Immune System News and Research

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Malaria parasite caught in action on film for the first time

Australian researchers have managed to take pictures of microscopic malaria parasite as it invades a human red blood cell. This will provide a deeper understanding of the parasite’s behaviour and may help fight it. Up to 10% of the world’s population contract malaria every year and a million people, mostly pregnant women and children, die as a result of the parasite transmitted by infected mosquitoes.

19 Jan 2011

USPTO grants KL4 surfactant combination product patent to Discovery Labs

Discovery Laboratories, Inc. has been notified that the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued U.S. Patent Number 7,863,241 titled "Compositions for Treatment and Prevention of Pulmonary Conditions." The patent provides broad coverage for compositions that employ a combination of certain pulmonary surfactants with a broad array of protease inhibitors, administered as either a liquid or aerosol, for treating pulmonary inflammation.

19 Jan 2011

Theraclone, Pfizer enter multi-year research and development collaboration

Theraclone Sciences, Inc., a therapeutic antibody discovery and development company, announced today that they have entered into a multi-year research and development collaboration with Pfizer. The collaboration will use Theraclone's I-STAR™ technology to discover broadly protective monoclonal antibodies against up to four undisclosed targets in the areas of infectious disease and cancer.

19 Jan 2011

National Jewish Health issued method patent for desensitizing B cells

National Jewish Health has been issued a US patent claiming a method to desensitize B cells by inactivating antigen receptors on their surfaces. The method, discovered by John Cambier, PhD, Chairman of the Integrated Department of Immunology at National Jewish Health, holds promise for treatment of B-cell mediated diseases, such as lymphoma and leukemia, rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and rejection of organ transplants.

19 Jan 2011

Case Western Reserve, Athersys enter partnership for scientific study on spinal cord injury

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and Athersys, Inc. announced a joint scientific study on spinal cord injury will be published today in the January issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

19 Jan 2011

Curcumin and dye brilliant blue G may help block dangerous swelling in TBI

An old Indian spice and a dye whose cousin makes sports drinks blue are pointing scientists toward better treatment of traumatic brain injuries.

19 Jan 2011

Positive preliminary results from Soligenix's SGX202 in GARS model

Soligenix, Inc., a late-stage biopharmaceutical company, announced today promising preliminary results from a preclinical study of SGX202 in a canine gastrointestinal acute radiation syndrome model.

19 Jan 2011

New guideline recommends plasmapheresis usage to treat people with severe relapses in MS, neuropathies

A new guideline from the American Academy of Neurology recommends using plasma exchange to treat people with severe relapses in multiple sclerosis and related diseases, as well as those with certain kinds of nerve disorders known as neuropathies.

18 Jan 2011

'Master switch' protein in white blood cells linked to inflammation

Scientists have identified a protein that acts as a "master switch" in certain white blood cells, determining whether they promote or inhibit inflammation. The study, published in the journal Nature Immunology, could help researchers look for new treatments for diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis that involve excessive inflammation.

18 Jan 2011

New way to halt lung inflammation

Acute inflammation of the lung is a poorly recognized human disease that develops in surprising and unexpected ways. The acute lung injury (ALI) or adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a vital new concern for soldiers, but it can develop in anyone during a systemic infection, after severe trauma, as a result of bone fracture, following severe burns and in many other ways as well-- the initial cause may have nothing apparent to do with the lung itself.

18 Jan 2011

Inflammation “master switch” found: Study

According to the latest medical discovery a protein that acts as a “master switch” has been found to determine whether certain white blood cells will boost or dampen inflammation. This may open new avenues in rheumatoid arthritis research. Rheumatoid arthritis or RA is an inflammatory disease that causes severe progressive crippling of the joints.

17 Jan 2011

New evidence about broadly-reactive neutralizing antibodies that block HIV infection

New findings are bringing scientists closer to an effective HIV vaccine. Researchers from Seattle Biomedical Research Institute, Vanderbilt University and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard report findings showing new evidence about broadly-reactive neutralizing antibodies, which block HIV infection. Details are published January 13 in the open-access journal PLoS Pathogens.

14 Jan 2011

Airborne prions can induce mad cow disease: Research

Airborne prions are also infectious and can induce mad cow disease or Creutzfeldt-Jakob disorder. This is the surprising conclusion of researchers at the University of Zurich, the University Hospital Zurich and the University of Tübingen. They recommend precautionary measures for scientific labs, slaughterhouses and animal feed plants.

14 Jan 2011

T.A. Sciences receives US patent for TA-65 to tackle aging process

Telomerase Activation Sciences, today announced the issuance of U.S. Patent No. 7,846,904 to the Geron Corporation. The patent covers the use of certain compounds to upregulate telomerase expression in cells.

14 Jan 2011

The past, present and future of anthrax research

Few strands of bacteria have achieved such a central place in public consciousness as Bacillus anthracis, the bacteria which causes Anthrax. While today it is a feared weapon of bioterrorism Bacillus anthracis has played a significant historical role, especially through the research of the celebrated 19th century scientists Robert Koch and Louis Pasteur, in shaping our understanding of infectious diseases and immunology

13 Jan 2011

Antibiotic treatment may be sufficient to overcome River Blindness

The team found that a bacterium inside the worm acts as a 'disguise' for the parasite, resulting in the immune system reacting to it in an ineffective way. The bacteria protect the worm from the body's natural defences, but once the bacteria are removed with antibiotics, the immune system responds appropriately, releasing cells, called eosinophils, that kill the worm.

13 Jan 2011

New research paper reveals key lessons about origins of 2009 H1N1 pandemic

How Swine Flu Overturned the Understanding of Pandemic Outbreaks. As H1N1 'Swine Flu' returns to the national headlines a new research paper reveals the key lessons about the origins of the 2009 pandemic. The paper, published today in BioEssays, reveals how the pandemic challenges the traditional understanding of 'antigenic shift', given that the virus emerged from an existing influenza subtype.

13 Jan 2011