Comparison of the efficacy of thymosin alpha-1 and interferon alpha in the treatment of chronic hepatitis B: A meta-analysis

Drug Delivery Systems and Liver Targeting for the Improved Pharmacotherapy of the Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) Infection

“…Its activity relies on two mechanisms: (i) supression of HBV replication in virusinfected hepatocytes by inhibition of synthesis of viral DNA and activation of cellular enzymes with antiviral activity and (ii) enhancement of the cellular immune response against HBV-infected hepatocytes by increasing the phagocytic activity of macrophages and the expression of class I histocompatibility antigens and by stimulating the activity of helper T lymphocytes and natural killer (NK) cells (6). It is worth mentioning that the rate of response to IFN-α is relatively low, being effective in approximately 30-40% of the treated patients; 56% of those who responded relapsed within the first year after discontinuation therapy (52). The most important viral factor that determines the response to IFN-α is the pre-treatment HBV-DNA levels: the lower the level, the better the response.…”

Immune therapy for hepatitis B

“…In fact, considerable reservation remains about the safety of IL-12 in CHB patients because 3 of 46 patients were withdrawn from therapy prematurely due to adverse events (54). Also, follow up data using GM-CSF in CHB is lacking although this agent induced altered cytokine profile in these patients (55 (61). Taken together, most of these agents induced upregulation of host immunity but failed to attain sustained control of HBV replication and liver damages of CHB patients.…”

Thymosin Apha 1–A Peptide Immune Modulator with a Broad Range of Clinical Applications

“…The effect of treatment with Ta1 was evaluated in 30 elderly subjects in China with advanced malignant cancer (lung, liver, stomach, colon, rectal; Yang 2003) [171], and showed a significant improvement in QOL (KPS) score (p<0.01) and immune parameters (p<0.05). Another study in a similar population of 60 subjects evaluated the addition of Ta1 to standard chemotherapy [172] and showed a significant increase in survival, from 6 to 24 months for 43% survival (p<0.01), a significant increase in QOL (KPS) score (p<0.01), and improvements in immune function (CD4/CD8 ratio and NK cells; p<0.05).…”

“…The first one [110] included 435 subjects who had been entered into randomized, controlled studies of Ta1 monotherapy for CHB (Table 2) A second meta-analysis was conducted [114] which included 199 subjects [112,[115][116][117]. The ORs [95% CI] of the virological response, biochemical response and complete response of Ta1 over IFN-alpha at the end of 6 months treatment were not significant, but were quite impressive at the end of 6 month's follow-up (3.71 [ [1.47, 4.91], respectively).…”