title: Chronic hepatitis B: Are we close to a cure?
abstract: Approximately 300 million people worldwide are persistently infected with the hepatitis B virus and are at risk of developing hepatocellular carcinoma and liver cirrhosis, which can progress to end-stage liver disease. Despite the effectiveness of the current vaccination policy, the prevalence of the disease remains high, and the burden for health services is considerable. The currently available antiviral strategies are either poorly effective or only effective for non-curative suppression of viral replication. Recent efforts have been focused on improving the cure rate for chronic hepatitis B and developing strategies to eliminate infected cells. Several approaches are under evaluation, and these include targeting the virus at different stages of its life cycle and boosting the antiviral immune response. This article reviews these latest approaches and comments on their feasibility and potential translation into clinical applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Elisabetta
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Loggi
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Giovanni
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Vitale
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Fabio
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Conti
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy.
authors.forename: Mauro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Bernardi
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgical and Medical Sciences, University of Bologna, Bologna, Italy. Electronic address: pietro.andreone@unibo.it.
authors.forename: Pietro
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Andreone
mesh_terms: D000998:Antiviral Agents / Q000145:classification* / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006528:Carcinoma, Hepatocellular / Q000821:virology; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000187:drug effects / Q000502:physiology; D019694:Hepatitis B, Chronic / Q000150:complications / Q000188:drug therapy*; D006801:Humans; D008103:Liver Cirrhosis / Q000821:virology; D008113:Liver Neoplasms / Q000821:virology; D014779:Virus Replication / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D000998:Antiviral Agents
keywords: Chronic hepatitis B; Cure; Immune response; Virology