October 30

Research Seminar: “Remaining Immunologic Questions in Hepatitis C and NASH”

Presented by

Hugo R. Rosen, MD
Kenneth T. Norris, Jr. Chairman of Medicine
Professor of Medicine, Immunology and Molecular Microbiology
University of Southern California

Talk Summary

Hepatitis C is an RNA virus that infects approximately 180 million throughout the world; chronic infection is associated with disease progression, including cirrhosis, liver failure, and liver cancer. With the advent of new direct-acting antivirals (DAAs), the majority of patients (>90%) treated with new, all-oral, interferon (IFN)-free combinations are expected to be cured. Thus, the questions that remain unanswered have largely shifted. What are the immunologic mechanisms during pregnancy that limit vertical transmission of HCV? To what extent is immunity restored in patients cured with DAAs? Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is the most common cause of chronic liver disease, affecting at least a quarter of the world’s population. Hepatic inflammation drives disease progression, and multiple mechanisms have been implicated. Emerging evidence points towards the central roles of cholesterol and especially oxidized low-density lipoproteins (oxLDL) in hepatic inflammation; dietary cholesterol can trigger innate immune-mediated injury even in non-obese humans and rodents.

About the Speaker

Dr. Rosen is a prolific physician-scientist with approximately 200 original peer-reviewed manuscripts investigating the cellular and molecular underpinnings of liver diseases. He is an elected member of ASCI and AAP and the recipient of numerous awards, including the Senator Hatfield Award for Research. Among his early seminal contributions, he identified epidemiologic factors that shape the variable natural history of hepatitis C virus infection (HCV). Remarkable in their originality, scope and impact, his research has advanced scientific thought by identifying many aspects of the division of labor played by different immune cells in liver diseases (more recently, in non-alcoholic fatty liver disease). Funded continuously for over 20 years, his research program enjoys training the next generation of translational scientists, including PhD and MD/PhD candidates, post-doctoral fellows, and faculty.

Hosted by

Rohit Kohli, MBBS, MS, FAASLD
Chief, Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology & Nutrition
Associates Chair in Liver and Intestinal Research
Children’s Hospital Los Angeles
Professor of Pediatrics Clinical Scholar
Keck School of Medicine of USC

Additional Information

Lunch will be provided to seminar guests; first come, first served

Help us save plastic! Bring your own water bottles. Water will be available to fill your bottles.

Brought to you by TSRI Office of Training, Education, Career Planning & Development (TECPAD)

RSVP is required to tecpad@chla.usc.edu

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