐specific lectin present on the plasma membrane of the hepatocytes and can be displaced by incubation with galactose‐containing sugars and proteins. The enzyme is subsequently taken up by a process of “adsorptive endocytosis” and was found first in a plasma membrane fraction and later in a pellet enriched in lysosomes. This hepatic handling of the enzyme predominantly occurs in the area around the central vein (zone 3 of Rappaport). This is the first evidence for zonal heterogeneity in hepatic disposition of an asialoglycoprotein.
Geographic differences in HBV related, autoimmune, and cryptogenic chronic active hepatitis
Authors: Sagnelli E. , Colombo M. , Del Ninno E. , Vernace S. J. , Paronetto F.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— To clarify the importance of ethnic and geographic factors in chronic active hepatitis (CAH), HBV markers and autoantibodies (AMA, ANA, SMA), have been compared in 158 patients with biopsy‐proven CAH from New York City and in 92 patients with CAH from Milan. HBsAg‐positive CAH was more frequently observed in Milan (49%) than in New York City (27%). However, among HBsAg‐positive patients, HBcAg, HBeAg, and epidemiologic risk factors for acquisition of HBV infection were more frequently found in New York than in Italy. The prevalence of HBsAg‐negative, anti‐HBc‐positive CAH and cryptogenic CAH was similar in the two cities, while autoimmune CAH was more frequently observed in New York (20%) than in Milan (2%). In particular, the prevalence of autoimmune hepatitis was higher among Jewish patients than among patients of Anglo‐Saxon or Latin ethnic background in New York. Thus, environmental and/or ethnic factors may influence the prevalence of the four major types of CAH.
Phalloidin‐induced morphological and functional changes of rat liver
Authors: Vonk Roel J. , Yousef Ibrahim M. , Corriveau J. P. , Tuchweber Beatriz
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The hepatotoxic effect of phalloidin, a mushroom poison, was examined in whole liver and in isolated liver cell plasma membranes. By electron microscopy, a thickening of the pericanalicular microfilamentous network was noted. Bile canalicular enriched plasma membrane fractions of livers from phalloidin‐treated animals contained increased amounts of microfilaments. Analysis of the peptides in these fractions, by sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, indicated that although the actin peptide bands were prominent, a band apparently corresponding to myosin was drastically reduced. The morphological change was accompanied by a reduced bile flow and biliary excretion of bile acids, proteins and the exogenous organic anion dibromo‐sulphthalein. These changes may result from a modification of the microfilaments, suggesting a role of the microfilaments in the liver membrane structure and function.
Cytoimmunochemical study of pyruvate kinase isoenzymes in rat liver
Authors: Gali P. , Hartmann L.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Using immunofluorescence and double‐labelled antisera L and M pyruvate kinase (PK), we show that PK is localized in hepatocyte cytoplasm. The response is modulated by different dietary and hormonal conditions. In physiological conditions, only L PK is noted: slight with normal diet (or 35μg of glucagon) and non‐existent with starvation (or 350 μg of glucagon). L PK fluorescence is maximal after a carbohydrate‐rich diet. In experimental or genetic (Zucker rat) hyperinsulinemia, hepatocytes are both L PK and M PK positive. After partial hepatectomy, this double specificity is found between 48 h and the 7th day. The decrease of PK fluorescence after starvation or glucagon concerns the L PK form of the enzyme. With exo‐ or endogenous insulin, the increase of PK (as insulinemia assays from Zucker rats or after partial hepatectomy confirm) is essentially due to the presence of M PK in hepatocytes.
Protective effect of CO2‐induced hyperventilation on the hepatotoxicity elicited by carbon tetrachloride
Authors: Frenzel H. , Heidenreich T. , Gellert J. , Teschke R.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Following oral intake or inhalation, halogenated hydrocarbons are metabolized to hepatotoxic intermediates in the liver to only a small extent, the major part being eliminated via the lungs without biochemical transformation. Following intoxication, increased pulmonary elimination of hydrocarbons can be achieved in patients by treatment with CO2‐induced hyperventilation. To investigate the efficacy of this new therapy under exact experimental conditions, female Wistar rats received 2.5 ml CCl4/kg BW by gastric intubation and were then treated with CO2‐induced hyperventilation. In comparison to untreated animals, hyperventilated rats showed only a few signs of hepatic injury by histological evaluation, whereas massive centrolobular necroses and fatty infiltrations were observed in non‐hyperventilated animals. By biochemical assessment, significant decreases of GOT, GPT and GDH activity were observed in the serum, when hyperventilated rats were compared to untreated animals. Moreover, the LD50 for CCl4 was almost trebled after hyperventilation compared to the non‐hyperventilated animals. The increased LD50, and the biochemical and histological results therefore substantiate the usefulness of CO2‐induced hyperventilation therapy in the treatment of intoxications by hydrocarbons under standardized experimental conditions.
