This book, the proceedings of the Falk Syposium No. 139 on "Gallstones: Pathogenesis and Treatment", held in Freiburg, Germany, on January 15-16, 2004, reflects the tremendous advances in the field of biliary diseases both at the genetic and cellular as well as the clinical levels. In industrialized countries, gallstones are a frequent clinical entity with a prevalence of 10-15%. In clinical practice one can differentiate between cholesterol stones, black pigment stones and brown pigment stones. 80-90% of gallbladder stones are cholesterol stones, 10--20% are black pigment stones. The prevalence of cholesterol stones increases with age and in Europe in the 70+ age group reaches about 20% in males and about 30% in females. Gallstones and gallstone diseases, therefore, are a frequent and important clinical problem. The book addresses the basic aspects of gallstone pathogenesis as well as the non-surgical and surgical treatment of gallstone diseases. Of particular interest are the epidemiology and genetics of gallstone formation, with definition of risk factors, in particular of genetic predispositions. Other major aspects are the hepatocellular and bilary transport mechanisms that predispose to the formation of gallstones. Apart from cholesterol and lipid transport and absorption, gallbladder function plays a central role in gallstone formation. Another clinically very relevant topic is the treatment of gallstone diseases by drugs, endoscopic and other non-surgical interventions, and surgery, as well as the long-term outcome of therapeutic interventions. The volume concludes with a state-of-the-art chapter on "Gallstone Research in the Post-Genomic Era". Gallstones: Pathogenesis and Treatment is an excellent update on the pathogenesis of gallstones as well as on the treatment of gallstone diseases, written by an international faculty of outstanding clinicans and scientists. The book will, therefore, be of great interest to hepatologists and gastroenterologists in academic institutions as well as in clinical practice.

This book is the proceedings of the Falk Symposium No. 138 on "State of the Art of Hepatology: Molecular and Cell Biology" (part of the XII International Falk Liver Week 2003 in honour of Hans Poppera (TM)s 100th birthday, held on October 20--11, 2003), and reflects the tremendous advances in the science of hepatology both at the molecular as well as the cellular level.

The book comprises four major sections. In Section I, the basic aspects of liver cell biology are covered, including RNA metabolism, regeneration, transport and metabolic functions, as well as fibrogenesis and malignant transformation. In Section II, the novel field of stem cell plasticity and cell therapy for liver diseases is discussed in detail, including stem cell biology, hepatocyte transdifferentiation from extrahepatic stem cells and their therapeutic use for liver cell repopulation, as well as hepatocyte transplantation. In Section III, novel therapeutic strategies for liver cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma are presented, including the reversal of liver fibrosis, oncolytic biotherapy and different concepts of gene therapy for hepatocellular carcinoma. In Section IV, novel aspects of gene therapy and prevention of liver diseases are addressed, including small interfering RNAs, ribozymes, antisense oligonucleotides, as well as DNA vaccination.

An international faculty of outstanding scientists from different research areas presents the state of the art on these most important aspects of hepatology and their perspectives for future developments. Molecular and cell biology are at the very centre of research developments in modern hepatology and are of interest and importance to both basic scientists aswell as clinicians involved in patient care.

This book is the proceedings of the Falk Symposium No. 137 on "Liver Diseases: Advances in Treatment and Prevention" (part of the XII International Falk Liver Week 2003 in honour of Hans Poppera (TM)s 100th birthday, held on October 17-19, 2003). It covers our present knowledge of the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of liver diseases, including hepatitis B, hepatitis C and delta hepatitis as well as alcoholic liver diseases, non-alcoholic steatohepatitis and the hereditary liver diseases haemochromatosis, Wilsona (TM)s disease and alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency. In addition to these clinical entities, the sequelae of liver cirrhosis and its complications, including the clinical management of ascites, the hepatorenal as well as the hepato- and porto-pulmonary hypertension syndrome are discussed. New developments with respect to liver support systems and liver transplantation are further highlights of the proceedings.

The main topics mentioned above are complemented by state-of-the-art chapters on "Hepatocellular Carcinoma," "Emerging Hepatitis Viruses" and "Fulminant Liver Failure" that are of interest to both basic scientists as well as clinicians. A special section is devoted to "Liver Histology" as a tribute to Hans Popper who contributed eminently to the basic and clinical aspects of hepatology.

All in all, Liver Diseases: Advances in Treatment and Prevention provides an exciting overview of the current developments in the treatment and prevention of viral, alcoholic, non-alcoholic and hereditary liver diseases, presented by an international faculty of outstanding scientists and clinicians.

