Subject: [GIWorld-Hepatitis] BBC:


> BBC: Hepatitis C drug breakthrough
>
> Hepatitis C is a blood borne disease
> New drugs to fight hepatitis C reduce the virus to nearly
undetectable
> levels in a matter of days, according to scientists.
>
> Clinical trials are currently under way to examine the effects of
> these new drugs on patients with the virus.
>
> But tests carried out in the United States suggest they will have a
> dramatic impact on the health of people with hepatitis C.
>
> They belong to a class of drugs called protease inhibitors, which
have
> been used to treat patients with HIV.
>
> The drugs work by blocking a part of the virus called the protease
enzyme.
>
> With the protease enzyme blocked, hepatitis C makes copies of the
> virus that are defective and cannot infect new cells.
>
> Major benefits
>
> But scientists at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical
Center
> in Dallas have found these types of drugs have other major
properties.
>
> They have discovered the drugs stop hepatitis C from suppressing
the
> immune system.
>
> This in turn enables the body to fight back using its own natural
> defences.
>
> They have also found the impact is swift. Virus levels are reduced
> within days.
>
> "We found that the new protease inhibitors could actually prevent
the
> virus from blocking this immune response and basically restore the
> innate antiviral response in human cells," said Dr Michael Gale,
> assistant professor of microbiology at UT Southwestern.
>
> The findings will offer hope to thousands of people with hepatitis
C
> around the world.
>
> At present, 85% of those who are infected with hepatitis C develop
> chronic infections that are not responsive to drugs.
>
> Around 70% of these go on to develop liver cancer and nearly 3% of
> those with long-term infections die of related illnesses.
>
> There is currently no cure for hepatitis C although a number of
> companies are working on potential vaccines.
>
> The virus is found in the blood and can be passed on by intravenous
> drug users who share needles, from contaminated blood products and
> sexual contact.
>
> Doctors at the University of Texas Medical Branch which has a major
> hepatitis research centre welcomed the findings.
>
> Its dean of medicine Dr Stanley Lemon said: "These new findings
with
> hepatitis C virus suggest that protease inhibitors will become an
> important addition to existing interferon treatments for hepatitis
C
> and that they will have equal if not greater impact on the
treatment
> of this important form of liver disease."
>
> The study is published on the website Science Express.