Can IgG4 Levels Identify the Ulcerative Colitis Subtype of Inflammatory Bowel Disease?

Background: Pancreatitis and exocrine pancreatic insufficiency may occur as extraintestinal manifestations of inflammatory bowel disease. Recently, autoimmune pancreatitis and colitis have been described as presentations of IgG4-related disease. IgG4+ plasma cells have been identified in colon tissue from patients with refractory forms of inflammatory bowel disease.

A phylogenetic study of hepatitis B virus in chronically infected Brazilian patients of Western and Asian descent.

Background: Hepatitis B virus (HBV) causes one of the most important chronic viral infections worldwide. HBV is classified into eight genotypes whose epidemiology varies geographically. In Brazil, genotypes A, D, and F are more frequent, while in East Asia, genotypes B and C predominate.