MFLCs showed an ability to induce cES cells to differentiate toward hepatocytes. The co-culture system with MFLCs is a useful method for induction of hepatocyte-like cells from undifferentiated cES cells.
To determine the transaminase-lowering action of glycyrrhizin (GL) immunologically, the effect of GL on tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-alpha- and Fas-mediated apoptosis was assessed using a human hepatoblastoma line, HepG2 cells. The HepG2 cells were resistant to TNF-alpha and anti-Fas antibody, but were rendered susceptible to TNF-alpha and anti-Fas antibody in the presence of actinomycin D (Act D), an inhibitor of RNA synthesis. The cytotoxicity induced by TNF-alpha/Act D or anti-Fas/Act D was accompanied by DNA fragmentation, indicating apoptotic death of HepG2 cells. GL partially prevented the apoptosis of HepG2 cells induced by TNF-alpha/Act D in a GL-dose dependent fashion. However, this protective effect of GL was not observed in the cytotoxicity of HepG2 caused by anti-Fas/Act D. Although the protection mechanism of GL, observed in a limited fashion against TNF-alpha-mediated apoptosis, is unclear, the present results provide an immunological explanation for the transaminase-lowering action of GL in the GL treatment of chronic liver diseases involving apoptotic hepatocyte death in their pathogenesis.
Microscopic polyangiitis (MPA) is associated with renal dysfunction, in most cases, and occasionally with pulmonary hemorrhage. However, massive intestinal bleeding is a rare manifestation. We report a case of MPA in a man who developed arterial bleeding in the small intestine. A 74-year-old man was admitted after enduring a fever for 4 weeks. Laboratory examination revealed leucocytosis with neutrophil predominance, and renal dysfunction was noted. He did not respond to treatment with antibiotics, and the worsened renal function soon required hemodialysis. On the seventh hospital day, he suddenly developed massive melena. A colonoscopic examination suggested bleeding in the small intestine, and abdominal angiography demonstrated that the bleeding originated in a branch of the ileal artery. Hemostasis was achieved by transarterial embolization (TAE), but the patient suffered a massive pulmonary hemorrhage 2 days after the TAE. Although he responded well to a combination treatment with corticosteroid and cyclophosphamide, recurrence of pulmonary hemorrhage led to death, on the 87th hospital day. MPA in this patient was associated with three serious complications; deteriorating renal function, massive melena, and pulmonary hemorrhage. Of the various manifestations associated with MPA, arterial bleeding in the gastrointestinal tract, although rare, should be considered as one of the serious complications in MPA.
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