Current status of hepatocellular carcinoma detection: screening strategies and novel biomarkers.

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) remains a major cause of cancer-related mortality worldwide. Delayed diagnosis is a major factor responsible for the poor prognosis of HCC. Several advances have been made in the field of liver imaging with the use of novel imaging contrasts, improving current imaging techniques with contrast-enhanced computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), introduction of new technologies such as contrast liver ultrasound, and development of novel biomarkers with the goal of early detection of HCC and improving outcomes of patients with HCC. This review focuses on current surveillance strategies and development of biomarkers with the goal of early detection of HCC

Prediction of Advanced Fibrosis in Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease: An Enhanced Model of BARD Score.

UNLABELLED: BACKGROUNDAIMS: The BARD score is a model to detect advanced liver fibrosis in nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) patients. The aims of this study were to identify additional factors and then to build an enhanced version of the BARD score. METHODS: One hundred seven patients with biopsy-proven NAFLD were enrolled retrospectively. Logistic regressions were performed to identify independent risk factors for advanced liver fibrosis (stage 3 or 4). An enhanced model of the BARD score (BARDI score) was built and evaluated with a receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve. RESULTS: In multivariate analysis, age (odds ratio [OR], 0.89; p=0.04), aspartate aminotransferase/alanine aminotransferase ratio (OR, 1.73; p CONCLUSIONS: The BARDI score had an improved PPV over the BARD score and maintained an excellent NPV. Further study is warranted for its external validation and comparison with other models

YAO is a nucleolar WD40-repeat protein critical for embryogenesis and gametogenesis in Arabidopsis

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>In flowering plants, gametogenesis generates multicellular male and female gametophytes. In the model system Arabidopsis, the male gametophyte or pollen grain contains two sperm cells and a vegetative cell. The female gametophyte or embryo sac contains seven cells, namely one egg, two synergids, one central cell and three antipodal cells. Double fertilization of the central cell and egg produces respectively a triploid endosperm and a diploid zygote that develops further into an embryo. The genetic control of the early embryo patterning, especially the initiation of the first zygotic division and the positioning of the cell plate, is largely unknown.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>Here we report the characterization of a mutation, <it>yaozhe (yao)</it>, that causes zygote arrest and misplacement of cell plate of the zygote, leading to early embryo lethality. In addition, gametophyte development is partially impaired. A small portion of the mutant embryo sacs are arrested at four-nucleate stage with aberrant nuclear positioning. Furthermore, the competence of male gametophytes is also compromised. <it>YAO </it>encodes a nucleolar protein with seven WD-repeats. Its homologues in human and yeast have been shown to be components of the U3 snoRNP complex and function in 18S rRNA processing. <it>YAO </it>is expressed ubiquitously, with high level of expression in tissues under active cell divisions, including embryo sacs, pollen, embryos, endosperms and root tips.</p> <p>Conclusions</p> <p>Phenotypic analysis indicated that <it>YAO </it>is required for the correct positioning of the first zygotic division plane and plays a critical role in gametogenesis in Arabidopsis. Since YAO is a nucleolar protein and its counterparts in yeast and human are components of the U3 snoRNP complex, we therefore postulate that YAO is most likely involved in rRNA processing in plants as well.</p