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July 2020
World Hepatitis Day is July 28, birthday of Baruch S. Blumberg
People and organizations across the globe who are concerned about viral hepatitis will observe World Hepatitis Day on July 28. This date of this annual event coincides with the birthday of the late Dr. Baruch S. Blumberg (1925-2011), who won the Nobel Prize for discovering the hepatitis B virus and for whom our Blumberg Institute is named. In advance of World Hepatitis Day, the Hepatitis B Foundation is planning a virtual advocacy week beginning on July 21. Please read more below.
Baruch S. Blumberg, MD, DPhil
On July 28, Chari Cohen, DrPH, MPH, the Hepatitis B Foundation's Senior Vice President, will participate in GLI LIVE on the Global Liver Institute's Facebook page, which is set for 1 2:30-1 p.m. EDT. Dr. Cohen will discuss the progress and challenges with eliminating hepatitis B globally, and how we are commemorating World Hepatitis Day.

Also during the week leading up to World Hepatitis Day, you can join in a lively conversation through the Hepatitis B Foundation's social media. Since we are commemorating "virtually" this year, HBF will be sharing photos and videos from previous World Hepatitis Day activities, with the hashtag #ThrowbackWHD. The Foundation also will be participating in the World Hepatitis Alliance's "virtual relay" with the tag #WorldHepatitisDay and the theme "Find the Missing Millions." Join us through social media as we bring awareness and attention to hepatitis B worldwide!
Become an advocate in observance of World Hepatitis Day
Starting on July 21, the Hepatitis B Foundation will conduct a virtual advocacy week. Our team will provide talking points and templates to supporters for them to share through email, phone calls and social media to help raise awareness about hepatitis B. We will ask supporters to communicate with U.S. Senator and House Member to support funding for hepatitis B programs and research.

To kick off the #HepBUnite Week of Action, you are invited to join our conference call on July 21 from 3-4 p.m. EDT (register for the call here). It’s an opportunity to learn more about our hepatitis B advocacy priorities and hear from guest speakers.
The late Dr. Ding-Shinn Chen, a "giant" in his field
The Hepatitis B Foundation expressed its profound sadness last month at the passing of Dr. Ding-Shinn Chen, distinguished professor of the National Taiwan University College of Medicine. “He was one of the field’s giants,” said Dr. Timothy Block, president and co-founder of the Hepatitis B Foundation. “While we grieve losing Prof. Chen, we also are grateful for all he did for those living with hepatitis B.”

Taiwanese President Tsai Ing-wen last month praised Chen as instrumental in promoting Taiwan's 1986 universal hepatitis B vaccination program, which reduced deaths to HBV disease by more than 95% and helped establish the relationship between HBV and liver cancer. Please read more here . 
Hepatitis B Foundation
  مرحبًا بك في قسم اللُّغة العَرَبِيَّة للموقع الإلكترونيّ لمؤسسة التهاب الكبد ب
The Hepatitis B Foundation's website now has information for people living with hepatitis B and others about prevention, treatment and management in 15 different languages. Just recently we added a new Arabic language chapter on our website. Please read more here .
Chenda's story: #justB Inspired!
Newly engaged and living in Cambodia, Chenda was excited to immigrate to the U.S. and start a new life. After taking a medical test, she discovered she was hepatitis B positive and it nearly shattered her dreams. With the support of her family, she saw a specialist and now knows that hepatitis B will not hold her back from a full and happy life. Please view her story here .

Our #justB campaign shares stories each month about someone affected by hepatitis B. View more videos and learn about our campaign  here .
Leading researchers lined up for Blumberg Institute seminars
The Baruch S. Blumberg Institute, which is the research arm of our Foundation, has a strong lineup of prominent researchers in hepatitis B and liver diseases for its online seminar series, which is free and open to anyone interested (pre-registration is required). Upcoming seminars are listed below in "Events" and on the Institute's website here , where you also can watch recording of prior Blumberg 2020 Research Seminars.
Foundation appoints new Public Health Program Coordinator
Beatrice Zovich is our new Public Health Program Coordinator. She will be working on a number of public health programs locally and nationally.

Beatrice has an MPH from Temple University with a Global Health Certificate and has spent the last several years working in Philadelphia and New York City with marginalized communities, specifically those with people experiencing homelessness and living with serious mental health challenges.

Beatrice Zovich
HBF Blog: Are you at risk for hepatitis B?
Not knowing your hepatitis B status can cause long term damage to your liver, so it is important for you to understand risk factors besides ethnicity. The CDC’s Know Hepatitis B Campaign’s fact sheet, “ Hepatitis B – Are You At Risk ?” is a great resource for sharing basic information on getting tested for hepatitis B. The fact sheet is available in 14 languages including Burmese, Khmer, French, Somali, Amharic, Hmong, and Swahili, among many others! Please read more here .
Become a HepB Champion today!
It’s easy to become a Champion! We rely on support from friends from all over the world to keep our programs and research going. By giving a small, monthly gift, you can help us find the cure and improve lives of people living with hepatitis B throughout the year! To become a Champion today, click here .
Hepatitis B Foundation journal picks of the month
RG Gish, SA Basit, J Ryan, A Dawood, U Protzer
Current Hepatology Reports , 2020

There are several common misconceptions regarding anti-HBc, which this article addresses using with the most recent evidence. It also provides a review and summary of current best strategies for anti-HBc testing and interpretation. Please read more here .

Note: Dr. Robert G. Gish is the Hepatitis B Foundation's Medical Director.


IFN-α Induces Multiple Cellular Proteins that Coordinately
Suppress Hepadnaviral cccDNA Transcription
J Cheng, Q Zhao, Y Zhou, L Tang, M Sheraz, J Chang, J-T Gou
Journal of Virology , 2020

Covalently closed circular (ccc) DNA of hepadnaviruses exists as an episomal 
minichromosome in the nucleus of infected hepatocyte and serves as the template 
for the transcription of viral mRNAs. The authors h ave identified three IFN-α-induced cellular proteins that suppress cccDNA transcription and may partly mediate IFN-α silencing of hepadnaviral cccDNA transcription. Please read more here .

Note: Dr. Ju-Tao Gou is the Blumberg Institute's Vice President for Research.
July 28 - World Hepatitis Day


Aug. 13 - V. Narry Kim M.S., D.Phil, Professor, Seoul National University
Seminar: "Viral hijacking of host functions to protect viral RNA"


Aug. 27-29 - EASL: The Digital International Liver Congress
Online


Sept. 10 - Rudolf Beran Ph.D., Gilead Sciences
Seminar: "Characterizing the interplay between hepatitis B virus X protein and Smc5/6"


Oct. 1 - Nicholas van Buuren Ph.D., Gilead Sciences
Seminar: "Integrated HBV DNA: Investigation of the Architecture and Potential Clinical Implications"

Learn more about our research and education programs at www.hepb.org
The Hepatitis B Foundation is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to finding a cure and improving the quality of life for those affected by hepatitis B worldwide. Our commitment includes funding focused research, promoting disease awareness, supporting immunization and treatment initiatives, and serving as the primary source of information for patients and their families, the medical and scientific community, and the general public.
Hepatitis B Foundation I 3805 Old Easton Road Doylestown, PA 18902 I
215-489-4900 I info@hepb.org