The Bcl-2/Bax system and apoptosis in ulcerative colitis.

Background/aims: Ulcerative colitis (UC) constitutes a chronic inflammatory process of the colon of unknown etiology. Current data support a pivotal role of apoptosis in the evolution of pathogenesis of UC. We performed a prospective study in order to determine the role of Bcl-2, Bax and Bcl-x in the apoptotic pathway in UC.

Evaluation of a conventional ELISA (Novitec) and a near patient immunochromatographic test (Stick H. pyl) for Helicobacter pylori antigen detection in stool.

Background/aims: The detection of Helicobacter pylori (H. pylori) antigen in stool by conventional ELISA is a reliable non-invasive method for the diagnosis of H. pylori infection in untreated patients.

Genes and gastric cancer.

Gastric cancer remains quite a common malignancy and counts among the most important causes of cancer-related death worldwide. Although the pathogenesis is multifactorial, familial aggregation in a significant proportion of cases suggests the importance of genetic predisposition. The association between the E-cadherin/CDH1 gene germline mutations and the development of diffuse gastric cancer was the first evidence for a molecular basis of gastric cancer in predisposed families and led many authorities in the world to produce guidelines regarding the management of such families members.

Liver histology and progression of fibrosis in individuals with chronic hepatitis C and persistently normal ALT.

Objective: The natural history of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in patients with normal liver biochemistry remains poorly characterized. We performed a retrospective review of patients with chronic HCV infection and persistently normal ALT to compare clinical and histological features with those in patients with abnormal liver biochemistry.

Methods: Ninety-one HCV RNA-positive patients with persistently normal ALT who had a liver biopsy between 1993 and 1999 were identified.

Premalignant lesions and conditions for gastric adenocarcinoma: diagnosis, management and surveillance guidelines.

Despite universal trends of declining mortality rates, gastric cancer remains a major health problem. The advent of endoscopy has made a major impact in the diagnosis and management of early gastric cancer as well as of the premalignant lesions of the stomach. Nevertheless the disagreement between Japanese and Western histopathologists regarding the nomenclatures of the gastric precancerous lesions resulted in different recommendations and therapeutic guide lines.

Acute hepatitis A virus infection: a review of prognostic factors from 25 years experience in a tertiary referral center.

Background/aims: Hepatitis A is usually a mild, self-limiting illness but can result in severe or fatal disease. We reviewed 25 years experience to determine what factors predispose to severe or fatal disease.

Methodology: We identified 97 patients admitted between 1974-1999 with acute hepatitis A.