How the immune system remembers hepatitis C
Official title: Understanding human antibody responses to chronic viral hepatitis C
Funded at Scripps Research Institute, the · NIH-11247527 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Researchers will follow people cured of chronic hepatitis C to learn how their antibody-making B cells recover and respond to future HCV exposure.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Scripps Research Institute, the NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | January 17, 2022 |
| Project end | December 31, 2026 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $637,216 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI168917-05 |
| Project ID | NIH-11247527 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults who had chronic hepatitis C and were cured with direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) and who are willing to provide blood samples over time are ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without a history of hepatitis C infection or those who have not received DAA treatment are unlikely to qualify or gain direct benefit from participation.
What this research studies
If you join, researchers will collect blood samples before, during, and after DAA treatment to track your memory B cells that make antibodies to hepatitis C. They will isolate those B cells and study the antibodies they produce to see which ones target parts of the virus that stay the same across strains. Lab tests will check whether these antibodies can neutralize different HCV variants and sequencing will map how the B cells change over time. The team wants to understand why immune memory after chronic infection may fail and which antibodies could protect against reinfection or inform vaccines.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Findings could help design vaccines or other strategies to prevent hepatitis C reinfection and better protect people at high risk.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies have characterized HCV antibodies and memory B cells, but tracking recovery of memory responses after DAA cure is a more recent and developing area.
Where this research is happening
-
Scripps Research Institute, the
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Law, Mansun — Scripps Research Institute, the
- Study coordinator: Law, Mansun
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.