Hepatitis A News and Research

RSS

Hepatitis A (formerly known as ''infectious hepatitis'') is an acute infectious disease of the liver caused by the hepatitis A virus (HAV), which is most commonly transmitted by the fecal-oral route via contaminated food or drinking water.

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

Emerging infectious agents pose new risks for people with bleeding disorders

An international team of scientists, including a hematologist from Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, has concluded that people with bleeding disorders such as hemophilia remain at risk from emerging infectious agents in plasma and blood transfusions. For this reason, recombinant therapies, that is, those produced in the laboratory, must always be an option

16 Feb 2006

Lamivudine helps avoid Hepatitis B relapse during chemotherapy

A new study on treating hepatitis B patients who have cancer with an antiviral drug at the same time as they undergo chemotherapy found that the treatment helped prevent relapse of hepatitis B.

12 Feb 2006

Discovery of the molecular mechanism that inhibits HCV replication in vitro

Since its discovery several decades ago, the insidious human pathogen has stymied the quest for anti-viral therapies by refusing to reproduce in test tubes for more than a few hours or days, denying scientists an efficient virus production and infection system for experimental research.

7 Feb 2006

FDA grants fast track status for ViroPharma's Maribavir

ViroPharma Incorporated has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted fast track designation for maribavir, an oral antiviral drug candidate for the prevention of cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection in allogeneic bone marrow (stem cell) and solid organ transplant patients.

7 Feb 2006

Call for public health intervention to treat young injection drug users infected with the hepatitis C virus

In a recent study published in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases, scientists from New York City, Baltimore, Seattle, and San Diego called for an immediate public health intervention to treat young injection drug users infected with the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

7 Feb 2006

Hepatitis C recurs rapidly after liver transplant

When a diseased liver is removed from a patient with Hepatitis C (HCV), serum viral levels plummet. However, after receiving a healthy liver transplant, virus levels rebound and can surpass pre-transplant levels within a few days, according to a new study published in the February 2006 issue of Liver Transplantation, the official journal of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) and the International Liver Transplantation Society (ILTS).

2 Feb 2006

Researchers use new approach to 'break the code' for liver cancer test

Scientists at Birmingham University are using cutting edge technologies to move closer to a blood test that will improve early diagnosis of liver cancer in high risk groups, according to research published in the British Journal of Cancer.

25 Jan 2006

Sirna Therapeutics awarded patent covering large-scale synthesis of RNAi-based therapeutics

Sirna Therapeutics has announced that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has granted Sirna U.S. Patent No. 6,989,442 for the chemical synthesis and manufacturing of ribonucleic acids (RNA).

25 Jan 2006