News by Subject Medicine & Health

In a world-first discovery, Australian scientists have identified a protein that causes liver fibrosis, paving the way for new treatments for liver disease to be developed.

Alcoholism is a leading cause of liver cirrhosis-related deaths. Although chronic alcohol consumption is known to alter the gut microbiome, the link between these changes and liver damage is not well understood. This week in the JCI, a study led by Bernd Schnabl connects alcohol-driven changes in the fungal microbiome to liver disease, supporting further study of the role fungi play in liver inflammation and disease.

Use of the generic versions of directly-acting antiviral drugs that are available in India to treat hepatitis C virus infection is not only cost effective but actually saves lifetime costs for treating infected patients in that country.

Researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, with collaborators across the nation, have determined that magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) can be an accurate, non-invasive tool to identify liver fibrosis in children. Nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is now the most common cause of chronic liver disease in children, and scarring of the liver, known as fibrosis, is a major determinant of clinical outcomes.

Primary colorectal tumors secrete VEGF-A, inducing CXCL1 and CXCR2-positive myeloid-derived suppressor cell (MDSC) recruitment at distant sites and establishing niches for future metastases, report Medical University of South Carolina investigators in an article published online April 28, 2017 by Cancer Research. Liver-infiltrating MDSCs help bypass immune responses and facilitate tumor cell survival in the new location. This research illuminates mechanisms whereby primary tumors contribute to premetastatic niche formation and suggests CXCR2 antagonists may reduce metastasis.

A protein that typically helps keep cells organized and on task becomes a tumor suppressor in the face of liver cancer, scientists say.

Infection with hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) can lead to cirrhosis as well as liver cancer. A Hepatology study from Taiwan has found that statins may provide benefits to patients with HBV- or HCV-related cirrhosis.

An international study led by researchers at Monash University' Biomedicine Discovery Institute (BDI) has shone light on the way the Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) hijacks the communication systems in the host cells it infects, uncovering potential new therapeutic targets for the disease.