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Hepatitis, or inflammation of the liver, is mostly caused by hepatotropic viral agent hepatovirus A, B, C, D, and E. Although these viruses are unrelated, and the illnesses they produce unique, the disease they cause overlap in ways that can reveal much about host–viral interactions more broadly. For example, hepatitis D propagates only in the presence of a hepatitis B infection and ramps up the fatality rate to 20%. Hepatitis E has primarily a fecal–oral transmission route, similar to that of hepatitis A, but also can be far deadlier, particularly for pregnant women. Our first speaker, Theo Heller, M.D., leads the Translational Hepatology Section in NIDDK's Liver Diseases Branch. His laboratory focuses on the connections between the innate immune system and liver-related damage and repair. They also study patients with chronic granulomatous disease, sickle cell disease, Turner syndrome, sporadic nodular regenerative hyperplasia, hepatitis D, acute hepatitis C, and congenital hepatic fibrosis. Our second speaker, Marc Ghany, in a Senior Investigator in the Clinical Hepatology Research Section in NIDDK's Liver Diseases Branch. His research program based in the NIH Clinical Center aims to improve the care and treatment outcomes of patients with chronic viral hepatitis, with a focus on the host, viral, and environmental factors that determine the natural history and outcome of viral hepatitis infections. The Demystifying Medicine Series, jointly sponsored by FAES and NIH, includes presentations on pathology, diagnosis, and therapy in the context of major disease problems and current research. Primarily directed toward PhD students, clinicians and program managers, this series is designed to help bridge the gap between advances in biology and their application to major human diseases. Each session includes clinical and basic science components presented by NIH staff and invitees. All students, trainees, fellows, and staff are welcome to participate.
For more information go to https://demystifyingmedicine.od.nih.gov
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