Changes of AFPmRNA in blood after percutaneous ethanol injection treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objective: To study the effects of percutaneous ethanol injection (PEI) in treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods: Blood samples were taken from 9 HCC patients and detected by nested RT-PCR to find out AFPmRNA after PEI treatment 3-5 times within 2 weeks.

Results: Three (44.

Apoptosis in acute rejection of hamster-to-rat liver transplantation.

Objective: To investigate whether apoptotic cell death is involved in liver xenograft rejection and the molecular mechanism of apoptosis.

Methods: After hamster-to-rat orthotopic liver transplantation, apoptosis in the xenograft was observed histologically and by in situ end-labelling of fragmented DNA. CD8 antigen, perforin, Fas-L and TGF-beta1 were observed immunohistochemically in the graft.

Detection of circulating hepatocellular carcinoma cells in peripheral venous blood by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction.

Objective: To detect circulating hepatocellular carcinoma by demonstrating hepatocellular carcinoma cells or hepatocyte-associated mRNA in the nuclear cell component of peripheral blood (PBL).

Methods: Peripheral blood (5 ml samples were obtained from 93 patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) and from 33 control subjects (9 with liver cirrhosis after hepatitis B, 14 with chronic hepatitis B, 10 with normal liver function). To identify HCC cells in peripheral blood, liver-specific human alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) mRNA was amplified from total RNA extracted from whole blood by reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction.

Expression of AFPmRNA in blood of patients with recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objectives: To detect the expression of human alpha-fetoprotein mRNA (AFPmRNA) in peripheral blood (PBL) of recurrent hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by using nested reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (nested RT-PCR) and to discuss relations between AFPmRNA and recurrent HCC.

Methods: Five ml peripheral blood samples were obtained from 19 patients with recurrent HCC. To identify HCC cells in PBL, liver-specific AFPmRNA was amplified from the total RNA extracted from the whole blood by nested RT-PCR.

Nested RT-PCR in detection of blood AFPmRNA in animal model of human hepatocellular carcinoma.

Objectives: To detect blood AFPmRNA in the nude mice bearing with human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) by using nested reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (nested RT-PCR), and assess its significance in HCC distant metastasis.

Method: We detected 20 blood samples from the nude mice bearing with human HCC by nested RT-PCR to find out AFPmRNA.

Result: AFPmRNA was detected in 6 blood samples from the nude mice bearing with human HCC (30.