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SLU Liver Center to study effectiveness of tenofovir in treating hepatitis B

Saint Louis University School of Medicine researchers are studying the effectiveness of a drug for patients with chronic hepatitis B that is currently used to treat HIV.

3 May 2006

Saint Louis University hunt for a Hepatitis C vaccine

Human clinical trials involving investigational vaccines to prevent Hepatitis C are rare. In the fall of 2003 there was a first-ever study at Saint Louis University Center for Vaccine Development, and an earlier small study at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

3 May 2006

Progressive histological damage in liver allografts following pediatric liver transplantation

A new study on the long-term outcome of children undergoing liver transplants found that chronic hepatitis (CH) was common and that it was not detectible using standard blood tests.

3 May 2006

Elevated serum alanine aminotransferase activity and calculated risk of coronary heart disease in the U.S.

A new study on the relationship between nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and heart disease found that patients with an elevated level of the enzyme associated with NAFLD had an increased risk of coronary heart disease, which appears to be related to insulin resistance, obesity and central fat distribution.

3 May 2006

Outcome of patients with hepatitis B and HIV infections referred for liver transplantation

A new study on HIV patients who also had Hepatitis B virus (HBV) found that better outcomes are possible if they are referred early for transplant and treated with a combination of drugs for HBV. It is essential to monitor the HBV status of these patients, however, in order to control the emergence of drug-resistant HBV infection.

3 May 2006

$1.5 billion needed to cover years supply of pediatric vaccines

A six-month stockpile of recommended pediatric vaccines would cost $1 billion and could cover more than 90 percent of U.S. children during a six-month interruption in production, say researchers at two Illinois universities.

19 Apr 2006

Similarities and differences in outcomes of cirrhosis due to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis and hepatitis C

Cirrhosis related to non-alcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) is associated with fewer complications and a lower mortality compared to cirrhosis from hepatitis C, despite NASH patients' greater risk of dying from cardiovascular events.

11 Apr 2006

New approach to treating hepatitis C virus

Last year Peter Sarnow, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, identified a previously unknown mechanism that the hepatitis C virus uses to replicate, yielding a promising new approach to combating the disease-causing virus.

10 Apr 2006

Intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy as an indicator of liver and biliary diseases

A retrospective case-control study of 21,008 women in Finland has found that those with intrahepatic cholestasis of pregnancy (ICP), an itchy skin condition when bile gets backed up in the liver, are significantly more likely to suffer other liver diseases later in life.

7 Apr 2006

Radiofrequency ablation is as effective as surgery for small liver tumors

Three-year data shows that radiofrequency ablation is as effective as surgical resection for overall survival and tumor recurrence, for the treatment of single small hepatocellular carcinoma in patients with liver cirrhosis, according to a study presented at the Society of Interventional Radiology's 31st Annual Scientific Meeting.

4 Apr 2006

Dysregulation of the Hedgehog pathway in human hepatocarcinogenesis

The unchecked activity of a cell signaling pathway crucial in embryonic development and the liver's response to injury leads to liver cancer, researchers from Duke University Medical Center and John Hopkins University School of Medicine have found.

4 Apr 2006

New clinical trial to test different strengths of a vaccine designed to fight avian influenza

The Duke study is part of a multicenter trial that will test a modified form of an investigational bird flu vaccine to determine whether the vaccine still triggers a strong immune response at lower doses.

4 Apr 2006

Study on fruit flies offers new approach to understand human response to viral infections

A research team led by UC Riverside scientists has shown that the common fruit fly can serve as an excellent model for studying the immunity animals are born with for fighting viral infections.

28 Mar 2006

Ocean Vesivirus found in human blood samples

A virus of ocean origin that can cause a range of diseases in several animal species has been found in human blood samples. The virus, or antibodies to it, was found most often in the blood of individuals with liver damage, or hepatitis of unknown cause related to blood exposure.

28 Mar 2006

It's time for Britain to adopt universal hepatitis B immunisation

The United Kingdom is one of the few developed countries that have not implemented universal immunisation. Instead, it follows a policy of selective immunisation of high-risk groups, and screening all women attending antenatal clinics.

27 Mar 2006

MedMira files patent for OTC testing system

MedMira has announced today that it has filed a provisional patent application for a system which enables over-the-counter (OTC) home testing and diagnosis of infectious diseases, such as HIV, hepatitis C, and other medical conditions.

23 Mar 2006

New vaccines will protect against cancer

The leading cancer charity in Britain is predicting that thousands of cancers will be prevented every year as specific vaccines are developed.

13 Mar 2006

Breakthrough in fast, disposable DNA testing

Thermal Gradient announced today that it has successfully developed a 30-cycle PCR device that can amplify DNA in just 4.4 minutes, far faster than anything available in the marketplace.

9 Mar 2006

New hepatitis drug much more effective

Chronic infection with the hepatitis B virus (HBV) is responsible for an enormous burden of disease throughout the world, including up to half of all cases of cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, and hepatocellular carcinoma, a cancer of the liver.

9 Mar 2006

Prison Hepatitis program shows promise in limiting spread of HCV

In an article published in the Journal of Correctional Health Care, researchers from the National Development and Research Institutes, Inc. (NDRI) reported on an evaluation of an intervention program within a prison system addressing Hepatitis C virus (HCV).

6 Mar 2006