-
Article
Regulation of matrix metalloproteinase-1 and alpha-smooth muscle actin expression by interleukin-1 alpha and tumour necrosis factor alpha in hepatic stellate cells
Hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are key players in liver fibrosis and regeneration via collagen degradation and synthesis. These phenomena involve inflammatory cytokines released from non-parenchymal liver cells...
-
Article
A resected case of neuroendocrine carcinoma of the stomach with unusual lymph node metastasis
Gastric endocrine cell carcinoma is a relatively rare tumor. We experienced a case of early gastric cancer in which an endocrine cell carcinoma was identified within a differentiated adenocarcinoma, and a comp...
-
Article
Genome-wide scan revealed that polymorphisms in the PNPLA3, SAMM50, and PARVB genes are associated with development and progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in Japan
We examined the genetic background of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) in the Japanese population, by performing a genome-wide association study (GWAS). For GWAS, 392 Japanese NAFLD subjects and 934 co...
-
Article
Open AccessAssociation of the rs738409 polymorphism in PNPLA3 with liver damage and the development of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease
In a genome-wide association scan, the single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) rs738409 in the patatin-like phospholipase 3 gene (PNPLA3) was strongly associated with increased liver fat content. We investigated whe...
-
Article
Human primary cultured hepatic stellate cells can be cryopreserved
We compared the morphological and functional characteristics of cultured unfrozen hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and cryopreserved HSCs obtained from human livers. We used liver tissues obtained by surgical res...
-
Article
Characterization of the light chain-restricted clonal B cells in peripheral blood of HCV-positive patients
To investigate the association between hepatitis C virus (HCV) and B cell proliferation, we searched for the clonal B cells by flow cytometric analysis of the surface immunoglobulin kappa (κ):lambda (λ) light ...
-
Article
Open AccessCell cycle regulation by the Wee1 Inhibitor PD0166285, Pyrido [2,3-d] pyimidine, in the B16 mouse melanoma cell line
Wee1 kinase plays a critical role in maintaining G2 arrest through its inhibitory phosphorylation of cdc2. In previous reports, a pyridopyrimidine molecule PD0166285 was identified to inhibit Wee1 activity at ...
-
Article
Liposome-mediated gene transfer of K1-5 suppresses tumor development and improves the prognosis of hepatocellular carcinoma in mice
It has been reported that kringle 1-5 (K1-5) has a potent and specific antiangiogenic activity. In the present study, we investigated the antitumor effect of gene transfer of K1-5 for hepatocellular carcinoma ...
-
Article
Angiogenic cell therapy for hepatic fibrosis
Progression of liver fibrosis has been linked with injuries associated with hypoxia and neovascularization. Neovascularization consists of angiogenesis and vasculogenesis, representing formation of blood vesse...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Pathogenesis and Significance of Restricted Diet and Exercise Therapy in Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis (NASH)
The risk factors that are most strongly associated with nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) are: age greater than 40 to 50 years, and severe obesity, diabetes mellitus (DM), or hyperlipidemia (especially ...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Present Status and Future of Gene Therapy for Hepatic Fibrosis
The definition of the molecular and genetic basis of human liver diseases has led to a better understanding of their pathogenesis and has in addition offered new perspectives for their diagnosis, therapy, and ...
-
Article
High prevalence of anticardiolipin antibodies in hepatitis C virus infection: lack of effects on thrombocytopenia and thrombotic complications
Hepatitis C virus (HCV) causes various extrahepatic immunologic abnormalities. Recently, an association between HCV infection and antiphospholipid syndrome, including thrombocytopenia, has been reported. Howe...
-
Article
β1-Integrin mediates cell adhesion, haptotaxis, and chemokinesis of hepatoma cells
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Changes in Adhesion Molecules of Sinusoidal Endothelial Cells in Liver Injury
Interactions between leukocytes and sinusoidal endothelial cells have been known to be involved in the pathogenesis of acute liver injury. In these cell-to-cell interactions, various adhesion molecules play a ...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Hepatic Innervation and Hepatic Sinusoidal Cells
The innervation of the human liver is distributed throughout the hepatic lobules from the portal spaces to the centralobular spaces. Nerve endings in the intralobular spaces are localized mainly in the Disse s...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Contraction and Relaxation of Ito Cells
Ito cells (hepatic stellate cells) are localized around liver sinusoidal endothelial cells. The cytoplasm of these cells contains contractile proteins such as actin and myosin, suggesting that microcirculation...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
Diagnosis and Treatment of Hepatic Fibrosis and Hepatic Sinusoidal Cells
Hepatic fibrosis is a common response to chronic liver injury from many causes, including alcohol, chronic viral infections, metabolic liver disorders, and autoimmune hepatitis. Hepatic fibrosis results from a...
-
Chapter and Conference Paper
VEGF Participates in Neovascularization and Sinusoidal Capillarization in HCC
Early in hepatocarcinogenesis, hepatocellular carcinomas do not show hypervascularity, but at later stages they require abundant arterial blood supply. Vascular endothelial growth factor is one of the most dir...
-
Chapter
Liver Injury and Serum Hyaluronan
Hyaluronan (HA) (hyaluronic acid, hyaluronate), a glycosaminoglycan macromolecule, is one of the major non-structural elements of the extracellular matrix. The major biological roles of HA include the maintena...
-
Article
Functional liver imaging with asialoglycoprotein receptors and serum hyaluronate in a patient with amyloidosis
A 47-year-old man with primary amyloidosis was admitted with abdominal pain. A new radionuclide liver imaging technique using Technetium-99 m diethylenetriamine-pentaacetic acid-galactosyl human serum albumin,...
