Antiviral treatment for chronic hepatitis B

An updated review of the antiviral agents currently available or under trial for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B is presented. There are two broad groups: (1) immunomodulators including interferon α (which also has a direct antiviral effect), thymosin α1 and Theradigm-HBV and (2) viral suppressors such as famciclovir and lamivudine. These agents are still in clinical trial worldwide, singly or in combination. Their long term efficacy in the treatment of hepatitis B remains to be evaluated.published_or_final_versio

Hepatitis B virus with primary resistance to adefovir [11]

Correspondencepublished_or_final_versio

An update on hepatocarcinogenesis

Hepatocellular carcinoma is the most common cancer occurring in males in the world and has an annual incidence worldwide of 1 million. There are variations in its geographical distribution. It is the second most common cancer in Southeast Asia, including Hong Kong and ranks third among males in China.published_or_final_versio

Spreading-Resistance Temperature Sensor on SOI

A Spreading-Resistance Temperature (SRT) sensor is fabricated on silicon-on-insulator (SOI) wafer and achieves characteristics comparable with similar SRT sensor on silicon wafer. This sensor structure can be potentially used in integrated sensors operating at temperatures up to 350 °C.published_or_final_versio

Updates in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B

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Effects of wet N 2O oxidation on interface properties of 6H-SiC MOS capacitors

Oxynitrides were grown on n- and p-type 6H-SiC by wet N 2O oxidation (bubbling N 2O gas through deionized water at 95°C) or dry N 2O oxidation followed by wet N 2O oxidation. Their oxide/SiC interfaces were investigated for fresh and stressed devices. It was found that both processes improve p-SiC/oxide but deteriorate n-SiC/oxide interface properties when compared to dry N 2O oxidation alone. The involved mechanism could be enhanced removal of unwanted carbon compounds near the interface due to the wet ambient, and hence a reduction of donor-like interface states for the p-type devices. As for the n-type devices, incorporation of hydrogen-related species near the interface under the wet ambient increase acceptor-like interface states. In summary, the wet N 2O oxidation can be used for providing comparable reliability for n- and p-SiC MOS devices, and especially obtaining high-quality oxide-SiC interface in p-type MOS devices.published_or_final_versio

The natural history of chronic hepatitis B infection

Chronic hepatitis B infection is a global health problem that affects about 300 million people. Of these, 75% are Chinese. Most Chinese who become chronic carriers, contract the virus during the perinatal period. The natural history of these chronic hepatitis B carriers includes an initial immune tolerance phase, followed by immune clearance and an inactive hepatitis B non-replicative phase with the development of cirrhosis that may be complicated by hepatocellular carcinoma. The classification of hepato-cellular carcinoma has recently been revised. Based on immunohistochemical studies, it has been found that patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and biliary markers have a poorer survival than patients with hepatocellular carcinoma but who have negative biliary markers. Sometimes, a fourth phase, a hepatitis B envelope-negative hepatitis B virus replicative phase, reflecting the emergence of a pre-core mutant strain, may follow. Our improved understanding of the natural history of chronic hepatitis B infection has led to more effective approaches towards the control of this viral infection and its sequelae. Most importantly, immunisation against hepatitis B virus in the perinatal setting has been shown to prevent chronic infection.published_or_final_versio

Tenofovir disoproxil fumarate for the treatment of chronic hepatitis B monoinfection

Introduction: Resistance in nucleoside/nucleotide analog (NA) therapy has always been a challenge in the management of chronic hepatitis B (CHB). Clinical studies: Initially developed for the treatment of HIV infection, early in vitro and clinical observational studies had shown tenofovir disoproxil fumarate (TDF) to be also active against CHB. Recent data from various multicenter phase 3 and 4 clinical trials have confirmed TDF being able to achieve a high viral suppression in both NA-naive and -experienced CHB patients. There are also emerging data on the efficacy of TDF in decompensated CHB. Although there are in vitro studies identifying certain mutation loci associated with a reduced susceptibility to TDF, there have so far been no reports of virologic resistance to TDF in clinical studies. TDF has a favorable safety profile, although more long-term data would be needed. Conclusions: TDF has the makings of an 'ideal' first-line drug for the treatment of CHB. © 2011 Asian Pacific Association for the Study of the Liver.postprin