Immune System News and Research

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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

Researchers discover group of mutations involved in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia

An international team of researchers has found a group of mutations involved in T-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (T-ALL), and showed that a group of certain drugs, already in clinical use to treat other diseases, can eliminate the cells carrying these mutations.

5 Sep 2011

Einstein researchers develop tuberculosis vaccine candidate

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University report in the September 4 online edition of Nature Medicine that they have developed a tuberculosis (TB) vaccine candidate that proved both potent and safe in animal studies.

5 Sep 2011

Researchers discover mechanism of low-dose LDN on cell proliferative-related disorders

Researchers at The Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, Pennsylvania have discovered the mechanism by which a low dose of the opioid antagonist naltrexone (LDN), an agent used clinically to treat cancer and autoimmune diseases, exerts a profound inhibitory effect on cell proliferation.

3 Sep 2011

Researchers discover protein signals responsible for preserving anti-viral antibodies

Our immune system is capable of a remarkable feat: the ability to remember infections for years, even decades, after they have first been encountered and defeated. While the antibodies we make last only about a month, we retain the means of making them for a lifetime.

3 Sep 2011

Inhibiting the ability of immune cells to use fatty acids slows MS progression

In a paper published today in the journal Scientific Reports, a pair of researchers at the University of California, San Diego Skaggs School of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical Sciences report that inhibiting the ability of immune cells to use fatty acids as fuel measurably slows disease progression in a mouse model of multiple sclerosis.

3 Sep 2011

UCF, UF receive $5.5 million NIH grant for hemophilia research

At a time when research funding is hard to come by, a University of Central Florida and University of Florida partnership has landed almost $5.5 million in National Institutes of Health highly competitive grants for hemophilia research.

3 Sep 2011

Study finds link between long-term dietary patterns and human gut bacteria

"You are what you eat" is familiar enough, but how deep do the implications go? An interdisciplinary group of investigators from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania have found an association between long-term dietary patterns and the bacteria of the human gut.

3 Sep 2011

Exercise triggers influential stem cells to become bone instead of fat

McMaster researchers have found one more reason to exercise: working out triggers influential stem cells to become bone instead of fat, improving overall health by boosting the body's capacity to make blood.

3 Sep 2011

Plerixafor drug shows promise against WHIM syndrome

A new study reports that a drug already approved by the Food and Drug Administration for use in patients undergoing a bone marrow transplant may also have promise for treating people who have a rare immune deficiency known as WHIM syndrome.

3 Sep 2011

Study: Growth hormone helps regenerate damaged hair cells in zebrafish ear

Loud noise, especially repeated loud noise, is known to cause irreversible damage to the hair cells inside the cochlea and eventually lead to deafness. In mammals this is irreversible, however both birds and fish are able to re-grow the damaged hair cells and restore hearing.

3 Sep 2011

Scientists clarify endogenous mechanism that can prevent development of allergies

Scientists at Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin and the Johannes Gutenberg University in Mainz have clarified an endogenous mechanism that can prevent the development of allergies. They were able to show that certain cells of the immune system, so-called killer dendritic cells, are capable of eliminating allergy cells.

3 Sep 2011

Jefferson's two-step bone marrow transplant procedure holds promise for cancer patients

Half-matched bone marrow or stem cell transplants for blood cancer patients have typically been associated with disappointing clinical outcomes. However, a clinical trial conducted at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson testing its unique, two-step half-match procedure has produced some promising results: the probability of overall survival was 45 percent in all patients after three years and 75 percent in patients who were in remission at the time of the transplant.

2 Sep 2011