AIM To examine hepatitis C in hepatocellular carcinoma in most endemic area, Guangxi, China.METHODS Immunochemistry was performed on formalin fixed, paraffin embedded tissue sections. A total202 specimens were analysed from the high, intermediate and low HCC prevalent regions of Guangxi.RESULTS The distribution of positive hepatitis C cases from high, intermediate and low regions wasrespectively 24/63 (38%), 23/62 (37%) and 30/77 (39%), with a total of 77/202 (38.12%).CONCLUSION Hepatitis C virus is an important risk factor in the development of hepatocellularcarcinoma, but the regional difference in prevalence of this cancer is more likely influenced by hepatitis Bviral infection and aflatoxin B1 exposure. In Guangxi, infection of hepatitis B and C virus in thedevelopment of hepatocellular carcinoma may be greatly enhanced by exposure to aflatoxin.

AIM To evaluale the potential role of P-selectin and anti-P-selectin monoclonal antibody (mAb) in apoptosis during hepatic/renal ischemiareperfusion injury.METHODS Plasma P-selectin level, hepatic/renal P-selectin expression and cell apoptosis were detected in rat model of hepatic/ renal ischemia-reperfusion injury. ELISA, immunohistochemistry and TUNEL were used. Some ischemia-reperfusion rats were treated with antiP-selectin mAb.RESULTS Hepatic/ renal function insufficiency, up-regulated expression of P-selectin in plasma and hepatic/renal tissue, hepatic/renal histopathological damages and cell apoptosis were found in rats with hepatic/renal ischemiareperfusion injury, while these changes became less conspicuous in animals treated with anti-Pselectin mAb.CONCLUSION P-selectin might mediate neutrophil infiltration and cell apoptosis and contribute to hepatic/renal ischemia-reperfusion injury, anti-P-selectin mAb might be an efficient approach for the prevention and treatment of hepatic/renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Since the approval of rituximab in 1997, monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) have become an increasingly important component of therapeutic regimens in oncology. hTe success of mAbs as a therapeutic class is a result of great strides that have been made in molecular biology and in biotechnology over the past several decades. Currently, there are 14 approved mAb products for oncology indications, and there are ten additional mAbs in late stages of clinical trials. Compared to traditional chemotherapeutic agents, mAbs have several advantages, including a long circulating half-life and high target speciifcity. Antibodies can serve as cytotoxic agents when administered alone, exerting a pharmacologic effect through several mechanisms involving the antigen binding (Fab) and/or Fc domains of the molecule, and mAbs may also be utilized as drug carriers, targeting a toxic payload to cancer cells. hTe extremely high affnity of mAbs for their targets, which is desirable with respect to pharmacodynamics (i.e., contributing to the high therapeutic selectivity of mAb), otfen leads to complex, non-linear, target-mediated pharmacokinetics. In this report, we summarize the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamics of mAbs that have been approved and of mAbs that are nearing approval for oncology indications, with particular focus on the molecular and cellular mechanisms responsible for their disposition and effcacy.