Identification of T lymphocytes and subsets in liver biopsy cores of acute viral hepatitis
Authors: Govindarajan Sugantha , Uchida Toshikazu , Peters Robert L.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The lymphocytic infiltrates were examined in 10 liver biopsy cores taken from nine cases of acute viral hepatitis (AVH), using cryostat sections. The cells were identified and characterized, using the monoclonal antibodies to T lymphocytes (OKT3), T helper cells (OKT4), and T suppressor/cytotoxic cells (OKT8) in an indirect immunofluorescence technique. Of the nine cases of AVH, three were type B, one was acute type A, with underlying chronic hepatitis type B, and the remaining five were non‐A, non‐B, with no serological markers. One of the patients with acute non‐A, non‐B hepatitis was biopsied twice with a 2‐month interval due to clinical relapse. Both these biopsies were included in the study. The cellular infiltrates, both lobular and portal, were graded from 1 + to 4 + and evaluated by examining the histological sections stained with hematoxylin and eosin. The approximate percentage of each set of cells staining with different antibodies was estimated in each case. The predominant cells were found to be T lymphocytes in all nine cases of AVH; of the two subsets, T suppressor/cytotoxic cells formed the majority in all except one patient who had AVH type A superimposed on chronic B hepatitis.
Hepatic pathology in porphyria cutanea tarda
Authors: Lefkowitch Jay H. , Grossman Marc E.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— We examined clinical and laboratory data and the liver pathology of 48 patients in whom porphyria cutanea tarda was related to alcohol ingestion, estrogen use and pregnancy, or was idiopathic. Biochemical test results, when abnormal, tended to be mild in most cases, with less than two‐fold elevations of serum aminotransferases and alkaline phosphatase and mild hyperbilirubinemia. Fatty change, liver cell and Kupffer cell hemosiderosis and glycogenation of hepatocyte nuclei were frequent histologic findings in the 58 liver specimens studied. Alcoholic hepatitis, chronic hepatitis and cirrhosis were uncommon. Granuloma‐like lobular aggregates consisting of iron‐ and ceroid‐laden Kupffer cells, chronic inflammatory cells and fat droplets (“lobular lesions of porphyria cutanea tarda”) were found in nearly two‐thirds of specimens and appeared to be the most characteristic form of parenchymal damage in this form of porphyria. These lesions may be associated with pericentral fibrosis in alcoholic as well as estrogen‐treated patients and may remit following therapeutic phlebotomy.
Hepatitis B virus replication and clinical outcome in carriers of HBsAg. Perspectives of treatment with DNA inhibitors
Authors: Bonino Ferruccio , Recchia Serafino , Farci Patrizia , Actis Giovanni C. , Rizzetto Mario , Verme Giorgio , Gerin John
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— HBV‐DNA was measured by the spot hybridization technique in serial serum samples obtained from 47 HBsAg carriers followed up for a mean of 4 years. The levels of HBV‐DNA were compared to the conventional HBV serology and immunopathology to determine the relation of active HBV replication to the outcome of hepatitis and the suitability of Italian HBsAg carriers for treatment with DNA inhibitors. HBV‐DNA was found in 26 carriers (53%) and persisted with comparable serum levels in 24 of them throughout the follow up. The occurrence rate of an unfavorable outcome as determined by histological evidence of cirrhosis was 6% versus 44% (p<0.01) in carriers with active viral infection (> 1 ng/ml of HBV‐DNA) and in patients with absent or low levels of viral DNA (< 1 pg/ml), respectively. Progression of the liver disease could not be predicted on the basis of active HBV replication and was presumably related to factors other than synthesis of HBV. In many patients with inactive viral infection a primary pathogenic factor was the HBV‐associated δ, an agent with a putative RNA genome against which DNA inhibitors have no rationale and possibly no effects. The majority of Italian carriers do not appear suitable for treatment with DNA inhibitors and they should be considered for a different therapy.
