The liver is the most frequently injured organ following exposure to drugs, while it is also an organ with the capability to regenerate and undergo repair after injury. Numerous fundamental questions remain to be answered for understanding the impact of liver injury and repair on drug metabolism, including (1) what molecular mechanisms are involved in liver injury and regeneration, (2) what key co-factors cause liver injury, (3) how susceptibility to liver injury can be caused by certain compounds and their metabolites, (4) how novel clinical biomarkers for indication of liver injury can be identified, (5) how novel strategies for the treatment of liver injury can be developed, (6) what consequence on liver’s capability to metabolize drugs under liver injury condition can happen, and (7) what novel roles of epigenetics, such as long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) can be found in susceptibility of drug-induced liver injury (DILI).

The special section of “Drug Metabolism in Liver Injury and Regeneration” found in Drug Metabolism and Disposition May 2022 (50/5) issue addresses these fundamental questions by Dr. Huichang Bi, the 2021 Okita Award recipient, and her former mentors or collaborators. All content in the special section is freely accessible through December 2022.