Antibody News and Research

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An antibody is a blood protein that is produced in response to and counteracts an antigen. Antibodies are produced in response to disease and help the body fight against the particular disease. In this way, antibodies help the body develop an immunity to disease.

Blueprint for rational design of vaccines that induce desired T-cell responses

Investigators from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, have conducted studies in mice to gain a new picture of how the immune system’s “killer” T cells are prompted to destroy infected cells. Their insights provide a blueprint for rational design of vaccines that induce desired T-cell responses.

27 May 2004

New target of a cancer-causing gene

Researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and other institutions have identified a new target of a cancer-causing gene.

27 May 2004

Human Genome Sciences has begun dosing patients with chronic hep C drug

Human Genome Sciences, Inc. announced today that it has begun dosing patients in a Phase 2 clinical trial of Albuferon™ (albumin-interferon alpha) in patients with chronic hepatitis C who are naïve to interferon-alpha treatments.

27 May 2004

Research into flipping genes therapy by Leeds University

Graham Cook and Erica de Wynter of molecular medicine have secured £125,000 to investigate the unique way antibody genes are assembled and how they can be harnessed to fight disease.

25 May 2004

Possible new second-generation multiple sclerosis therapy

Scientists from Genencor International, Inc., have demonstrated in an in vivo model that a new variant of recombinant interferon-beta reduces the immunological response to the protein.

25 May 2004

Trial shows Daclizumab therapy improves multiple sclerosis outcome

A small clinical trial of patients with multiple sclerosis (MS) who did not respond to interferon alone found that adding the human antibody daclizumab improved patient outcome. Patients who received the combined therapy had a 78 percent reduction in new brain lesions and a 70 percent reduction in total lesions, along with other significant clinical improvements.

24 May 2004

Researchers have isolated a protein receptor in chickens responsible for transferring antibodies from mother to offspring

Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI) researchers have isolated a protein receptor in chickens that is responsible for transferring antibodies from mother to offspring - a function critical to bestowing a temporary immunity that protects the young against infection until their own immune systems begin functioning.

24 May 2004

Study shows herpes is common in suburban populations, with Denver up to 20 percent

According to a recent study of 36 primary care physician (PCP) offices in relatively affluent suburban areas of six U.S. cities, one in four people (25.5 percent) tested positive for the virus that causes genital herpes, despite the fact that only four percent of all those tested reported a history of the condition.

24 May 2004

Clinical use of immunoassays not recommended as a primary means of assessing environmental fungal exposure

Routine clinical use of immunoassays, a type of blood test for measuring antigen-specific IgE or IgG antibodies, is not recommended as a primary means of assessing environmental fungal exposure or its harmful effects according to a report published this month in Annals of Allergy, Asthma & Immunology, the scientific journal of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI).

24 May 2004

Researchers have identified the first gene linked to the productivity of the stem cells that produce sperm in mammals

Researchers have identified the first gene linked to the productivity of the stem cells that produce sperm in mammals. The discovery was made by applying the latest laboratory methods to a strain of mice restored from embryos frozen since the early 70s.

23 May 2004

Accurate and effective new methods for diagnosis of Inflammatory bowel diseases

Inflammatory bowel diseases collectively cause significant lifestyle sacrifices and suffering and millions of dollars in related health care costs every year, partially due to a lack of effective diagnostic procedures and therapies. In new studies presented today at Digestive Disease Week in New Orleans, researchers show evidence of accurate and effective new methods for diagnosis, as well as improved treatment options, for sufferers of ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s diseases.

19 May 2004

New method for treating the digestive disease, ulcerative colitis (UC)

Research from Bristol University on a new method for treating the digestive disease, ulcerative colitis (UC) will be presented at an international conference of experts in New Orleans on Tuesday, 18 May as part of Digestive Disease Week 2004.

19 May 2004

Study comparing the efficacy of REMICADE® to Azathioprine alone and in combination With REMICADE®

Centocor, Inc., and Schering-Plough Corporation announced today the initiation of the SONIC (Study of Immunomodulator Naive patients in Crohn's Disease) trial that will evaluate the efficacy of REMICADE® (infliximab) versus azathioprine, a conventional immunosuppressive agent, alone and versus the combination of both drugs for the treatment of patients with Crohn's disease.

18 May 2004

The number of antibody-based medicines will climb dramatically

The number of antibodies in clinical development has leapt over the past six years and in 2004 hundreds are currently making their way through trials in what surely will be a spate of new product introductions beginning in 2004 and continuing over the next 10 years.

15 May 2004

Minority women are disproportionately impacted by the autoimmune disease lupus

There is an urgent need for more education and research to address the fact that minority women are disproportionately impacted by the autoimmune disease lupus

14 May 2004

Cholesterol-lowering drugs could treat multiple sclerosis

Drug treatments for MS are expensive and only partially effective. Recent knowledge that statins promote an anti-inflammatory response from the immune system suggest a potential in the treatment of MS.

13 May 2004

Nanobodies herald a new era in cancer therapy

Cancer, along with heart and vascular disease, is the major cause of death in the Western world. The first generation of anti-cancer drugs has already saved many lives, but because these medicines are non-specific they also often have severe side effects.

12 May 2004

Australian researchers are working on a vaccine to prevent rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease

The Queensland Institute of Medical Research (QIMR) Australia, is working on a vaccine to prevent rheumatic fever (RF) and rheumatic heart disease (RHD). Rheumatic fever and rheumatic heart disease are a secondary complication of a bacterial infection.

12 May 2004

New mums are being urged to give breastfeeding a go

The UK has one of the lowest breastfeeding rates in Europe. Almost one third of women in England and Wales never try to breastfeed, compared to just two per cent in Sweden. Younger women are the least likely to breastfeed, with two in five mothers under 24 never trying.

10 May 2004

Survey serious misunderstandings about breastfeeding

A survey published today by The UK Department of Health for National Breastfeeding Awareness Week (9 - 15 May) shows that serious misunderstandings may be stopping women, particularly young women, from breastfeeding.

10 May 2004