Prognostic significance of piecemeal necrosis in acute viral hepatitis
Authors: Vanstapel M. J. , Van Steenbergen W. , De Wolf‐Peeters C. , Desmyter J. , Fevery J. , De Groote J. , Desmet V. J.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The predictive value of piecemeal necrosis (PMN) in acute hepatitis was investigated in 62 patients (39 hepatitis B virus infection, 9 hepatitis A virus infection and 14 possible hepatitis NANB virus infection). The 62 initial biopsies were blindly recoded and classified into three groups: 1. Acute hepatitis with signs of possible transition to chronicity (AHTC) (n = 35)(i.e. a picture of acute hepatitis associated with PMN). 2. AHTC‐borderline group (BL) (n = 15) (i.e. a picture of acute hepatitis with minimal PMN). 3. Uncomplicated acute hepatitis (AH) (n = 12) (i.e. a picture of acute hepatitis without PMN). Follow‐up of the patients revealed an evolution to chronicity in a very high percentage of the AHTC‐cases of hepatitis B (95%) and NANB (89%) etiology. Also 67% of the BL‐cases of hepatitis B etiology developed chronic liver disease. In hepatitis B the immunohistochemical pattern of HBsAg is of additional help. In hepatitis A, PMN is often present (5/9) but no evolution to chronicity was observed. This study shows that PMN in acute hepatitis appears to be a useful prognostic feature for chronicity in hepatitis B and NANB.
Experimental non‐A, non‐B hepatitis in chimpanzees: Light, electron and immune microscopical observations
Authors: Gudat Fred , Eder Gerald , Eder Christine , Bianchi Leonardo , Stöcklin Elisabeth , Krey Gunthild , Dürmüller Ursula , Spichtin Hans‐Peter
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Two chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes) were inoculated and cross‐challenged with a fibrinogen and factor VIII preparation, respectively. Successful non‐A, non‐B (NANB) infection was documented by biphasic elevations of aminotransferases (ALT), concomitant hepatitic reactions and typical electron microscopic alterations, the most consistent being dilatation of the endoplasmic reticulum, as well as tubular and sponge‐like cytoplasmic inclusions in the absence of nuclear virus‐like particles. An anti‐nuclear (anti‐DNA) antibody of the IgM class in one of the chimpanzees simulating an antiviral antibody is described.
The free portal pressure in awake patients with and without cirrhosis of the liver
Authors: Christensen Uffe , Sørensen Thorkild I. A. , Jensen Lise I. , Aagaard Jan , Burcharth Flemming
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The free portal pressure was measured by percutaneous transhepatic catheterization of the portal vein in 106 patients with cirrhosis of the liver and in 19 patients without liver disease and with normal portography. Patients with cirrhosis had a median portal pressure of 38 cmH2O and patients without liver disease had a median portal pressure of 16 cmH2O. Among the cirrhotic patients the free portal pressure showed no relationship to etiology of cirrhosis, ascites, variceal bleedings or extrahepatic shunting. The median portal pressure was significantly higher in patients with (40 cmH2O) than without (30 cmH2O) gastroesophageal varices (p<0.01). The pressure was not related to the size of the varices.
In vitro synthesis of IgG and IgM in patients with HBsAg‐positive and HBsAg‐negative chronic active hepatitis
Authors: Triolo Giovanni , Nardiello Salvatore , Sagnelli Evangelista , Schaffner Fenton , Vernace Salvatore , Paronetto Fiorenzo
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Spontaneous and PWM‐driven IgG and IgM synthesis was investigated in the PBMC of 15 patients with HBsAg‐negative CAH and six HBsAg‐positive patients with CAH. PBMC from patients with HBsAg‐positive CAH show an impaired IgG synthesis upon stimulation with PWM but an IgM increase similar to that of control subjects. In contrast, PBMC from HBsAg‐negative patients with CAH show a trend to spontaneous increased synthesis of IgG and a decrease or lack of IgG and IgM synthesis upon PWM stimulation. Steroid treatment seems to ameliorate these alterations. No differences were found among the three groups of HBsAg‐negative chronic active hepatitis (autoimmune, HBsAg‐related and cryptogenic). These results indicate that differences of B‐cell functions may exist in the two groups of CAH patients, not only in spontaneous B‐cell activation or PWM‐induced Ig synthesis but also in the different classes of Ig.
