Hepatol Res
-
Serum glycosylated Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2 binding protein (WFA+ -M2BP) is a reliable, non-invasive marker of liver fibrosis. This study assessed the ability of WFA+ -M2BP to diagnose liver fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection and evaluated WFA+ -M2BP as a predictor of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) development. ⋯ Serum WFA+ -M2BP values appear to be useful for assessing liver fibrosis stage and are independently associated with HCC development in patients with chronic HBV infection.
-
To examine the relationship between serum Wisteria floribunda agglutinin-positive Mac-2-binding protein (WFA+ -M2BP) levels and liver histological findings for patients with treatment naïve chronic hepatitis B (CHB). ⋯ The WFA+ -M2BP level can be a useful marker for assessing liver histological findings in patients with treatment-naïve CHB, although it has several limitations.
-
Liver regeneration is inhibited in small-for-size grafts, which plays a role in the failure of partial liver grafts after transplantation. The Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway plays a critical role in liver development, regeneration and homeostasis. In this study, we investigated whether pharmacological activation of Wnt signaling improves liver regeneration after small-for-size liver transplantation. ⋯ Activation of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in liver grafts by pharmacological pretreatment can accelerate regeneration in a partial liver transplant model.
-
miRNA-122 (miR-122) is a new, interesting liver injury biomarker but little is known about its effects when there is an indirect acute liver injury. ⋯ We demonstrated that prior serum cytokine accumulation increased serum miR-122 in indirect liver injury induced by BUO/BiNx and less severe sepsis mouse models. Cytokine accumulation may be responsible for miR-122 expression in these models. The clinical importance of liver injury demonstrated by the discordance between serum miR-122 and ALT was an interesting issue.
-
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), a hepatic manifestation of metabolic syndrome, is associated with an increased risk of developing lifestyle-related diseases including type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cerebral vessel disease. No current drug therapy provides the ideal effects of decreasing hepatic inflammation while simultaneously improving liver fibrosis. Liraglutide is a glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonist that affects the histological findings in patients with non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). This study was conducted to evaluate the effect and action of liraglutide for biopsy-proven NASH. ⋯ Our pilot study demonstrated that treatment with liraglutide had a good safety profile and significantly improved liver function and histological features in NASH patients with glucose intolerance.