• According to official statistics, in Chile there are 34,000 people infected by the HBV, which is transmitted through exposure to infectious blood or body fluids. Worldwide, 240 million people live with this disease. This is the reason why Dr Camilo García, professor at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago de Chile, decided to study the feasibility of a more effective and economical method for detecting this disease, in the context of a Fondecyt Initiation project awarded in 2015.

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Hepatitis B is an infectious disease caused by the hepatitis B virus (HBV) which affects the liver. It is transmitted through exposure to infectious blood or body fluids and it can cause both acute and chronic infections. Hepatitis B can be fatal and cannot be cured.

According to statistics provided by the World health Organization (WHO), 240 million people worldwide suffer from chronic Hepatitis B, which can develop into cirrhosis and liver cancer. In Chile, 34,000 people are infected by the HBV

In this context, and thanks to the funding provided by a Fondecyt Initiation project (11150434), Dr Camilo García, professor at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago, seeks to develop a new method for detecting this disease.

Background

According to Dr García, he has an important reason for studying this disease. In Chile, there is a specific HBV genotype: genotype F.

“I decided to study Hepatitis B to explore a new field, because this is a terrible disease and the current detection methods are very expensive, in comparison to the one that we are studying. There is a type of Hepatitis B that has only been detected in Chilean people. So, it would be great to find a sensor that detects the strain that we want to identify,” he said.

“The human quality of the work team at the Faculty of Chemistry and Biology of Universidad de Santiago was another reason to conduct this study,” he added.

After completing the three-year project, he expects to have a new detection method that contributes to the patients’ well-being and comfort during medical procedures.

Methods

“We want to see if it is possible to develop Hepatitis B sensors based on electrochemiluminescence,” professor García explained.

Quantum dots –fluorescent nanoparticles- emit light when voltage is applied. This light signal can be absorbed by a DNA-binding molecule, like cationic porphyrins.

Dr García explains that the study will be based on the comparison between linear DNA sequences and molecular beacons for Hepatitis B virus to establish if the light signal is affected by the resonance, providing novel biosensors to detect the disease.

Translated By Marcela Contreras