Morphology of cirrhosis and occurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma in alcoholics with and without HBsAg and in non‐alcoholic HBsAg‐positive patients. A comparative autopsy study
Authors: Nakanuma Yasuni , Ohta Goroku
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The morphology of liver cirrhosis and the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in HBsAg‐positive alcoholics (17 cases) were examined and compared with those of HBsAg‐negative alcoholics (31 cases) and HBsAg‐positive non‐alcoholics (59 cases). These materials were obtained from our autopsy cases during the last 9 years. About 70% of the 17 showed macronodular cirrhosis, in which periportal and portal lymphoid cell infiltration and liver cell dysplasia were often present, as seen in HBsAg positive non‐alcoholics. Furthermore, the liver weight and age distribution at autopsy in HBsAg‐positive alcoholics were similar to those of HBsAg‐positive non‐alcoholics and different from those of HBsAg‐negative alcoholics. The association rate of HCC was very high in HBsAg‐positive alcoholics (64.7%), similar to that in HBsAg‐positive non‐alcoholics (67.8%), while the rate in HBsAg‐negative alcoholics was low (22.6%). It therefore seems likely that in HBsAg‐positive alcoholics concomitant HB virus infection has a major effect on the development of cirrhosis, especially a macronodular type, and on HCC formation.
The liver in fatal exertional heatstroke
Authors: Rubel Lawrence R. , Ishak Kamal G.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— We describe the chronology of hepatic histopathologic alterations in 50 cases of fatal exertional heatstroke related to military training. Five patients who died in the field demonstrated the earliest alterations: fatty change (sometimes microvacuolar), amitotic hepatocellular regeneration, accumulation of hemosiderin, and congestion. In addition, the sinusoids contained polymorphonuclear leukocytes, immature erythroid and granulocytic cells, megakaryocytes, and lymphocytes. Fibrin was not evident. The other 45 patients, who survived up to 8 days following hospitalization, also demonstrated these findings. Microvacuolar fatty change was common in this group of patients, and degenerated hepatocytes resembled Councilman bodies. Coagulative degeneration and submassive necrosis were uncommon. Of those surviving over 12 h, more than half had bile stasis (sometimes ductal), frequently associated with acute cholangitis and ductular proliferation. Regeneration and pigmentary alterations have not been recognized as early hepatic findings in heatstroke, nor have intrasinusoidal bone marrow elements, ductal bile stasis, and acute cholangitis been described. Possible pathogenetic factors, other than hyperthermia and sequellae of shock, include obesity, recent illnesses and immunizations, bacterial toxemia, hemolysis, and bone marrow injury.
Albumin binding sites of human hepatocytes
Authors: Thung Swan N. , Gerber Michael A.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Recent studies of hepatitis B virus suggest that polymeric human serum albumin may facilitate the attachment of the virus via albumin receptors to hepatocytes during the infectious process. If this hypothesis is correct, hepatocytes should express binding sites for polymeric albumin. We employed the red blood cell adherence test using albumin‐coated red blood cells as indicator cells on frozen sections of normal human livers to demonstrate these binding sites. Hepatocytes showed binding activity for both polymeric and monomeric albumin from different species. The receptor‐ligand interaction was temperature and pH dependent, Ca++ independent and not altered by mercaptoethanol treatment. The binding activity was sensitive to neuraminidase and pronase, but resistant to trypsin, lipase and collagenase digestion. These findings suggest that human hepatocytes display species‐non‐specific albumin binding sites, which are glycoproteins.
Low therapeutic value of D‐penicillamine in a short‐term prospective trial in primary biliary cirrhosis
Authors: Taal Barbara G. , Schalm Solko W. , Ten Kate Fibo W. J. , Henegouwen Gerard P. van Berge , Brandt Karl‐H
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— A small double‐blind controlled trial to evaluate the short‐term effects of D‐penicillamine therapy was carried out in 24 patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC). The daily dose of D‐penicillamine was increased monthly by 250 mg until a total of 1 g daily was reached. Two out of 11 patients (18%) were withdrawn because of side‐effects, as also were 4 out of 13 (31%) patients receiving the placebo. Transient improvement in symptoms was observed in 4 of 11 patients on D‐penicillamine, but also in 5 of 13 patients from the placebo group. The proportion of patients showing a fall in serum IgM, IgG and hepatic copper was significantly larger for the D‐penicillamine group than for the placebo group. No improvement in liver tests was observed, but the progression of inflammatory periportal liver cell destruction (piecemeal necrosis) was retarded in patients on D‐penicillamine (p = 0.02). Data analysis within the D‐penicillamine group showed that lowering the dose of D‐penicillamine to 500 mg daily abolished the effect on the serum immunoglobulins and hepatic copper. The beneficial effect of D‐penicillamine therapy appears to be small and dose‐related; side effects should not prevent its use, provided the drug is introduced slowly.
