Between 10 and 20 million people worldwide are infected with hepatitis D virus (HDV). HDV infection is always associated with hepatitis B virus infection. So far there has been no satisfactory therapeutic option for this most severe form of chronic viral hepatitis. In a multicenter Phase II clinical trial, an international research team was now able to show that the 24-week application of the drug candidate bulevirtide, developed by DZIF virologist Prof. Stephan Urban, significantly reduced hepatitis D viral load in blood serum and liver. Treatment with the novel entry inhibitor therefore represents a promising strategy for patients with chronic HDV infection.

Of the approximately 250 million people worldwide chronically infected with hepatitis B virus (HBV), between 10 and 20 million are also infected with hepatitis D virus (HDV). HDV uses HBV as a helper virus by packaging its RNA genetic material into HBV envelopes. This co-infection leads to the most severe course of viral liver disease. Unfortunately, the antiviral drugs currently available to treat HBV-infected patients can only be used effectively in a small proportion of HDV patients and may also cause side effects. With the development of bulevirtide—an antiviral agent conditionally approved in the EU since 2020 that blocks the entry of hepatitis B and hepatitis D viruses into liver cells—the goal of successfully treating hepatitis D has come much closer.

Read more...