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CCL5 protein plays protective role against Mycobacterium tuberculosis: New research

Ohio scientists hope to counter the re-emerging threat of tuberculosis with help from proteins from our bodies. In a research report published in the June 2010 print issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, scientists show how the protein CCL5 plays a protective role in helping the body ward off this contagious, airborne disease in the early stages of infection.

2 Jun 2010

Platelets play important role in cerebral malaria: Research

Scientists are making strides against cerebral malaria, a fatal form of malaria in children that can ravage the brain and is extremely difficult to treat. New research points to platelets - known for their role in blood clotting - as playing an important role in the disease, stimulating the immune system and turning on molecules that increase inflammation. The inflammation leads to the obstruction of blood vessels in the brain, causing brain damage similar to that seen with a stroke.

2 Jun 2010

Prototype breast cancer vaccine shows promising results in mice

US scientists have developed a prototype breast cancer vaccine that has shown promising results in very early laboratory tests on mice. The vaccine contains a protein called alpha-lactalbumin, which is found in large quantities in the majority of breast cancers.

2 Jun 2010

New technique transforms iPS cells into natural tumor killers

A technique for producing natural killer T (NKT) cells, known for their role in suppressing tumor growth, has been successfully demonstrated for the first time using induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells. Developed by researchers at RIKEN, Japan’s flagship research institution, the technique opens the door to effective new cell-targeted treatments for cancer.

1 Jun 2010

Researchers identify pattern of gene expression in kidney transplant recipients who don't need anti-rejection drugs

Researchers have identified a distinct pattern of gene expression in the largest reported group of kidney transplant recipients who have not rejected the transplant kidneys even though they stopped taking anti-rejection drugs. This finding may help identify other transplant recipients who could safely reduce or end use of immunosuppressive therapy. In 2008, more than 80,000 people in the United States were living with a kidney transplant.

31 May 2010

Vemma donates over $315,000 as nutritional supplements for children in Haiti and Tennessee

Vemma Nutrition Company has donated in excess of $315,000 of its premium children's supplement, Vemma NEXT™ to Kids in Distressed Situations (K.I.D.S.) as a first step in an ongoing donation partnership with the New York City-based nonprofit. This first donation has been earmarked primarily to assist with long-term relief efforts in Haiti spearheaded by K.I.D.S. and Operation Compassion, giving Haitian children access to the vital nutrients they are so desperately missing in their sparse diets.

29 May 2010

Exposure in womb to BPA, DES increase offspring's risk of breast cancer

Exposure in the womb to chemicals like Bisphenol-A (BPA) and Diethylstilbestrol (DES) can increase an offspring's risk of breast cancer, researchers at Yale School of Medicine report in a study published in current issue of Hormones and Cancer, a journal of The Endocrine Society.

29 May 2010

Allergic reactions prevent people with allergic asthma from generating healthy immune response to influenza

New research from UT Southwestern Medical Center suggests that allergic reactions to pet dander, dust mites and mold may prevent people with allergic asthma from generating a healthy immune response to respiratory viruses such as influenza.

29 May 2010

New, non-controversial source of stem cells can form heart muscle cells, repair heart damage

A new and non-controversial source of stem cells can form heart muscle cells and help repair heart damage, according to results of preliminary lab tests reported in Circulation Research: Journal of the American Heart Association.

29 May 2010

Study highlights need for earlier diagnosis and treatment of HIV

Despite growing evidence that the earlier people are diagnosed with HIV and get access to care, the better their clinical outcomes, many HIV-infected people in the United States and Canada are not receiving the care they need early enough.

29 May 2010

DFG approves establishment of twelve new CRCs

The Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft has approved the establishment of twelve new Collaborative Research Centres beginning 1 July 2010. This was decided by the responsible Grants Committee at its spring meeting in Bonn. The new CRCs will initially be funded for four years with a total of 112 million euros (including a 20% programme allowance for indirect project costs).

29 May 2010

Study shows infants fed Enfamil LIPIL experience improved immune outcomes

Results of a new study released this week in the June 2010 issue of The Journal of Pediatrics show that infants fed Enfamil LIPIL containing DHA and ARA during the first year of life experienced improved immune outcomes, including improved respiratory health, versus infants fed the same formulation without these beneficial lipids - and this health benefit was shown for the first three years of life.

