Liver Disease News and Research

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The liver is one of the largest solid organs of the body. It is located in the upper right part of the abdomen. Most of the organ lies under cover of the rib cage.

NIH awards Clinical and Translational Science Award to three Texas Medical Center institutions

In 2006, three Texas Medical Center institutions were among the first in the nation to receive a Clinical and Translational Science Award (CTSA) from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to accelerate the translation of laboratory discoveries into patient treatments. That grant has been renewed for another 5 years.

7 Jul 2012

Alcoholic liver disease risk only ‘modestly’ affected by genetic factors

Research has suggested that environmental factors have a greater impact on the risk of alcoholic liver disease (ALD) than genetic predisposition.

5 Jul 2012

Scientists develop new animal model to study nonalcoholic steatohepatitis

Scientists at Texas Biomed have developed the laboratory opossum as a new animal model to study the most common liver disease in the nation - afflicting up to 15 million Americans - and for which there is no cure.

4 Jul 2012

Abnormal bone marrow stem cells drive development of myelodysplastic syndromes

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have found that abnormal bone marrow stem cells drive the development of myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), serious blood diseases that are common among the elderly and that can progress to acute leukemia. The findings could lead to targeted therapies against MDS and prevent MDS-related cancers. The study is published today in the online edition of the journal Blood.

2 Jul 2012

European collaboration to design a biomimetic bioartificial liver

Medicyte, The Electrospinning Company and the Universities of Manchester and Pisa launch a European wide unique project with the aim to design a biomimetic bioartificial liver (Re-Liver). The company GABO:mi ensures professional project management.

2 Jul 2012

Medivir, Bristol-Myers Squibb to initiate TMC435 and daclatasvir phase II combination study in HCV

Medivir AB, the research-based pharmaceutical company focused on the development of high-value treatments for infectious diseases, announces that a phase II combination study with the investigational compound TMC435 and Bristol-Myers Squibb's investigational compound daclatasvir will start in July.

29 Jun 2012

IU gastroenterologist develops first guidelines for diagnosis and management of NAFLD

An Indiana University School of Medicine gastroenterologist led a team of distinguished physicians who developed the first guidelines for diagnosis and management of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease.

22 Jun 2012

FDA grants Orphan Drug Designation to Medgenics’ INFRADURE Biopump

Medgenics, Inc., the developer of Biopump, a novel technology for the sustained production and delivery of therapeutic proteins in patients using their own tissue, today announced that its INFRADURE Biopump has received Orphan Drug Designation from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Office of Orphan Products Development (OOPD) for the treatment of hepatitis D.

21 Jun 2012

HCV suppression reduces liver damage

Profound suppression of the hepatitis C virus reduces long-term hepatic inflammation and fibrosis even in patients who do not achieve a sustained virologic response, research demonstrates.

19 Jun 2012

Commensal bacteria essential to fight off viral infections

Healthy humans harbor an enormous and diverse group of bacteria and other bugs that live within their intestines. These microbial partners provide beneficial aid in multiple ways - from helping digest food to the development of a healthy immune system.

19 Jun 2012

Study calls for overhaul in health care practices for elderly prisoners

Soaring numbers of older, sicker prisoners are causing an unprecedented health care challenge for the nation's criminal justice system, according to a new UCSF report.

15 Jun 2012

Clinical utility of Metabolon's Quantose IR test to be showcased at ADA meeting

Metabolon, Inc. announces that the clinical utility of the Company's lead diagnostic product Quantose IR will be featured in five poster presentations at the 72nd Annual Scientific Sessions of the American Diabetes Association (ADA) being held June 8-12 in Philadelphia.

12 Jun 2012

Hepatitis C more prevalent among homeless adults in downtown Los Angeles

Recent government studies show that hepatitis C, which can destroy the liver and necessitate a liver transplant, now kills more American adults than AIDS, and new UCLA research shows just how prevalent the disease is among homeless adults in downtown Los Angeles.

12 Jun 2012

Familial predisposition ‘modestly’ affects alcoholic liver disease risk

Environmental factors appear to be the main influence on the risk for alcoholic liver disease, say researchers who found little evidence for familial predisposition to the condition.

11 Jun 2012

Concussion victims have unique spatial patterns of brain abnormalities that change over time

Patients vary widely in their response to concussion, but scientists haven't understood why. Now, using a new technique for analyzing data from brain imaging studies, researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University and Montefiore Medical Center have found that concussion victims have unique spatial patterns of brain abnormalities that change over time

8 Jun 2012

Study identifies molecular changes responsible for abnormal cholesterol production and metabolism

A new study from the Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine has identified molecular changes responsible for abnormal cholesterol production and metabolism in the livers of patients with a common liver condition, and these changes may explain the severity of a patient's liver disease and risks to their heart health.

8 Jun 2012

Successful pregnancies common for female liver transplant recipients

New research confirms that successful pregnancies are common for female liver transplant recipients. The study appearing in the June issue of Liver Transplantation, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases, found miscarriage risk was lower and the live birth rate higher among women following liver transplantation than in the general U.S. population.

7 Jun 2012

Lilly, Kowa announce results from PREVAIL U.S. study

Kowa Pharmaceuticals America, Inc. and Eli Lilly and Company today announced results of the PREVAIL U.S. study (Pitavastatin compaREd with praVAstatin In Lowering LDL-C in the U.S.) which evaluated the efficacy of LIVALO (pitavastatin) 4 mg compared with pravastatin 40 mg in reducing low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), the primary endpoint, as well as effects on other lipid parameters and lipoprotein particles in adult patients with primary hyperlipidemia or mixed dyslipidemia.

2 Jun 2012

Foreign-born populations in the U.S. are at increased risk for chronic HBV

The prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the U.S. may be as high as 2.2 million cases according to a new study now available in Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases.

1 Jun 2012

Einstein receives NIH grant to create new vaccine against TB

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine at Yeshiva University a five-year, $5.9 million grant to develop a new vaccine against tuberculosis (TB), including the toughest-to-treat forms of the disease known as multi drug-resistant and extensively drug-resistant. The grant will build on a new approach to TB vaccine design that is based on genetically altered Mycobacterium smegmatis, which is closely related to the bacterial species (Mycobacterium tuberculosis) that causes TB in humans.

1 Jun 2012