Grant: Catalyst Grant:Infection & Immunity-PHAC-CAID/Hep C Res Init/Biomed/clin stream

Hepatitis C is a devastating liver disease caused by hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. A Canadian model has estimated that the economic burden of hepatitis C will increase more than 50% in the next 40 years due primarily to a greater number of patients with more advanced forms of liver diseases caused by HCV infection. There is no vaccine available. The only approved therapeutic option is interferon and ribavirin. In addition to strong side-effects, these drugs are expensive and yet effective for only about 50% of the patients. Novel therapeutics is urgently needed but the progress is very slow because of a lack of knowledge on the mechanisms of how HCV causes liver diseases. Kinases play a significant role in the disease-causing process by viruses. In this proposal, we will develop a novel tool to demonstrate how HCV can modulate the activity of a large number of kinases. This proposal will make a significant contribution to our understanding of how HCV causes diseases and provide potential targets for developing effective therapeutics to prevent disease progression.