Related topics: liver disease , hepatitis , hepatitis c virus , virus , liver transplantation
Hepatitis C
hideHepatitis 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.
News tagged with hepatitis c
New Biomarker Predicts Response to Hepatitis C Treatment
Aug 16, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers have identified the first genetic marker that predicts response to hepatitis C treatments, and a single letter of DNA code appears to make a huge difference. Duke University Medical Center scientists ...
Researchers decode structure of an entire HIV genome
Medicine & Health / HIV & AIDS
Aug 05, 2009 |
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The structure of an entire HIV genome has been decoded for the first time by researchers at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The results have widespread implications for understanding the strategies ...
Multitasking may be Achilles heel for hepatitis C
Nov 23, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Hepatitis C, a formidable virus that affects 130 million people worldwide, is nursing some pretty impressive bruises. By knocking out sections and subsections of one of its proteins, scientists reveal weak ...
A Twist in the Genome Thwarts Hepatitis C
Sep 30, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Viruses like Hepatitis C proliferate by tricking cellular machinery into manufacturing the parts for duplicate viral particles.
New images capture cell's ribosomes at work, could aid in molecular war against disease
Aug 20, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, have for the first time captured elusive nanoscale movements of ribosomes at work, shedding light on how these cellular factories take ...
Hepatitis C virus channels efforts into cell survival
Aug 17, 2009 |
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Researchers at the University of Leeds have discovered a previously unknown mechanism that allows the hepatitis C virus (HCV) to remain in the body for decades.
The hepatitis healing power of blueberry leaves
Aug 07, 2009 |
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A chemical found in blueberry leaves has shown a strong effect in blocking the replication of the Hepatitis C virus, opening up a new avenue for treating chronic HCV infections, which affect 200 million people worldwide and ...
First human gets new antibody aimed at hepatitis C virus
Aug 06, 2009 |
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Building upon a series of successful preclinical studies, researchers at MassBiologics of the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) today announced the beginning of a Phase 1 clinical trial, testing the safety ...
Hepatitis C: No overall difference in sustained viral response in most widely used treatments
Jul 22, 2009 |
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Findings from the largest study to date comparing the efficacy of competing treatments for chronic hepatitis C infection (HCV) show that the regimens are similar when it comes to safety and their ability to provoke long-term ...
Researchers show new antioxidant could help treat cardiovascular disease
Jun 29, 2009 |
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(PhysOrg.com) -- Researchers at the University of Glasgow believe they have found a potential new treatment for cardiovascular disease which reduces blood pressure.
Chronic Infection Now Clearly Tied to Immune-System Protein
Jun 13, 2009 |
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The reason deadly infections like human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and hepatitis C never go away is because these viruses disarm the body’s defense system. Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) have ...
NEJM study points to new era in hepatitis C treatment
Jun 05, 2009 |
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For patients with the most common form of hepatitis C, the addition of a hepatitis C-specific protease inhibitor called telaprevir to the current standard therapy can significantly improve the chances of being cured, and ...
Immune exhaustion driven by antigen in chronic viral infection
May 13, 2009 |
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A main reason why viruses such as HIV or hepatitis C persist despite a vigorous initial immune response is exhaustion. The T cells, or white blood cells, fighting a chronic infection eventually wear out.
Novel antibody prevents infection by hepatitis C virus
May 05, 2009 |
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Taking aim at a leading cause of liver failure in the United States, a team of scientists at the Massachusetts Biologic Laboratories (MBL) of the University of Massachusetts Medical School (UMMS) has developed a human monoclonal ...
Study: Patients with resolved hepatitis C likely still contagious
May 04, 2009 |
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Patients with chronic hepatitis C that has been resolved through therapy or immune response may still be able to infect others with the virus. That finding is from a new study in the May issue of Hepatology, a journal publis ...
