Drug-induced liver injury： Is it somehow foreseeable？

The classic view on the pathogenesis of drug-induced liver injury is that the so-called parent compounds are made hepatotoxic by metabolism （formation of neosubstances that react abnormally）, mainly by cytochromes P-450 （CYP）, with further pathways, such as mitochondrial dysfunction and apoptosis, also playing a role. Risk factors for drug-induced liver injury include concomitant hepatic diseases, age and genetic polymorphisms of CYP. However, some susceptibility can today be predicted before drug administration, working on the common substrate, by phenotyping and genotyping studies and by taking in consideration patients＇ health status. Physicians should always think of this adverse effect in the absence of other clear hepatic disease. Ethical and legal problems towards operators in the health care system are always matters to consider.     

Stem cells for end stage liver disease： How far have we got？

End stage liver disease （ESLD） is a health problem worldwide. Liver transplantation is currently the only effective therapy, but its many drawbacks include a shortage of donors, operative damage, risk of rejection and in some cases recidivism of the pre-transplant disease. These factors account for the recent growing interest in regenerative medicine. Experiments have sought to identify an optimal source of stem cells, sufficient to generate large amounts of hepatocytes to be used in bioartificial livers or injected in vivo to repair the diseased organ. This update aims to give non-stem cell specialists an overview of the results obtained to date in this fascinating field of biomedical research.