Molecular Epidemiology, Host Genetic Factors, and Viral Hepatitis Related Liver Diseases
A special issue of Pathogens (ISSN 2076-0817). This special issue belongs to the section "Viral Pathogens".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 December 2023) | Viewed by 18387
Special Issue Editors
Interests: molecular virology; viral hepatitis
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
Viral hepatitis is predominantly caused by five unrelated hepatotropic viruses, namely hepatitis A virus (HAV), hepatitis B virus (HBV), hepatitis C virus (HCV), hepatitis D (delta) virus (HDV), and hepatitis E virus (HEV). Besides these hepatitis viruses, other viral infections can induce so-called concomitant viral hepatitis. Prominent agents include herpesviruses (cytomegalovirus (CMV), Epstein–Barr virus (EBV), herpes simplex virus (HSV)), adenoviruses, rubella viruses, the mumps virus, enteroviruses, and the yellow fever virus.
Hepatitis is an inflammation of the liver with multiple possible clinical courses and outcome. Acute hepatitis is the most common progression and resolves after 3 to 6 months depending on the virus. Acute hepatitis can be associated with fulminant hepatitis. Chronic hepatitis, in contrast, lasts longer than 3–6 months and can be associated with severe liver diseases such as cirrhosis and hepatocellular carcinoma. Although the WHO has implemented a global elimination program by 2030, there are still significant gaps in the knowledge of, for example, the molecular epidemiology and host factors in hepatitis virus infections and their impact on related liver diseases, which affect almost 600 million individuals worldwide and have an annual mortality rate of approximately 1.5 million. Sophisticated genetic analyses by Suh and colleagues provided the first direct evidence that Hepadnaviridae existed during the Early Mesozoic in land vertebrates more than 200 million years ago. Remarkably, the genome organization of HBV seems to have been conserved over this long period until today. In line with this, Krause-Kyora and colleagues identified HBV genomes in samples from individuals living in Europe in the Stone Age and Bronze Age (approximately 4500–7000 years ago). This implies that hepatitis virus infection was one of the first verified viral infections. To date, hepatitis viruses have adapted to vertebrates, mammals, and ultimately to humans over an intangible long lapse of time and have been bothering humans for thousands of years. Therefore, in accordance with the WHO’s goal of 2030, it is time now to control and eventually eradicate viral hepatitis.
In this Special Issue, we will summarize the current knowledge and aim to answer some of the many open questions on viral hepatitis infections in terms of epidemiology, prevention, treatment, virology, pathophysiology, diversity, and evolution. In addition, we will cover other clinical and basic research aspects in order to improve our knowledge on viral hepatitis pathogenesis, which influences virus replication, chronification, and risk assessment in humans.
We thus invite the submission of research and review manuscripts that cover any aspect of the pathogenesis, immunology, epidemiology, diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of viral hepatitis. We are looking forward to receiving your contributions, which will undoubtedly result in a valuable and high-ranking Special Issue that will promote further developments in the field of viral hepatitis and related liver diseases.
Prof. Dr. Claus-Thomas Bock
Dr. Daniel Todt
Guest Editors
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Keywords
- viral hepatitis
- immunology
- epidemiology
- molecular epidemiology
- genetic diversity
- virology
- host genetic factors
- therapy
- diagnostics
- clinical outcome
- liver diseases
- virus evolution