Circulating IgG4 Plasmablast Count as a Diagnostic Tool in Autoimmune Pancreatitis.

Background & Aims: Type 1 autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) is an IgG4-related disease whose diagnosis is challenging. The aim of this study was to investigate the diagnostic value of circulating total and IgG4 plasmablasts in differentiating this condition from the other main pancreatic diseases.

Methods: Patients with type 1 AIP (n = 19) were prospectively enrolled in a tertiary center together with patients suffering from type 2 or not otherwise specified (NOS) AIP (n = 10), pancreatic adenocarcinoma (n = 17), chronic pancreatitis (n = 20), and intraductal papillary mucinous neoplasia or chronic asymptomatic pancreatic hyperenzymemia (n = 21) as control groups.

There Is No Association between Coeliac Disease and Autoimmune Pancreatitis.

Autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) is a rare disorder whose association with coeliac disease (CD) has never been investigated, although CD patients display a high prevalence of both endocrine and exocrine pancreatic affections. Therefore, we sought to evaluate the frequency of CD in patients with AIP and in further medical pancreatic disorders. The screening for CD was carried out through the detection of tissue transglutaminase (tTG) autoantibodies in sera of patients retrospectively enrolled and divided in four groups: AIP, chronic pancreatitis, chronic asymptomatic pancreatic hyperenzymemia (CAPH), and control subjects with functional dyspepsia.

Role of Amylase-α2A Autoantibodies in the Diagnosis of Autoimmune Pancreatitis.

Objectives: Several serological markers have been reported in autoimmune pancreatitis (AIP) patients. However, only serum IgG4 (sIgG4) is available in clinical practice for AIP diagnosis. Antiamylase α antibodies (AMY-α Abs) have been proposed to diagnose AIP.

Protease inhibitors-based therapy induces acquired spherocytic-like anaemia and ineffective erythropoiesis in chronic hepatitis C virus patients.

Background & Aims: The addition of protease inhibitors, boceprevir (BOC) or telaprevir (TRV), to peg-interferon and ribavirin (PR) increases the incidence of anaemia in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. Although genetic variants in inosine triphosphatase (ITPA) gene have been linked to the haemolytic anaemia induced by PR, the mechanism sustaining severe anaemia during triple therapy is still unknown. This study aims to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying anaemia in chronic HCV patients with combined therapy.

Altered intestinal function precedes the appearance of bacterial DNA in serum and ascites in patients with cirrhosis: a pilot study.

Objectives: Bacterial translocation seems to precede the occurrence of overt bacterial infection in patients with cirrhosis. The presence of bacterial DNA in blood and ascites correlates with bacterial translocation and is frequent in patients with advanced cirrhosis without overt infection. Our aim was to search for bacterial DNA in patients with cirrhosis both with and without ascites, and to study its correlation with abnormal intestinal motility or permeability and the presence of bacterial overgrowth.

Functional role of p38 mitogen activated protein kinase in platelet activation induced by a thromboxane A2 analogue and by 8-iso-prostaglandin F2alpha.

We investigated similarities in the signaling pathways elicited by the F2 isoprostane 8-iso-PGF2alpha and by low doses of U46619 to induce platelet activation. Both 0.01-0.