Efficacy of a glycyrrhizin suppository for the treatment of chronic hepatitis C: a pilot study.

Intravenous administration of glycyrrhizin has potential efficacy on decreasing serum aminotransferase levels in patients with chronic hepatitis. However, patients receiving this treatment are recommended to attend hospital regularly for several years. To improve the quality of life for these patients, we developed a glycyrrhizin suppository.

Mannose-binding lectin and the prognosis of fulminant hepatic failure caused by HBV infection.

Background/aims: The mannose-binding lectin (MBL) gene was reported to play an important role in determining the clinical outcome of persistent hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. We investigated serum MBL concentrations and MBL gene mutations to determine whether they were related to the prognosis of patients with fulminant hepatic failure (FHF) caused by HBV infection.

Methods: We investigated serum MBL concentrations and MBL gene mutations in 43 HBV-infected Japanese patients with FHF and 260 HBsAg-negative healthy controls.