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Gut 61:1754-1764 doi:10.1136/gutjnl-2011-301073
  • Recent advances in basic science

Innate and adaptive immune responses in chronic hepatitis B virus infections: towards restoration of immune control of viral infection

  1. Carlo Ferrari4
  1. 1Infection & Immunity Program, Singapore Institute for Clinical Sciences, Agency of Science Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore
  2. 2Program Emerging Viral Diseases, Duke–NUS Graduate Medical School, Singapore
  3. 3Department of Medicine, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore
  4. 4Unit of Infectious Diseases and Hepatology, Laboratory of Viral Immunopathology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Parma, Parma, Italy
  1. Correspondence to Dr Carlo Ferrari, Unit of Infectious Diseases and Hepatology, Azienda Ospedaliero-Universitaria di Parma, Via Gramsci 14, Parma 43100, Italy; cafer{at}tin.it

  1. Contributors AB and CF contributed equally.

Abstract

Knowledge of the immunological events necessary to control hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection has accelerated in recent years, but their translation towards therapeutic strategies able to achieve a durable HBV suppression has been challenging. The scenario of how HBV deals with the host immunity is presented and used to discuss how the immune response can be harnessed to potentially achieve infection control.

Footnotes

  • Funding Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Parma, Italy, by an FIRB grant from the Italian Ministry of the University and Research, Protocol RBAP10TPXK and by a programme grant of the Agency of Science Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore.

  • Competing interests None.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.