Gastrointestinal Bleeding Caused by Large Intestine Amyloidosis.

Background: Amyloidosis is a rare disorder caused by abnormal folding of proteins, leading to the dysfunction of normal tissues. Amyloid deposition can affect several organs, but deposition in the large intestine is rare.

Case Presentation: A 79-year-old man presented with gastrointestinal bleeding and nonspecific symptoms of weight loss, dry heaves, dysphagia, and weakness.

Prevalence of cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome and its financial burden on the health care industry.

Cannabis is the most commonly consumed recreational drug in the world. As more states legalize cannabis use in some form, the incidence of cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome (CHS) is expected to rise. CHS is a constellation of symptoms including severe cyclical nausea and vomiting and epigastric or periumbilical abdominal pain as a result of long-term cannabis use.

Amelioration of Large Bile Duct Damage by Histamine-2 Receptor Vivo-Morpholino Treatment.

Histamine binds to one of the four G-protein-coupled receptors expressed by large cholangiocytes and increases large cholangiocyte proliferation via histamine-2 receptor (H2HR), which is increased in patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC). Ranitidine decreases liver damage in Mdr2 (ATP binding cassette subfamily B member 4 null) mice. We targeted hepatic H2HR in Mdr2 mice using vivo-morpholino.

Biliary damage and liver fibrosis are ameliorated in a novel mouse model lacking l-histidine decarboxylase/histamine signaling.

Primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) is characterized by biliary damage and fibrosis. Multidrug resistance-2 gene knockout (Mdr2) mice and PSC patients have increased histamine (HA) levels (synthesized by l-histidine decarboxylase, HDC) and HA receptor (HR) expression. Cholestatic HDC mice display ameliorated biliary damage and hepatic fibrosis.

The Direct Contribution of Astrocytes and Microglia to the Pathogenesis of Hepatic Encephalopathy.

Hepatic encephalopathy is a neurological complication resulting from loss of hepatic function and is associated with poor clinical outcomes. During acute liver failure over 20% of mortality can be associated with the development of hepatic encephalopathy. In patients with liver cirrhosis, 1-year survival for those that develop overt hepatic encephalopathy is under 50%.

Direct Comparison of the Thioacetamide and Azoxymethane Models of Type A Hepatic Encephalopathy in Mice.

Acute liver failure is a devastating consequence of hepatotoxic liver injury that can lead to the development of hepatic encephalopathy. There is no consensus on the best model to represent these syndromes in mice, and therefore the aim of this study was to classify hepatic and neurological consequences of azoxymethane- and thioacetamide-induced liver injury. Azoxymethane-treated mice were euthanized at time points representing absence of minor and significant stages of neurological decline.

Metastatic calcinosis cutis in end-stage renal disease.

Alterations in calcium and phosphorus levels and joint pain are a common occurrence in end-stage renal disease patients. However, metastatic calcinosis cutis is a rare diagnosis that often combines these two findings, with extensive soft tissue calcification surrounding a large joint being the hallmark of this disease. The exact mechanism behind this clinical entity is unknown.