The Role Of Endocannabinoids In Chronic Hepatitis C
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$563,002.00
Summary
Hormones related to cannabis help to regulate fat stores in the human body. CB1 antagonists are a new class of drugs that block these hormones and are being tested for the treatment of obesity and fatty liver. We discovered that Hepatitis C makes the liver more sensitive to these hormones, helping the hepatitis C virus to replicate. This project will determine the mechanisms by which CB1 antagonists prevent hepatitis C virus replication and their potential as a novel therapy for this disease.
Hepatitis C affects a quarter of a million Australians, causing insidious but progressive liver disease which culminates in liver failure or cancer. There is no vaccine and prevention programs have limited effectiveness, but new antiviral therapies now offer high rates of cure. This Program will evaluate strategies to improve the health of those affected and prevent new infections by better understanding of the virus and the body’s immune response, including scarring and liver cancer formation.
Determinants Of Sustained Virological Response After Discontinuation Of Long-term Nucleoside Analogue Therapy In Chronic Hepatitis B Patients
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$976,778.00
Summary
Guidelines currently recommend lifelong treatment for patients with chronic hepatitis B, with associated cost and risks of drug resistance and side effects. It has recently been suggested that up to 50% of patients may safely and successfully stop drug after long-term treatment. Our project will identify which patients can safely stop treatment, by performing detailed studies of the human immune system and the hepatitis B virus. This will be an important advance for patient care.
Virological Determinants Of Drug Resistance In Real-world Patients With Chronic HCV Infection
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$550,718.00
Summary
New treatments for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection are emerging. These drugs directly target key events in the viral life cycle. While these drugs are effective, the ability of HCV to mutate means that drug resistance can arise, leading to treatment failure. This is most likely in patients who do not respond to interferon-based therapy. This proposal will use new, highly sensitive sequencing approaches to identify the viral mutations and evolutionary pathways that lead to drug resistance.
This Practitioner Fellowship will support studies that will contribute directly to the efforts to eliminate HCV infection from Australia. The research program aims to reduce transmission of HCV infection by evaluating the best models of care for i) engaging and treating high risk individuals with HCV infection, including people who inject drugs and prisoners, ii) preventing reinfection with HCV, and iii) re-treatment of individuals who fail treatment due to drug resistance.