Scientists have shown that a mutation in a gene called Arid1b can cause liver cancer. The gene normally protects against cancer by limiting cell growth, but when mutated it allows cells to grow uncontrollably. The researchers have shown that two existing drugs can halt this growth in human cells. This points to a new approach to treating liver cancer. These early results could be translated into a treatment relatively quickly,
Scientists at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) have identified a factor in liver cells that is responsible for turning a relatively benign liver condition, present in 30 percent of U.S. adults, into a serious disease that can lead to liver failure. The study was published online today in Cell Metabolism. With the rise of obesity in the U.S., the incidence of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD)—in which excess fat fills
Researchers have been trying for decades to develop a vaccine against the globally endemic hepatitis C virus (HCV). Now scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have discovered one reason why success has so far been elusive. Using a sophisticated array of techniques for mapping tiny molecular structures, the TSRI scientists analyzed a lab-made version of a key viral protein, which has been employed in some candidate HCV vaccines to induce
There is no U.S. FDA approved therapy on the market today for Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH), a chronic liver disease found in adults and children. Between 5.6 and 8.4 million Americans are living with NASH today and this number is expected to jump to 25 million by 2025, driven by rising obesity rates. NAFLD, the liver disease which is a precursor to NASH, afflicts an estimated 30 million people today. These
Combining multiple non-invasive measures, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine describe a novel method to quantify the progression of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) to its more dangerous and deadly states — advanced fibrosis and cirrhosis. The findings are published in the Oct 5 online issue of Hepatology. Roughly one-quarter of all Americans — an estimated 100 million adults and children — have NAFLD, which occurs
A new study has found that neither gay men nor heterosexual people with HIV transmit the virus to their partner, provided they are on suppressive antiretroviral treatment. The PARTNER study, which is the world's largest study of people with HIV who have had condomless sex with their HIV negative partners, was conducted by investigators from the University of Liverpool, University College London, Royal Free NHS and Rigshospitalet (one of the