Hypertrophy of biliary epithelium in rats with portacaval shunt
Authors: Balabaud C. , Bioulac‐Sage P. , Boussarie L. , Bedin C.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Bile ducts of rats with 3‐month‐old portacaval shunt were shown by light microscopy to present hypertrophy of the biliary epithelium. This hypertrophy could be linked to the increased hepatic arterial flow following portacaval shunt.
Structural hepatic changes associated with cyanamide treatment: cholangiolar proliferation, fibrosis and cirrhosis
Authors: Moreno A. , Vazquez J. J. , Del Arbol L. Ruiz , Guillen F. J. , Colina F.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The authors present the clinical and histological findings in a series of 42 liver biopsies from 39 chronic alcoholics treated with cyanamide as aversion therapy. All biopsies displayed characteristic cytoplasmic inclusions in the liver‐cells. Fibrosis and disruption of the parenchymal‐connective tissue interface were observed in all cases. According to the severity and extension of fibrosis, three stages could be depicted: Stage I. Periportal activity cholangiolar type (ACT), which is defined by cholangiolar proliferation, fibroblastic activation and inflammatory infiltrate, which together cause a blurred appearance of the parenchymal‐connective tissue junction. It is the elementary lesion and was observed alone in 26 biopsies. Stage II. Portal‐to‐portal linkage. It was observed in 10 biopsies, all of which also showed periportal ACT. Three of these came from patients with two biopsies in which transition from stage I (first biopsy) to stage II (second biopsy) was observed. Stage III. Nodular parenchymal regeneration, associated with changes observed in stage I and II. It was found in six patients. The histological picture resembles the biliary type of cirrhosis. There is a clear‐cut correlation between the length of treatment and the stage of the hepatic lesion.
Acute viral hepatitis in Lebanon: evidence for an HAV‐like non‐A non‐B hepatitis
Authors: Shamma'a Mounir H.
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Ninety‐three cases of acute viral hepatitis in adult Lebanese patients were followed‐up prospectively for a period ranging from 6 to 18 months. These included 33 hepatitis A (HAV), 32 hepatitis B (HBV) and 21 non‐A, non‐B hepatitis (NANB) cases. The clinical and seroepidemiologic characteristics of the three types were evaluated. HAV was characterized by a short prodroma (<1 week) and a high IgM level. HBV did not differ from similar cases reported in the Western world except for a complete absence of male homosexuals and drug addicts as a possible route of transmission. NANB hepatitis in Lebanon is mainly a sporadic infection similar to HAV except that the prodromal phase is prolonged (>14 days) and IgM levels are within normal limits. The failure to develop chronicity in NANB suggests that the virus of sporadic NANB may be different from that which causes post‐transfusional (PTH) NANB.
The morphogenesis of the vacuolation of liver cells
Authors: Takano Akira , Shibayama Yuro , Nakata Katsuji
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— The morphogenesis of the vacuolation of liver cells caused by congestion was studied in the rat. Congestion of the liver was produced by constriction of the inferior vena cava just below the diaphragm. Vacuoles appeared within 5 min after the constriction (inferior vena cava pressure: 50 mm H2O or more). Vacuolation began as a small and saccular invagination of the sinusoidal surface of the liver cell membrane, and at the initial stage the vacuolar lumen connected with the space of Disse through a narrow slit. The small vacuoles increased in size and became larger by fusing with each other. The limiting membrane of vacuoles showed identical enzymological activities to those in the liver cell membrane. Vacuoles contained some components of blood and horseradish peroxidase injected into the femoral vein. These findings suggest that vacuolation of liver cells is formed by invaginations of liver cell membrane.
Small hepatocellular carcinoma containing many Mallory bodies
Authors: Nakanuma Yasuni , Ohta Goroku
Published: August 2010

ABSTRACT— Four cases of small hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), consisting exclusively of Mallory body (MB)‐containing cells, were presented. The MB‐containing HCC cells seemed actively proliferating and infiltrated into the surrounding non‐neoplastic tissue with a concomitant loss of the hepatic parenchyma. α‐fetoprotein was immunohisto‐chemically demonstrated in these MB‐containing HCC cells. Therefore, the possibility arises that the process by which MBs are formed is a fundamental pathway that on some occasions may be linked with neoplastic transformation.