| Infecting
over a quarter of a billion people around the world, HBV is not known simply for its
popularity. As a leading cause of cirrhois and liver cancer (hepatocellular carcinoma),
HBV is also the first example of a successful recombinant vaccine
for human infectious disease, making future preventative tactics for diseases such as HIV
more of a reality. In Africa
and Asia, nearly a quarter of the population are carriers of HBV with 2-10% being
chronically infected. Patients with chronic infection generally remain asymptomatic for
years until liver cirrhosis (degeneration of the liver) or hepatocellular carcinoma (liver
cancer) develop. The rest of the cases are acute HBV infections, with 20-35% experiencing
abnormal liver function and jaundice (yellowish skin due to liver cell death). A long
incubation period of 30-180 days allows the virus to replicate.
Men are almost twice as likely to develop
chronic hepatits B as women; whereas the vast majority of neonatal exposures develops into
chronic infection, showing HBV to be endemic.
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HBV BASICS
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- Genome: partial
ds DNA, circular, monopartite, smallest at 3.2kb in length
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- Morphology:
roughly spherical, icosahedral nucleocapsid.
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- Replication:
Violates Central Dogma-DNA->RNA->DNA
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- Clinical Symptoms:
Jaundice, fatigue, abdominal pain, nausea
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- Incidence:
140,000-320,000 annual infections
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- Transmission:
Blood-borne, sexual, perinatal
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- Incubation Period:
30-180 days
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- Prevention:
Recombinant HBV surface antigen vaccine or HBV immunoglobulin post-exposure prophylaxis.
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- Related Viruses:
Duck Hepatits B, Ground Squirrel Hepatitis Virus, Wooley Monkey Hepatitis Virus, Woodchuck
Hepatitis Virus
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