Immune System News and Research

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HJF selects three promising USU doctoral students to receive 2011-12 fellowships

The Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine, Inc. has selected three promising Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences (USU) doctoral students to receive fellowships for the 2011-12 academic year.

9 Sep 2011

Possible link between mother's diet and risk of allergies in children

A possible link between what a mother eats during pregnancy and the risk of her child developing allergies has been identified in new research published in this month's The Journal of Physiology.

9 Sep 2011

Positive results from Sanaria PfSPZ Vaccine initial Phase 1 trial on malaria

Positive results from the initial Phase 1 clinical trial in 80 healthy volunteers and complementary pre-clinical studies of the Sanaria PfSPZ Vaccine are published today in the online issue of Science.

9 Sep 2011

TB vaccine candidate shows early potential in mice

Scientists at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Albert Einstein College of Medicine and Colorado State University report in the September 4 issue of Nature Medicine that "[a] potential vaccine against tuberculosis [TB] has been found to completely eliminate tuberculosis bacteria from infected tissues in some mice," according to a HHMI press release.

8 Sep 2011

Researchers identify bouncer protein that plays a vital role in RA prevention

Researchers at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine have discovered why the immune cells of people with rheumatoid arthritis become hyperactive and attack the joints and bones. The immune cells have lost their bouncer, the burly protein that keeps them in line the same way a bouncer in a nightclub controls rowdy patrons.

8 Sep 2011

ATA announces five recipients of 2011 thyroid cancer research grants

The American Thyroid Association (ATA) announced the five recipients of its 2011 research grants, each of whom will receive up to $25,000 annually for up to two years. Three of the five recipients were awarded special ATA ThyCa grants for research projects that focus on thyroid cancer. These grants are funded by ThyCa: Thyroid Cancer Survivors, Inc.

8 Sep 2011

Daily moderate drinking may decrease atherosclerosis

For the first time, new research shows that patterns of alcohol consumption - a drink or two every night, or several cocktails on Friday and Saturday nights only - may be more important in determining alcohol's influence on heart health than the total amount consumed.

8 Sep 2011

Beta-glucans can help wounds to heal quickly

Can wounds be helped to heal faster? Yes, says a Norwegian company whose product's active ingredient, beta-glucans, comes from common baker's yeast.

8 Sep 2011

Loss of estrogen receptor alpha protein may lead to metabolic syndrome

UCLA researchers demonstrated that loss of a key protein that regulates estrogen and immune activity in the body could lead to aspects of metabolic syndrome, a combination of conditions that can cause Type 2 diabetes, atherosclerosis and cancer. Called estrogen receptor alpha, this protein is critical in regulating immune system activity such as helping cells suppress inflammation and gobble-up debris.

7 Sep 2011

Scientists discover 29 new genetic variants linked with MS

Multiple sclerosis is primarily an immunological disease. Scientists at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) have in succeeded, in collaboration with 23 research teams from 15 different countries, in discovering a total of 29 new genetic variants that are involved in the genesis of multiple sclerosis (MS), an inflammatory disease of the nervous system.

7 Sep 2011

ImmunoCellular provides update on ICT-107 Phase II trial for glioblastoma multiforme

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, Ltd., a biotechnology company focused on the development of novel immune-based cancer therapies, provided an update today on clinical trial site activity and patient enrollment for its Phase II clinical trial of ICT-107, the Company's dendritic cell based cancer vaccine candidate targeting multiple tumor antigens for the treatment of glioblastoma multiforme.

7 Sep 2011

IBCRF awards TGen $50,000 to discover genetic origins of inflammatory breast cancer

The Inflammatory Breast Cancer Research Foundation (IBCRF) has awarded $50,000 to the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) to discover the genetic origins of this rare and most deadly form of breast cancer.

7 Sep 2011

Pancreatic mesenchyme plays central role in the formation of mature beta cells

A somewhat mysterious soft tissue found in the fetus during early development in the womb plays a pivotal role in the formation of mature beta cells the sole source of the body's insulin. This discovery, made by scientists at University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) and Texas A&M University, may lead to new ways of addressing Type 1 and Type 2 diabetes.

7 Sep 2011

March of Dimes urges all pregnant women to get influenza immunization

Getting a flu shot during pregnancy protects the mom-to-be from what could be a very serious – even fatal – illness and can protect her newborn who is too young to receive his or her own immunization.

7 Sep 2011

Genetically modified M. smegmatis vaccine shows promise against TB

An experimental vaccine composed of a genetically modified bacterium closely related to the bacterium that causes tuberculosis (TB) has been found to protect mice against TB infection, according to a study appearing online September 4 in the journal Nature Medicine.

7 Sep 2011

Month of birth may determine career

Being born in a certain month appears to indicate the statistical likelihood of what job a person will end up with, the study by the UK’s Office for National Statistics has found.

6 Sep 2011

Tick-borne disease in US blood supply

A tick-borne infection known as Babesiosis, which can cause severe disease and even death, is becoming a growing threat to the U.S. blood supply, government researchers said on Monday.

6 Sep 2011

Biologists reveal why men's ring fingers are longer than their index fingers

Biologists at the University of Florida have found a reason why men's ring fingers are generally longer than their index fingers - and why the reverse usually holds true for women.

6 Sep 2011

Researchers discover gene mutation linked with lymphoedema, leukaemia

Researchers have discovered a gene that when mutated can cause lymphoedema (swollen limbs due to a failure of the lymph system), immune abnormalities, deafness and leukaemia.

5 Sep 2011

IKEPLUS immunization completely eliminates TB bacteria from infected tissues

A potential vaccine against tuberculosis has been found to completely eliminate tuberculosis bacteria from infected tissues in some mice. The vaccine was created with a strain of bacteria that, due to the absence of a few genes, are unable to avoid its host's first-line immune response.

5 Sep 2011