Scientists make human blood protein from rice

Scientists at a Chinese university said Monday they can use rice to make albumin, a protein found in human blood that is often used for treating burns, traumatic shock and liver disease.

Target 'super-spreaders' to stop hepatitis C

Each intravenous drug user contracting Hepatitis C is likely to infect around 20 other people with the virus, half of these transmissions occurring in the first two years after the user is first infected, a new study estimates.

Scientists develop new compound that reverses fatty liver disease

(Phys.org)—Scientists from the Florida campus of The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) have developed the first synthetic compound that can reverse the effects of a serious metabolic condition known as fatty liver disease. ...

Extremophile Yields a Key Cog in Life's Protein Factory

(PhysOrg.com) -- Peering at single molecules within an organism that makes its home near thermal vents, Yale University scientists have discovered the structure of a key player in the creation of protein-making factories ...

Hepatitis B: Unusual virus discovered in shrews

The discovery of an unusual hepatitis B virus from shrews offers new opportunities of better understanding the chronic progression of the disease. International research teams were able to demonstrate that an important protein ...

Cirrhosis

Cirrhosis is a consequence of chronic liver disease characterized by replacement of liver tissue by fibrous scar tissue as well as regenerative nodules (lumps that occur as a result of a process in which damaged tissue is regenerated), leading to progressive loss of liver function. Cirrhosis is most commonly caused by alcoholism, hepatitis B and C, and fatty liver disease but has many other possible causes. Some cases are idiopathic, i.e., of unknown cause.

Ascites (fluid retention in the abdominal cavity) is the most common complication of cirrhosis and is associated with a poor quality of life, increased risk of infection, and a poor long-term outcome. Other potentially life-threatening complications are hepatic encephalopathy (confusion and coma) and bleeding from esophageal varices. Cirrhosis is generally irreversible once it occurs, and treatment generally focuses on preventing progression and complications. In advanced stages of cirrhosis the only option is a liver transplant.

The word "cirrhosis" derives from Greek κίρῥος, meaning tawny (the orange-yellow colour of the diseased liver). While the clinical entity was known before, it was René Laennec who gave it the name "cirrhosis" in his 1819 work in which he also describes the stethoscope.

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