Liver cirrhosis is a major clinical problem worldwide and is associated with significant morbidity and mortality from its complications, such as liver cell insufficiency with coagulopathy and hepatic encephalopathy, portal hypertension with ascites and gastrointestinal bleeding, hepatorenal syndrome, HCC development and others. This volume, the proceedings of Falk Symposium 115 held in Basel, Switzerland, October 22-24, 1999 (Part II of the Basel Liver Week 1999; XI International Congress of Liver Diseases) covers our present knowledge of the aetiologies and early stages of liver cirrhosis development. Based on this information, strategies are discussed that are aimed at the prevention, early diagnosis and therapy of chronic liver diseases, thus preventing their progression to cirrhosis and its complications, including HCC development. The main topics mentioned above are complemented by three state-of-the-art chapters on modern aspects of medicine in general and hepatology in particular as well as their perspectives beyond the year 2000: `Molecular Medicine', `New Hepatitis Viruses' and `Genetic Liver Diseases: Diagnosis and Therapy'. Introductory chapters focusing on the more basic aspects of the biology of live cells as well as on the mechanisms underlying fibrogenesis, cholestasis and inflammation will be followed by a detailed discussion of the clinically most important causes of liver cirrhosis worldwide: hepatitis viruses B, C and D; toxins (alcohol, drugs and others) as well as metabolic liver diseases (haemochromatosis, Wilson disease, alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency, porphyria cutanea tarda and protoporphyria). This book, therefore, will interest clinically oriented basic scientists as well as those in clinical practice, givng an update on many aspects of modern hepatology and its perspectives in the next millennium.

This book, the proceedings of Falk Symposium 100, Gut and the Liver', held in Freiburg, Germany, 29-31 May 1997, comprehensively reviews the physiological and pathophysiological interactions between the intestine and the liver as well as between intestinal and hepatic diseases. Apart from the basic aspects of the intestinal microflora and the immune system of the gut, gastrointestinal permeability and translocation as well as the contribution of the intestine and the intestinal bacteria to the metabolism of bile acids, amino acids and drugs are discussed. In addition, experimental as well as clinical data demonstrating the significance of gut-derived bacterial toxins for the development of liver diseases and the effect of liver diseases on gastrointestinal functions are discussed. The major aim of this book, therefore, is to highlight the interactions between gut and liver at the molecular level as well as in clinical disease.

The advent of molecular biology and recombinant DNA technology has profoundly changed contemporary medicine. These new scientific tools have made it possible to identify and understand pathological mechanisms at cellular, subcellular and molecular levels which has added previously unimaginable novel dimensions to the diagnosis, therapy and prevention of a rapidly increasing number of diseases of the liver and biliary system. The title of this book - Acute and Chronic Liver Diseases: Molecular Biology and Clinics - expresses this epochal progress in hepatology. A series of acute or chronic diseases of the liver has been chosen whose modern clinical management most eloquently reflects the impact of the new scientific insight gained from molecular biology. The book, the proceedings of the 87th Falk Symposium (X International Congress of Liver Diseases: Part II of the Basel Liver Week 1995) held in Basel, Switzerland, October 19-21, 1995, first presents an overview of the molecular pathology of the chosen disease, followed by discussions of the clinical inference which this new scientific information entails for diagnosis, management and therapy. This approach is expected to ease the readers' endeavour to connect basic to clinical science and to facilitate appreciation of the enormous progress but also the inherent limitations and arising questions which modern molecular biology has brought to clinical medicine.

This book is the proceedings of the Falk Symposium No.156 on ?Genetics in Liver Disease?, part of the XIII International Liver Week 2006 held in Freiburg, Germany, 7 October 2006. The first section covers the basic aspects of genetic diagnosis, pharmacogenetics, micro-arrays and their relevance for liver diseases, including viral hepatitis, hepatocellular carcinoma, and gallstone diseases. In the second section, the most important hereditary liver diseases are discussed, including haemchromatosis, Wilson disease, alpha-1-antitrypsin deficiency, porphyrias and cystic fibrosis. In the third section, the genetics of cholestatic and metabolic liver diseases as well as the current status of experimental and clinical studies of gene therapy for liver diseases and stem cell transplantation are presented. Each section starts with a State-of-the-Art Lecture which introduces the topic. In the tradition of the Falk Symposia, this book provides an exciting overview of the current developments in the field of genetics of liver diseases, their diagnosis, treatment and prevention, presented by an international array of outstanding scientists and clinicians.

Molecular diagnosis and gene therapy are of increasing interest and importance in clinical medicine. The increasing understanding of the pathogenesis of human diseases at the molecular level opens new perspectives for their diagnosis, prevention and therapy. The first part of this book, the proceedings of Falk Symposium No. 88 'Molecular Diagnosis and Gene Therapy', held in Basel, Switzerland, October 22-23, 1995, is aimed at an in-depth understanding of the methodology of molecular diagnosis by hybridization analysis, polymerase chain reaction and others. Further, the applications and limitations of these technologies in clinical medicine for the detection of genetic, malignant and infectious diseases are reviewed. In the second part of the book, the basic strategies of gene therapy are presented, including gene transfer and targeting. Further, experimental and clinical applications of gene therapy strategies for the prevention and treatment of hepatic and other diseases are presented. Molecular diagnosis and gene therapy are clearly going to be key elements of clinical medicine after the year 2000. In this sense, the book should allow basic scientists as well as clinicians to be informed about the state-of-the-art of molecular diagnosis and gene therapy and should provide a perspective for future developments in molecular medicine.