Hepatic steatosis is a frequently encountered imaging finding that may indicate chronic liver disease, the most common of which is non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease is implicated in the development of systemic diseases and its progressive phenotype, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis, leads to increased liver-specific morbidity and mortality. With the rising obesity epidemic and advent of novel therapeutics aimed at altering metabolism, there is a growing need to quantify and monitor liver steatosis. Imaging methods for assessing steatosis range from simple and qualitative to complex and highly accurate metrics. Ultrasound may be appropriate in some clinical instances as a screening modality to identify the presence of abnormal liver morphology. However, it lacks sufficient specificity and sensitivity to constitute a diagnostic modality for instigating and monitoring therapy. Newer ultrasound techniques such as quantitative ultrasound show promise in turning qualitative assessment of steatosis on conventional ultrasound into quantitative measurements. Conventional unenhanced CT is capable of detecting and quantifying moderate to severe steatosis but is inaccurate at diagnosing mild steatosis and involves the use of radiation. Newer CT techniques, like dual energy CT, show potential in expanding the role of CT in quantifying steatosis. MRI proton-density fat fraction is currently the most accurate and precise imaging biomarker to quantify liver steatosis. As such, proton-density fat fraction is the most appropriate noninvasive end point for steatosis reduction in clinical trials and therapy response assessment.

Translation initiation factors are over-expressed and/or activated in many human cancers and may contribute to their genesis and/or progression. Removal of physiologic restraints on translation initiation causes malignant transformation. Conversely, restoration of physiological restrains on translation initiation reverts malignant phenotypes. Here, we extensively characterize the anti-cancer activity of two small molecule inhibitors of translation initiation: #1181, which targets the eIF2-GTP-Met-tRNAi ternary complex, and 4EGI-1, which targets the eIF4F complex. In vitro, both molecules inhibit translation initiation, abrogate preferentially translation of mRNAs coding for oncogenic proteins, and inhibit proliferation of human cancer cells. In vivo, both #1181 and 4EGI-1 strongly inhibit growth of human breast and melanoma cancer xenografts without any apparent macroscopic- or microscopic-toxicity. Mechanistically, #1181 phosphorylates eIF2α while 4EGI-1 disrupts eIF4G/eIF4E interaction in the tumors excised from mice treated with these agents. These data indicate that inhibition of translation initiation is a new paradigm in cancer therapy.

Liver fibrosis is a histological hallmark of most chronic liver diseases, which can progress to cirrhosis and liver failure, and predisposes to hepatocellular carcinoma. Accurate diagnosis of liver fibrosis is necessary for prognosis, risk stratification, and treatment decision‐making. Liver biopsy, the reference standard for assessing liver fibrosis, is invasive, costly, and impractical for surveillance and treatment response monitoring. Elastography offers a noninvasive, objective, and quantitative alternative to liver biopsy. This article discusses the need for noninvasive assessment of liver fibrosis and reviews the comparative advantages and limitations of ultrasound and magnetic resonance elastography techniques with respect to their basic concepts, acquisition, processing, and diagnostic performance. Variations in clinical contexts of use and common pitfalls associated with each technique are considered. In addition, current challenges and future directions to improve the diagnostic accuracy and clinical utility of elastography techniques are discussed. Level of Evidence: 5 Technical Efficacy Stage: 2 J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2020;51:25–42.

N onalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) affects approximately 25% of the human population (1,2) and may soon overtake hepatitis C as the leading cause of liver transplantation (3). The earliest and characteristic histologic feature of NAFLD is hepatic steatosis, defined as the accumulation of fat droplets within hepatocytes. Steatosis can lead to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis, a more rapidly progressive variant of NAFLD. Nonalcoholic steatohepatitis occurs in 20% of adults with NAFLD, and can contribute to development of fibrosis, cirrhosis, and even hepatocellular carcinoma (1,2). Liver biopsy is the current reference standard for NAFLD diagnosis (4). Proton density fat fraction (PDFF) measured at confounder-corrected chemical shift-encoded MRI is an accurate, repeatable, and reproducible noninvasive method for hepatic steatosis quantification (5-7). However, chemical shift-encoded MRI is not routinely available.There is a critical need to develop noninvasive, widely available, accurate, and cost-effective methods to assess steatosis. US is a promising modality for this purpose, but conventional US is limited by its qualitative nature, system and operator dependency, and modest accuracy (4). Various methods have been investigated to extract quantitative information from US to improve steatosis assessment (8-16), each with its own strengths and weaknesses. For example, the hepatorenal index is accurate for steatosis assessment ( 8), but it depends on the right kidney being normal and disease-free. The right kidney is not always visible on US images. Controlled attenuation parameter is

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Lithium metal is considered as the ideal anode for next-generation rechargeable batteries due to its highest theoretical specific capacity and lowest electrochemical potential. However, lithium dendrite growth during lithium deposition could lead to a short circuit and even cause severe safety issues. Here, we use solid-state electrolyte Li 3 InCl 6 as an additive in nonaqueous electrolytes because of its high ionic conductivity (10 −3 to 10 −4 S cm −1 ) and good electrochemical stability. It is found that Li 3 InCl 6 can in situ react with metallic lithium to form a ternary composite solid electrolyte interphase (SEI) consisting of a Li−In alloy, LiCl, and codeposited Li 3 InCl 6 . The composite SEI can effectively suppress Li dendrite growth and thereby maintain stable long-term cycling performance in lithium metal batteries. The protected lithium electrode exhibits stable cycling performance in a symmetric Li|Li battery for nearly 1000 h at a current density of 1 mA cm −2 . Besides, the full battery with a LiFePO 4 cathode and a metallic lithium anode delivers a stable capacity of 140.6 mA h g −1 for 500 cycles with a capacity retention of 95%. The Li|S battery with Li 3 InCl 6 -added LiTFSI in 1,3-dioxolane/1,2-dimethoxyethane electrolyte also shows significant improvement in capacity retention at 0.5 C. This work demonstrates an effective approach to design dendrite-free metal anodes.

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