Potential hepatitis B cure hits trial stage

A new treatment developed by the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, which has shown promise as a potential cure for hepatitis B, has entered phase I/IIa trials.

The trial will be conducted at sites across Australia and New Zealand, including Melbourne, Adelaide and Perth. It will seek to enrol around 50 patients.

The treatment, which was developed by the institute in collaboration with US-based TetraLogic Pharmaceuticals, uses the pharmaceutical company’s birinapant drug.

Birinapant breaks down proteins that prevent infected cells from self-destructing, allowing infected cells to die while not harming uninfected cells.

Lead researcher Dr Marc Pellegrini said the treatment has the potential to revolutionise how hepatitis B is treated.

“Used in conjunction with an existing treatment for hepatitis B, this drug has the potential, for the first time, to functionally cure chronic hepatitis B infections,” he said.

“Patients who develop chronic infections can be treated with drugs that prevent the virus from replicating, reducing the amount of virus in the liver, but do not completely eliminate the virus.”

Biotron recently published trial data suggesting that its BIT225 drug candidate can effectively cure hepatitis C.