28 May 2010

Novel imaging system helps visualize and monitor cellular immune responses of transplanted tissue in real time

A group of "color-coded" laboratory mice are providing researchers with a novel way of tracking T-cells, enabling them to visualize and monitor the cellular immune responses of transplanted tissue in real time. The new imaging system is described in the June issue of Nature Medicine, which appears on-line this week.

28 May 2010

Researchers see plectasin as promising lead compound for new antibiotics

An active compound from fungi and lower animals may well be suitable as an effective weapon against dangerous bacteria. We're talking about plectasin, a small protein molecule that can even destroy highly resistant bacteria . Researchers at the Universities of Bonn, Utrecht, Aalborg and of the Danish company Novozymes AS have shed light on how the substance does this.

28 May 2010

Infectious diseases specialist from Walter and Eliza Hall Institute receives Frank Fenner Award

Infectious diseases specialist Dr Marc Pellegrini from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute will today receive the Frank Fenner Award from the Australasian Society for Infectious Diseases, recognising Dr Pellegrini's efforts to understand human responses to chronic infections.

28 May 2010

New study provides cause-and-effect link between immune system cells and mental illness

A Nobel Prize-winning University of Utah geneticist discovered that bone marrow transplants cure mutant mice who pull out their hair compulsively. The study provides the first cause-and-effect link between immune system cells and mental illness, and points toward eventual new psychiatric treatments.

28 May 2010

Small molecule ramps up interferon production in host cells, launching potent immune response

Many disease-causing microbes carry pumps that expel antibiotics, making the bugs hard to kill with standard drugs. Ironically, these same pumps could be the bugs' Achilles heel.

28 May 2010

E. coli O157:H7 is rare in some wildlife species of California's Central Coast region: Researchers

The disease-causing bacterium E. coli O157:H7 is present but rare in some wildlife species of California's agriculturally rich Central Coast region, an area often referred to as the nation's "salad bowl," reports a team or researchers led by a UC Davis scientist.

28 May 2010

Researchers study safety and immunogenicity of two H1N1 vaccines in UK children

The first head to head study of the two H1N1 vaccines used in the UK during the recent pandemic finds that the adjuvanted split virus vaccine induced higher immune response rates in young children, but was associated with more reactions than the whole virus vaccine.

28 May 2010

Bone marrow transplant cures excessive pathological grooming behavior in mice

Scientists earlier found that mice missing one of a group of core developmental genes known as the Hox genes developed an odd and rather unexpected pathology: the mutant animals groomed themselves compulsively to the point that they were removing their own hair and leaving self-inflicted open sores on their skin. Now, they've found a surprising connection between the Hoxb8 gene and the behavior that looks an awful lot like that of people with an obsessive compulsive spectrum disorder (OCD).

28 May 2010

Immune System News and Research

CCL5 protein plays protective role against Mycobacterium tuberculosis: New research

Platelets play important role in cerebral malaria: Research

Prototype breast cancer vaccine shows promising results in mice

New technique transforms iPS cells into natural tumor killers

Researchers identify pattern of gene expression in kidney transplant recipients who don't need anti-rejection drugs

Vemma donates over $315,000 as nutritional supplements for children in Haiti and Tennessee

Exposure in womb to BPA, DES increase offspring's risk of breast cancer

Allergic reactions prevent people with allergic asthma from generating healthy immune response to influenza

New, non-controversial source of stem cells can form heart muscle cells, repair heart damage

Study highlights need for earlier diagnosis and treatment of HIV

DFG approves establishment of twelve new CRCs

Study shows infants fed Enfamil LIPIL experience improved immune outcomes

Novel imaging system helps visualize and monitor cellular immune responses of transplanted tissue in real time

Researchers see plectasin as promising lead compound for new antibiotics

Infectious diseases specialist from Walter and Eliza Hall Institute receives Frank Fenner Award

New study provides cause-and-effect link between immune system cells and mental illness

Small molecule ramps up interferon production in host cells, launching potent immune response

E. coli O157:H7 is rare in some wildlife species of California's Central Coast region: Researchers

Researchers study safety and immunogenicity of two H1N1 vaccines in UK children

Bone marrow transplant cures excessive pathological grooming behavior in mice

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