Researchers find link between age, HBV resistance

Why a majority of adults infected with the virus are able to fight off the virus, while most infected newborns and toddlers end up developing a chronic hepatitis B infection has long baffled doctors and scientists.

Graduate Institute of Clinical Medicine associate professor Wang Hurng-yi (王弘毅), one of the authors of the research, said nearly 95 percent of adult-acquired hepatitis B infections lead to spontaneous clearance, while more than 90 percent of infected newborns and about 30 percent of infected children aged between one and five years old are unable to fight off the virus and subsequently develop a chronic infection.

“These statistics suggest that a person’s immune clearance of hepatitis B — which has affected nearly 2 billion people worldwide — is heavily age-related. However, as the reason for this remains unknown, our research team has made it its mission to find an answer,” Wang told a press conference in Taipei.

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