Direct-acting antiviral therapy for chronic hepatitis C

Hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection was discovered in the late 1980s. Since then, tremendous progress has been made in understanding the pathophysiology of HCV infection together with the development of improved therapies for patients with chronic hepatitis C.
The main focus of this thesis was to improve our understanding of new treatment strategies for chronic hepatitis C. Several direct-acting antivirals were investigated in multiple in vitro and in vivo studies. This thesis gives more insight into the pathogenesis of chronic HCV infection, its epidemiology, development of innovative treatments and upcoming viral resistance during therapy with direct-acting antivirals. The results of this thesis contribute to the impressive treatment progress, which will ultimately improve the prognosis of chronic hepatitis C patients.