Mendelian randomization suggests a causal relationship between gut microbiota and nonalcoholic fatty liver disease in humans.

Targeting the gut microbiota is an emerging strategy to treat nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). Nonetheless, the causal relationship between specific gut microbiota and NAFLD remains unclear. We first obtained genome-wide association study statistics on gut microbiota and NAFLD from publicly available databases.

Diagnostic efficacy of FibroScan for liver inflammation in patients with chronic hepatitis B: a single-center study with 1185 liver biopsies as controls.

Background: Noninvasive diagnostic technologies that can dynamically monitor changes in liver inflammation are highly important for the management of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients and thus warrant further exploration. This study assessed the diagnostic efficacy of FibroScan for liver inflammation in CHB patients.

Methods: A total of 1185 patients were selected, and ultrasound-guided liver biopsy was performed within 1 month after the FibroScan test.

Corrigendum to "Artificial Liver Support System Improves Short-Term Outcomes of Patients with HBV-Associated Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure: A Propensity Score Analysis".

[This corrects the article DOI: 10.1155/2019/3757149.].

Safety and Immunogenicity of a Recombinant Tetanus Vaccine in Healthy Adults in China: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Dose Escalation, Placebo- and Positive-Controlled, Phase 1/2 Trial.

Tetanus is a fatal but vaccine-preventable disease. The currently available tetanus vaccines are tetanus toxoid (TT)-based. Although these vaccines are generally effective, challenges in vaccine development and access remain.

Using advanced oxidation protein products and ischaemia-modified albumin to monitor oxidative stress levels in patients with drug-induced liver injury.

Increased oxidative stress levels play a key role in idiosyncratic drug-induced liver injury (DILI) pathogenesis. To investigated whether advanced oxidation protein products (AOPPs) and ischaemia-modified albumin (IMA) can be used to monitor oxidative stress in DILI patients and to assess disease severity. We performed spectrophotometric assays to assess AOPPs and IMA in 68 DILI patients with severity grade 0-2 (non-severe group), 60 with severity grade 3-5 (severe group), and 38 healthy controls.

Serum ammonia is a strong prognostic factor for patients with acute-on-chronic liver failure.

Ammonia is thought to be central to the pathogenesis of hepatic encephalopathy (HE), but its prognostic role in acute-on-chronic liver failure (ACLF) is still unknown. We aimed to determine the association between serum ammonia level and short-term prognosis in ACLF. Furthermore, we performed an in-depth evaluation of the independent effect of serum ammonia level on the short-term prognosis of hepatitis B virus (HBV) reactivation-induced ACLF patients.

Plasminogen as a prognostic biomarker for HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure.

BACKGROUNDHBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) is hallmarked by high short-term mortality rates, calling for accurate prognostic biomarkers for initial risk stratification.METHODSThree tandem mass tag-labeled (TMT-labeled) quantitative proteomic studies were performed on 10 patients with HBV-related acute hepatic decompensation and on 20 patients with HBV-ACLF. Candidate biomarkers were preliminarily verified in a cross-sectional cohort (n = 144) and further confirmed in 2 prospective cohorts (n = 207 and n = 148).

Artificial Liver Support System Improves Short-Term Outcomes of Patients with HBV-Associated Acute-on-Chronic Liver Failure: A Propensity Score Analysis.

Background: Hepatitis B virus-associated acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ALCF) is a complicated syndrome with extremely high short-term mortality. The artificial liver support system (ALSS) may improve the liver function for patients with HBV-ACLF, but the data on its short-term outcomes are insufficient in China.

Methods: We recruited HBV-ACLF patients in this nationwide, multicenter, retrospective study.

Dynamic Alterations of Plasma Metabolites in the Progression of Liver Regeneration after Partial Hepatectomy.

To elucidate the dynamic alterations of metabolites in rat plasma during liver regeneration and search for potential biomarkers of liver regeneration, 65 male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into three groups: 70% partial hepatectomy group (PHx, = 30), sham-operated group (Sham, = 30), and pre-PHx group (pre-PHx, = 5). Rats in the Sham and PHx groups were sacrificed after 30 min (min), 6 h (h), 24, 48, 72, and 168 h of surgery ( = 5 per time point). The gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-based metabolomic approach was used to identify the dynamic metabolites.

A prognostic model for hepatitis B acute-on-chronic liver failure patients treated using a plasma exchange-centered liver support system.

Aim: To determine the prognostic risk factors of patients with hepatitis B virus related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) treated with plasma exchange (PE)-based artificial liver support system (ALSS), and create a prognostic predictive model.

Methods: A total of 304 HBV-ACLF patients who received PE-based ALSS were retrospectively analyzed. Potential prognostic factors on admission associated with survival were investigated.

Artificial liver support system therapy in acute-on-chronic hepatitis B liver failure: Classification and regression tree analysis.

Artificial liver support systems (ALSS) are widely used to treat patients with hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF). The aims of the present study were to investigate the subgroups of patients with HBV-ACLF who may benefit from ALSS therapy, and the relevant patient-specific factors. 489 ALSS-treated HBV-ACLF patients were enrolled, and served as derivation and validation cohorts for classification and regression tree (CART) analysis.

Assessment of biological functions for C3A cells interacting with adverse environments of liver failure plasma.

Background: For its better differentiated hepatocyte phenotype, C3A cell line has been utilized in bioartificial liver system. However, up to now, there are only a few of studies working at the metabolic alternations of C3A cells under the culture conditions with liver failure plasma, which mainly focus on carbohydrate metabolism, total protein synthesis and ureagenesis. In this study, we investigated the effects of acute liver failure plasma on the growth and biological functions of C3A cells, especially on CYP450 enzymes.

Process optimization for the rapid production of Enterovirus 71.

Enterovirus 71 (EV71) infection can cause hand-foot-and-mouth disease (HFMD). Inactivated EV71 vaccine was effective to prevent EV71 derived HFMD. A highly efficient and economical process for producing EV71 is needed.

HINT: a novel prognostic model for patients with hepatitis B virus-related acute-on-chronic liver failure.

Background: HBV-related acute-on-chronic liver failure (HBV-ACLF) deteriorates rapidly in the short term, which necessitates accurate initial clinical decision making.

Aims: To develop a novel prognostic score for patients with HBV-ACLF and clarify the role of thyroid hormones in HBV-ACLF.

Methods: A retrospective cohort of 635 HBV-ACLF patients was enrolled to develop and validate a novel prognostic score for HBV-ACLF.

Development and validation of a novel score for fibrosis staging in patients with chronic hepatitis B.

Background & Aims: Non-invasive assessment methods for liver fibrosis are urgently needed. The present study aimed to develop a novel diagnostic model for fibrosis staging in patients with chronic hepatitis B.

Methods: A cross-sectional set of 417 chronic hepatitis B patients who underwent liver biopsy was enrolled and the METAVIR score was adopted as the reference of fibrosis staging.