Needles and haystacks
Hepatitis C is a dangerous disease. This week delivered mixed news on novel treatments for it
THE world is full of nasty viruses, but the one that causes hepatitis C is particularly tricky. Medical science recognised decades ago that not all cases of hepatitis were caused by the two viruses (A and B) that had already been identified. But hepatitis C virus (HCV), which is spread mainly by contaminated blood from, for example, shared syringes, was not isolated and identified until 1989.
This article appeared in the Science & technology section of the print edition under the headline “Needles and haystacks”
From the November 1st 2003 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionDiscover more
Elon Musk is causing problems for the Royal Society
His continued membership has led to a high-profile resignation
Deforestation is costing Brazilian farmers millions
Without trees to circulate moisture, the land is getting hotter and drier
Robots can learn new actions faster thanks to AI techniques
They could soon show their moves in settings from car factories to care homes
Scientists are learning why ultra-processed foods are bad for you
A mystery is finally being solved
Scientific publishers are producing more papers than ever
Concerns about some of their business models are building
The two types of human laugh
One is caused by tickling; the other by everything else