Effects of escitalopram prophylaxis during antiviral treatment for chronic hepatitis C in patients with a history of intravenous drug use and depression.

Objective: We aimed to identify those patients with hepatitis C virus who benefit most from prophylactic treatment with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) during antiviral therapy.

Method: We performed post hoc analyses on a prospective randomized controlled trial (n = 79) of escitalopram versus placebo during antiviral therapy with pegylated interferon and ribavirin, conducted between August 2005 and June 2008. Our primary outcome measure was the association of baseline characteristics with the development of depression and/or depressive symptoms.

Natural killer cell activity and function in chronic HCV-infected patients during peg interferon and ribavirin: early effects of active substance use.

In Western countries, chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV)-infection mostly affects former and active substance users. The effect of active substance use on interferon (IFN)-responsiveness and therapy efficacy is not well understood. In this study, we compared natural killer (NK) cell activity and function in healthy controls and chronic HCV-infected patients with and without active substance use, as well as the early effects of antiviral therapy with peg-IFN and ribavirin.

Potent immune activation in chronic hepatitis C patients upon administration of an oral inducer of endogenous interferons that acts via Toll-like receptor 7.

Background: ANA773, an oral prodrug of a small-molecule Toll-like receptor (TLR)7 agonist, induces a dose-related decrease in serum HCV RNA levels in chronic hepatitis C patients.

Methods: The prodrug ANA773 was administered to healthy individuals and chronic hepatitis C patients. At different time points during the course of treatment, modulation of the phenotype and function of peripheral leukocytes were evaluated to determine the role of distinct immune cells on the clinical outcome of therapy.

Pharmacokinetics and antiviral activity of PHX1766, a novel HCV protease inhibitor, using an accelerated Phase I study design.

Background: PHX1766 is a novel HCV NS3/4 protease inhibitor with robust potency and high selectivity in replicon studies (50% maximal effective concentration 8 nM). Two clinical trials investigated the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and antiviral activity of PHX1766 in healthy volunteers (HV) and chronic hepatitis C patients, by use of a dose-adaptive overlapping clinical trial design.

Methods: Two randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials were conducted.