How Biopharmaceuticals Help to Protect Against Hepatitis

Sartorius is Part of the Solution

_{^{This article is posted on Sartorius Blog.}}

On World Hepatitis Day 2022, the World Health Organization (WHO) is highlighting the need for providing people with better access to prevention, treatment and care for viral hepatitis, an inflammation of the liver caused by viruses. Sartorius supports customers to commercially produce the cell lines needed for type B vaccines and other recombinant protein vaccines.
 

Recombinant proteins have transformed the vaccine industry since the early 1980s, enabling the development of safe and effective vaccines. Today, they make up a significant part of the vaccine pipeline, with promising candidates for a range of virus-related diseases, such as those caused by the respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a new generation of influenza vaccines and hepatitis B.
 

Hundreds of thousands are affected by chronic hepatitis B or C

There are five main strains of the hepatitis virus, known as types A, B, C, D and E. They differ, for example, in the way and mode of transmission, the severity of the disease and geographical distribution.

While hepatitis A and E are considered less dangerous and patients can recover without treatment, infections with virus types B, C and D are critical, in part because they often go undetected. In cases of chronic infections, there is a risk of late effects including cirrhosis of the liver or liver cancer.

According to the WHO, an estimated 296 million people worldwide were living with chronic hepatitis B in 2019, with 1.5 million new infections each year.

There is a preventive vaccination against the hepatitis B virus that protects up to 95 percent of those vaccinated for around ten years. This is a recombinant protein vaccine that is produced using biotechnology.