Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common type of primary liver cancer in adults and is currently the most common cause of death in people with cirrhosis. HCC is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide.
African iron overload, also known as Bantu siderosis or dietary iron overload, is an iron overload disorder first observed among people of African descent in Southern Africa and Central Africa. Dietary iron overload is the consumption of large amount of home-brewed beer with high amount of iron content in it. Preparing beer in iron pots or drums results in high iron content. The iron content in home-brewed beer is around 46–82 mg/l, compared to 0.5 mg/l in commercial beer. Dietary overload was prevalent in both the rural and urban Black African population, with the introduction of commercial beer in urban areas, the condition has decreased. However, the condition is still common in rural areas. Until recently, studies have shown that genetics might play a role in this disorder. Combination of excess iron and functional changes in ferroportin seems to be the probable cause. This disorder can be treated with phlebotomy therapy or iron chelation therapy.
In histopathology, a Mallory body, Mallory-Denk body, and Mallory's hyaline, is an inclusion found in the cytoplasm of liver cells. Mallory bodies are damaged intermediate filaments within the liver cells.
Hepatocellular adenoma is a rare, benign liver tumor. It most commonly occurs in people with elevated systemic levels of estrogen, classically in women taking estrogen-containing oral contraceptive medication.
A liver sinusoid is a type of capillary known as a sinusoidal capillary, discontinuous capillary or sinusoid, that is similar to a fenestrated capillary, having discontinuous endothelium that serves as a location for mixing of the oxygen-rich blood from the hepatic artery and the nutrient-rich blood from the portal vein.
Bilirubin di-glucuronide is a conjugated form of bilirubin formed in bilirubin metabolism. The hydrophilic character of bilirubin diglucuronide enables it to be water-soluble. It is pumped across the hepatic canalicular membrane into the bile by the transporter MRP2.
HNF1 homeobox A, also known as HNF1A, is a human gene on chromosome 12. It is ubiquitously expressed in many tissues and cell types. The protein encoded by this gene is a transcription factor that is highly expressed in the liver and is involved in the regulation of the expression of several liver-specific genes. Mutations in the HNF1A gene have been known to cause diabetes. The HNF1A gene also contains one of 27 SNPs associated with increased risk of coronary artery disease.
Multidrug resistance-associated protein 2 (MRP2) also called canalicular multispecific organic anion transporter 1 (cMOAT) or ATP-binding cassette sub-family C member 2 (ABCC2) is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ABCC2 gene.
Glypican-3 is a protein that, in humans, is encoded by the GPC3 gene. The GPC3 gene is located on human X chromosome (Xq26) where the most common gene encodes a 70-kDa core protein with 580 amino acids. Three variants have been detected that encode alternatively spliced forms termed Isoforms 1 (NP_001158089), Isoform 3 (NP_001158090) and Isoform 4 (NP_001158091).
Canalicular multispecific organic anion transporter 2 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the ABCC3 gene.
Leukocyte cell-derived chemotaxin-2 (LECT2) is a protein first described in 1996 as a chemotactic factor for neutrophils, i.e. it stimulated human neutrophils to move directionally in an in vitro assay system. The protein was detected in and purified from cultures of Phytohaemagglutinin-activated human T-cell leukemia SKW-3 cells. Subsequent studies have defined LECT2 as a hepatokine, i.e. a substance made and released into the circulation by liver hepatocyte cells that regulates the function of other cells: it is a hepatocyte-derived, hormone-like, signaling protein.
cccDNA is a special DNA structure that arises during the propagation of some viruses in the cell nucleus and may remain permanently there. It is a double-stranded DNA that originates in a linear form that is ligated by means of DNA ligase to a covalently closed ring. In most cases, transcription of viral DNA can occur from the circular form only. The cccDNA of viruses is also known as episomal DNA or occasionally as a minichromosome.
miR-122 is a miRNA that is conserved among vertebrate species. miR-122 is not present in invertebrates, and no close paralogs of miR-122 have been detected. miR-122 is highly expressed in the liver, where it has been implicated as a regulator of fatty-acid metabolism in mouse studies. Reduced miR-122 levels are associated with hepatocellular carcinoma. miR-122 also plays an important positive role in the regulation of hepatitis C virus replication.
Forkhead box protein A2 (FOXA2), also known as hepatocyte nuclear factor 3-beta (HNF-3B), is a transcription factor that plays an important role during development, in mature tissues and, when dysregulated or mutated, also in cancer.
Gene HEPACAM*, named based on its original site of identification - hepatocytes and the nature of its protein product - a cell adhesion molecule (CAM), was first discovered and characterised in human liver and reported by Shali Shen in 2005. The gene encodes a protein of 416 amino acids, designated as hepaCAM**, which is a new member of the immunoglobulin superfamily of cell adhesion molecules. The main biological functions of hepaCAM include a) modulating cell-matrix adhesion and migration, and b) inhibiting cancer cell growth.
Cucurbitacin E is a biochemical compound from the family of cucurbitacins. These are found in plants which are member of the family Cucurbitaceae, most of them coming from traditional Chinese medicinal plants, but also in other plants such as pumpkins and gourds.
The NTERA-2 cell line is a clonally derived, pluripotent human embryonal carcinoma cell line.
Hepatocellular carcinoma, down-regulated 1 is a protein that in humans is encoded by the HEPN1 gene.
Liver sinusoidal endothelial cells (LSECs) form the lining of the smallest blood vessels in the liver, also called the hepatic sinusoids. LSECs are highly specialized endothelial cells with characteristic morphology and function. They constitute an important part of the reticuloendothelial system (RES).
