Why is there a vaccine for hepatitis B but not hepatitis C?

[Monique]

I am wondering why it is that we have a vaccine for the Hepatitis B virus and not for the Hepatitis C virus..

 

[iansmith]

I know hepatitis C only has been recognized in 1989 and hepatitis B has been known for a longer time. More information is known about hepatitis B so it easier to develop a vaccine when you have the rigth info.

Also hepatitis C is a RNA viruse and hepatitis b is a DNA viruse. Vaccine for RNA virus tend to be harder to develop du to high mutation frequency of RNA viruse. The influenza virus and HIV are RNA virus. There is a new vaccine for the flu every year (the vaccines are based on the projected mutation of the influenza virus) and there no working HIV vaccine yet .

Lack of info and that HCV is a RNA viruse migth explain why there no vaccine yet but I don't the actual reason.

 

[Monique]

Thank you! That DNA/RNA story sounds very plausible :)

 

[iansmith]

I found some additional information about HCV vaccine on pubmed that support that the lack of information migth be why there is no HCV vaccine

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entr...ve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12415247&dopt=Abstract

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov:80/entr...ve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12534208&dopt=Abstract