The LEC strain of rats, which spontaneously develop acute hepatitis as sociated with jaundice, chronic hepatitis, and ultimately hepatocellular carcinomas, was established by scientists in Sapporo, Japan. Careful ob servation and breeding led to the initial discovery of this characteristic, inherited liver disease in rats. Subsequent collaboration between scientists in Sapporo and other centers has revealed an autosomal recessive nature of inheritance, along with a variety of histopathological and biochemical findings. The causative mechanism(s) underlying this abnormality remained a mystery...