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Article
Neutralization of Transforming Growth Factor β1 Augments Hepatitis C Virus-Specific Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte Induction in Vitro
In hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection, TGF-β1 is upregulated in the liver and may be involved in the pathogenesis of chronic liver disease. TGF-β1 is also produced by activated T cells and acts as a potent immu...
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Chapter and Conference Paper
Cancer Vaccination by B7-1-Transfected Hepatocellular Carcinoma Cells
Human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most common cancers, frequently recurs after primary therapy. A way to prevent this recurrence is needed. Enhanced immunity to some experimental tumors has been...
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Article
Open AccessVaccination with EphA2-derived T cell-epitopes promotes immunity against both EphA2-expressing and EphA2-negative tumors
A novel tyrosine kinase receptor EphA2 is expressed at high levels in advanced and metastatic cancers. We examined whether vaccinations with synthetic mouse EphA2 (mEphA2)-derived peptides that serve as T cell...
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Article
Dendritic cell-based vaccines suppress metastatic liver tumor via activation of local innate and acquired immunity
Dendritic cell (DC)-based vaccines have been applied clinically in the setting of cancer, but tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) have not yet been enough identified in various cancers. In this study, we investig...
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Article
STAT3 signaling within hepatocytes is required for anemia of inflammation in vivo
Anemia of inflammation, commonly observed in patients with chronic diseases, is associated with decreased serum iron. Hepcidin, mainly produced by hepatocytes in a STAT3- and/or SMAD-dependent manner, is invol...
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Article
Natural killer cell is a major producer of interferon γ that is critical for the IL-12-induced anti-tumor effect in mice
Although the anti-tumor effect of IL-12 is mediated mostly by IFNγ, which cell types most efficiently produce IFNγ and therefore initiate or promote the anti-tumor effect of IL-12 has not been clearly determin...
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Article
EphA2-derived peptide vaccine with amphiphilic poly(γ-glutamic acid) nanoparticles elicits an anti-tumor effect against mouse liver tumor
The prognosis of liver cancer remains poor, but recent advances in nanotechnology offer promising possibilities for cancer treatment. Novel adjuvant, amphiphilic nanoparticles (NPs) composed of l-phenylalanine (P...
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Article
Absence of invariant natural killer T cells deteriorates liver inflammation and fibrosis in mice fed high-fat diet
Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells have been suggested to play critical roles in a wide range of immune responses by acting in a proinflammatory or anti-inflammatory manner. Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (...
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Article
The efficacy of extended treatment with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin in patients with HCV genotype 1 and slow virologic response in Japan
Which patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) genotype 1 can benefit from extended treatment with pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) plus ribavirin is unknown, although the overall sustained virologic response (SVR)...
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Article
Efficacy of re-treatment with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin combination therapy for patients with chronic hepatitis C in Japan
It is still not known which patients with chronic hepatitis C who failed to respond to previous pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) plus ribavirin therapy can benefit from re-treatment.
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Article
Differential alteration of CD56bright and CD56dim natural killer cells in frequency, phenotype, and cytokine response in chronic hepatitis C virus infection
Natural killer (NK) cells play an important role in immune responses to virus infection. The cell population consists of CD56bright (bright-subset) and CD56dim (dim-subset) subsets that possess armed functions of...
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Article
Efficacy of pegylated interferon plus ribavirin combination therapy for hepatitis C patients with normal ALT levels: a matched case–control study
The antiviral effect of pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) plus ribavirin combination therapy in chronic hepatitis C (CHC) patients with normal alanine aminotransferase (ALT) levels (N-ALT) has been reported to be...
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Article
Reducing Peg-IFN doses causes later virologic response or no response in HCV genotype 1 patients treated with Peg-IFN alfa-2b plus ribavirin
The timing to the first undetectable hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA level is strongly associated with sustained virologic response in pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) plus ribavirin combination therapy for patients...
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Article
Long-term effect of lamivudine treatment on the incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with hepatitis B virus infection
Nucleotide analogues have recently been approved for the treatment of patients with hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. However, it is still controversial whether the decrease of HBV-DNA amount induced by treat...
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Article
Interleukin-1β enhances the production of soluble MICA in human hepatocellular carcinoma
The production of soluble major histocompatibility complex class I–related chain A (MICA) is thought to antagonize NKG2D-mediated immunosurveillance. Interleukin-1β (IL-1β) is elevated in patients with chronic...
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Article
Incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in HCV-infected patients with normal alanine aminotransferase levels categorized by Japanese treatment guidelines
This study was conducted to evaluate Japanese treatment guidelines for patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and normal alanine aminotransferase (N-ALT) levels from the viewpoint of the incid...
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Article
Using early viral kinetics to predict antiviral outcome in response-guided pegylated interferon plus ribavirin therapy among patients with hepatitis C virus genotype 1
HCV kinetics during treatment demonstrated strong association with the antiviral outcome of patients treated with pegylated interferon (Peg-IFN) plus ribavirin. However, the relationship between HCV kinetics a...
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Article
Liver stiffness measurement by acoustic radiation force impulse is useful in predicting the presence of esophageal varices or high-risk esophageal varices among patients with HCV-related cirrhosis
Screening and periodic surveillance for esophageal varices (EVs) by esophagogastroduodenoscopy (EGD) are recommended for cirrhotic patients. We investigated non-invasive liver stiffness measurement using acous...
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Article
The prospective randomized study on telaprevir at 1500 or 2250 mg with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin in Japanese patients with HCV genotype 1
Triple therapy with telaprevir (TVR), pegylated interferon and ribavirin has improved antiviral efficacy in patients with chronic hepatitis C (CH-C). However, the severe adverse effects caused by TVR are impor...
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Article
Erratum to: Liver stiffness measurement by acoustic radiation force impulse is useful in predicting the presence of esophageal varices or high-risk esophageal varices among patients with HCV-related cirrhosis
