<p>Currently, there is no human vaccine for Hepatitis C, which is spread through contaminated blood and kills some 350,000 people worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organisation.<br /><br />Between 130 and 170 million people are thought to be infected with chronic forms of the disease. A team led by French researcher David Klatzmann of the Universite Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris used so-called “virus-like particles” to create the vaccine, which was tested on mice and monkeys.<br /><br />Virus-like particles provoke an immune reaction, helping the body to develop resistance, but do not contain any genetic material that would allow a “virus” to multiply.<br /></p>
<p>Currently, there is no human vaccine for Hepatitis C, which is spread through contaminated blood and kills some 350,000 people worldwide each year, according to the World Health Organisation.<br /><br />Between 130 and 170 million people are thought to be infected with chronic forms of the disease. A team led by French researcher David Klatzmann of the Universite Pierre et Marie Curie in Paris used so-called “virus-like particles” to create the vaccine, which was tested on mice and monkeys.<br /><br />Virus-like particles provoke an immune reaction, helping the body to develop resistance, but do not contain any genetic material that would allow a “virus” to multiply.<br /></p>