News tagged with hepatitis c
Stem cells could drive hepatitis research forward
Hepatitis C, an infectious disease that can cause inflammation and organ failure, has different effects on different people. But no one is sure why some people are very susceptible to the infection, while ...
Feb 01, 2012 |
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Researchers indentify a cell-permeable peptide that inhibits hepatitis C
Researchers from UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center have identified a cell-permeable peptide that inhibits a hepatitis C virus protein and blocks viral replication, which can lead to liver cancer and cirrhosis.
Jan 31, 2012 |
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Entry point for hepatitis C infection identified
A molecule embedded in the membrane of human liver cells that aids in cholesterol absorption also allows the entry of hepatitis C virus, the first step in hepatitis C infection, according to research at the University of ...
Jan 24, 2012 |
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Combination of oral drugs suppresses common type of hepatitis C
A new combination of investigational drugs successfully suppressed hepatitis C genotype 1 infection in a high percent of patients who had not responded to previous treatment in a study led by a University of Michigan hepatologist.
Jan 19, 2012 |
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Scientists show brain vulnerable to Hepatitis C virus
(Medical Xpress) -- Scientists at the University of Birmingham have demonstrated for the first time that human brain cells can become infected with the Hepatitis C virus (HCV), it is reported today.
Jan 18, 2012 |
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Researchers identify potential new therapy approach for hepatitis C
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have found a new way to block infection from the hepatitis C virus (HCV) in the liver that could lead to new therapies for those affected by this and other infectious diseases.
Jan 16, 2012 |
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New fibrosis classification improves accuracy of diagnosis in hepatitis C
A new classification for diagnosing fibrosis in patients with chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) has shown to be as accurate as currently used algorithms, but required no further liver biopsy. The study appearing in the January ...
Jan 10, 2012 |
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High rates of disability and health care use for older Americans with cirrhosis
New research shows that older Americans with cirrhosis have significantly worse health status and greater functional disability compared to those without this potentially deadly disease. In fact, findings now published in ...
Jan 10, 2012 |
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Bristol-Myers Squibb to buy Inhibitex for $2.5 billion
Pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers Squibb Company announced it was acquiring Inhibitex, Inc., a company specializing in treatment of hepatitis C, for $2.5 billion (1.9 billion euros).
Medicine & Health / Medications
Jan 08, 2012 |
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First trial of a new hepatitis C vaccine shows promise
(Medical Xpress) -- A new vaccine against the chronic liver disease hepatitis C has shown promising results in a first clinical trial in humans, Oxford University researchers report.
Jan 05, 2012 |
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No more free rides for 'piggy-backing' viruses
Scientists have determined the structure of the enzyme endomannosidase, significantly advancing our understanding of how a group of devastating human viruses including HIV and Hepatitis C hijack human enzymes to reproduce ...
Jan 04, 2012 |
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Studies identify risk factors in rising trend of liver cancer
Doctors have known for years that the incidence of deadly liver cancer is on the rise, but what is causing that trend has remained a mystery. Two recent Mayo Clinic studies published in the January issue of Mayo Clinic Pr ...
Jan 03, 2012 |
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Hepatitis C virus survives by hijacking liver microRNA: study
Viral diseases are still one of the biggest challenges to medical science. Thanks to thousands of years of co-evolution with humans, their ability to harness the biology of their human hosts to survive and thrive makes them ...
Jan 02, 2012 |
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Genetic diversity: Crucial for our survival in many ways
(Medical Xpress) -- Thanks to the sequencing of the 27 known human interferon genes, researchers from the Institut Pasteur and the CNRS reconstruct the genetic history of these proteins so central for our immune system, and ...
Dec 20, 2011 |
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'Pep talk' can revive immune cells exhausted by chronic viral infection
Chronic infections by viruses such as HIV or hepatitis C eventually take hold because they wear the immune system out, a phenomenon immunologists describe as exhaustion.
Dec 13, 2011 |
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Hepatitis C
Hepatitis C is an infectious disease affecting the liver, caused by the hepatitis C virus (HCV). The infection is often asymptomatic, but once established, chronic infection can progress to scarring of the liver (fibrosis), and advanced scarring (cirrhosis) which is generally apparent after many years. In some cases, those with cirrhosis will go on to develop liver failure or other complications of cirrhosis, including liver cancer.
The hepatitis C virus (HCV) is spread by blood-to-blood contact. Most people have few, if any symptoms after the initial infection, yet the virus persists in the liver in about 85% of those infected. Persistent infection can be treated with medication, peginterferon and ribavirin being the standard-of-care therapy. Only 51% are cured overall. Those who develop cirrhosis or liver cancer may require a liver transplant, and the virus universally recurs after transplantation.
An estimated 270-300 million people worldwide are infected with hepatitis C. Hepatitis C is a strictly human disease. It cannot be contracted from or given to any animal. Chimpanzees can be infected with the virus in the laboratory, but do not develop the disease, which has made research more difficult. No vaccine against hepatitis C is available. The existence of hepatitis C (originally "non-A non-B hepatitis") was postulated in the 1970s and proved conclusively in 1989. It is one of five known hepatitis viruses: A, B, C, D, and E.
For more information about Hepatitis C, read the full article at
Wikipedia.
This text uses material from Wikipedia and is available under the GNU Free Documentation License.
