Summary Background The liver has a critical role in the metabolism of glucose and lipids. Chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) or hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection leads to a spectrum of liver disease including chronic hepatitis, cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) has a rising incidence owing to an epidemic of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and obesity. Non‐alcoholic fatty liver disease is a liver manifestation of MetS and has become the most common cause of chronic liver disease worldwide. Aim To summarise the interplay among hepatitis viruses, MetS and its components. Methods We searched the literature about HBV, HCV infection, MetS, fatty liver and its components from PubMed. Results With respect to the viral replication cycle, lipids are important mediators between viral entry and hepatocyte in HCV infection, but not in HBV infection. Thus, HCV infection is inversely associated with hyperlipidaemia and lipid rebound occurs following sustained viral response induced by interferon‐based therapy or direct antiviral agents. In addition, HCV infection is positively associated with insulin resistance, hepatic steatosis, MetS and the risk of T2DM and atherosclerosis. In contrast, HBV infection may protect infected subjects from the development of MetS and hepatic steatosis. Accumulating evidence suggests that HBV infection is inversely associated with lipid metabolism, and exhibits no conclusive association with insulin resistance or the risk of T2DM and arteriosclerosis. Conclusions In patients with viral hepatitis and concurrent metabolic diseases, a multidisciplinary approach should be given rather than simply antiviral treatment.

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We report on the direct observation of a single-flux-quantum (SFQ) pulse. The response of a metal–semiconductor–metal photodiode to a femtosecond laser pulse was used to switch Josephson junctions and to generate an SFQ voltage pulse on a superconducting microstrip line. The detailed shape of the pulse was measured optoelectronically, using a cryogenic electro-optic sampling system. The measured SFQ pulse had a width of 3.2 ps, an amplitude of 0.67 mV, and a total pulse content of 2.1±0.2 mV×ps, corresponding to the quantum of magnetic flux h/2e. With larger excitation, multiple SFQ pulses were observed. Numerical simulations are shown to be qualitatively similar to our experimental results.

On-treatment complete virological response at Month 6 is a favorable factor predictive of HBeAg loss at 2 years of entecavir therapy. Therefore, measurement of serum HBV-DNA level at 6 months of entecavir therapy is optimal to predict HBeAg loss at 2 years of therapy in HBeAg-positive CHB patients.

Background/purpose:A nomenclature of "metabolic associated fatty liver disease" (MAFLD) with new de nition was proposed in 2020 instead of previous "non-alcoholic fatty liver disease" (NAFLD). However, which better ts the clinical demand remains controversial. MethodsThe participants with fatty liver on ultrasonography from Taiwan bio-bank cohort were included. MAFLD was de ned as the presence of fatty liver, plus any of the following three conditions: overweight/obesity, type 2 diabetes mellitus (DM), or metabolic dysfunction. The severity of liver brosis was determined using brosis-4 (FIB-4) score and NAFLD brosis score (NFS). The risk of atherosclerosis was assessed using intima media thickness (IMT) or plaques of carotid duplex ultrasound. ResultsA total of 9719 subjects (age 55.9 ± 10.8; males 42.6%) were divided to four groups including "both fatty liver disease (FLD)", "MAFLD only", "NAFLD only", and "neither FLD" with the percentages of 79.7%, 12%, 7.1%, and 1.2%, respectively. Compared with NAFLD patients, MAFLD patients had higher frequency of male gender, BMI, waist circumference, HbA1C, and triglyceride. On addition, they had higher levels of serum ALT, AST, GGT, fatty liver index (FLI), NFS and IMT, but no difference in FIB-4 index and the percentage of carotid plaques. Of note, the added population "MAFLD only group" had higher levels of AST, ALT, GGT, FLI, FIB-4, NFS, IMT and higher percentage of carotid plaques than the missed population "NAFLD only group". ConclusionsThis large, population-based study showed MAFLD with new diagnostic criteria could identify more highrisk patients of metabolic, liver and cardiovascular disease complications in clinical practice.

Published by the AIP Publishing Articles you may be interested inOn resolving hot carrier induced degradation mechanisms in silicononsapphire metaloxidesemiconductor fieldeffect transistors Effects of fluorine ion implantation on metaloxidesemiconductor devices of silicononsapphire Appl. Phys. Lett. 52, 459 (1988); 10.1063/1.99443Picosecond photoconductivity measurements of mobility and lifetime in silicononsapphire films

Using a femtosecond pulsed laser, ultrafast electrical pulses were optoelectronically generated on silicon and indium phosphide by edge illumination of a coplanar transmission line. Backing up theory with experiment, we demonstrate that this pulse-generation method is material independent, thus providing a powerful tool for broadband characterization of devices made on a wide range of semiconductor substrates. We also demonstrate that edge illumination enables the generation of 550 fs electrical pulses on indium phosphide and 800 fs pulses on silicon—the fastest pulses to date on bulk silicon.

The serum level of Mac-2 binding protein glycosylation isomer (M2BPGi) has been found to increase with the severity of liver fibrosis in biopsy-proved nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD). However, the comparison of M2BPGi with noninvasive fibrosis markers such as AST to platelet ratio index (APRI), Fibrosis 4 Score (FIB-4), and NAFLD fibrosis score (NFS) in NAFLD patients remains unclear. The participants of Tzu Chi NAFLD cohort (TCNC) including health controls or NAFLD patients were enrolled in Taipei Tzu Chi Hospital. NAFLD was defined as fatty liver in imaging without hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), drug, alcohol, or other known causes of chronic liver disease. A total of 777 subjects were included for final analysis.The serum levels of M2BPGi correlated with APRI, FIB-4 score, and NFS, respectively (P < .001). Of them, 376 (48.4%) were NAFLD patients and 401 were healthy controls. In the group of health controls or NAFLD patients, the M2BPGi levels were significantly higher in female subjects than those of male subjects (P = .027 and 0.006, respectively). Categorized by age, the levels of M2BPGi were significantly higher in elder age groups either in healthy controls or NAFLD patients (P < .05). Compared with healthy controls, NAFLD patients had significantly higher levels of BMI, waist circumference, metabolic components, and liver fibrosis markers such as APRI, NFS, and M2BPGi (P < .05), but no difference in FIB-4 score (P = .685). According to FIB-4 score, "intermediateor high-risk group" had higher APRI, NFS, and M2BPGi than low-risk group. The serum M2BPGi levels correlated with three noninvasive biomarkers of liver fibrosis including APRI, FIB-4 score, and NFS. They were significantly higher in female or elder population. Furthermore, APRI, NFS, and M2BPGi were different between NAFLD patients and healthy controls, but no FIB-4 score. According to FIB-4 score to determine the risk of liver fibrosis, APRI, NFS, and M2BPGi were also different between low risk and