title: Hepatitis B vaccines: protective efficacy and therapeutic potential.
abstract: Worldwide, two billion people have at some time been infected by hepatitis B virus, 370 millions suffer from chronic infection and around one million die each year from HBV-related liver diseases of which liver cancer is the ultimate stage. Vaccination is the measure that is most effective in reducing the global incidence of hepatitis B and hepatitis B vaccines have now been available for over 20 years. The first hepatitis B vaccine was prepared from inactivated hepatitis B surface antigen particles purified from plasma of asymptomatic carriers of hepatitis B virus. Knowledge of the structure and genomic organization of hepatitis B virus has led to development of the first DNA recombinant vaccine. In preventing hepatocellular carcinoma development, hepatitis B virus vaccines are considered as the first available cancer vaccine. HBV vaccines have recently taken on a new role as therapeutic vaccines as an attempt to cure or to control hepatitis B virus infection in persistently infected individuals.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de pathogenèse des virus de l'hépatite B, Institut Pasteur, bâtiment Lwoff, 28, rue du Docteur-Roux, 75724 Paris cedex 15, France. maloum@pasteur.fr
authors.forename: M-L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Michel
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Tiollais
mesh_terms: D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D004279:DNA, Viral; D004359:Drug Therapy, Combination; D006509:Hepatitis B / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000276:immunology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens / Q000276:immunology; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000517:prevention & control*; D006801:Humans; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000517:prevention & control / Q000821:virology; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents; D004279:DNA, Viral; D006514:Hepatitis B Surface Antigens; D017325:Hepatitis B Vaccines; D014614:Vaccines, Synthetic