Macrophage News and Research

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A macrophage is a type of white blood cell that surrounds and kills microorganisms, removes dead cells, and stimulates the action of other immune system cells.

Autophagy potential target for new CF treatments

Scientists have found why a certain type of bacteria, harmless in healthy people, is so deadly to patients with cystic fibrosis.

23 Apr 2012

Study determines importance of bacterial infections in cirrhosis

A South African study presented today determines the importance of bacterial infections, which commonly occur in cirrhosis and can alter the natural history of the condition, possibly leading to loss of liver function and decompensation. It is now recognised that many infections in cirrhotic patients result from bacterial translocation (BT) from the intestine.

20 Apr 2012

Researchers identify mechanism of TRPM2 regulation

Professor Makoto TOMINAGA from National Institute for Physiological Sciences (Okazaki Institute for Integrative Bioscience), National Institutes of Natural Sciences, and his research team member Ms. Makiko KASHIO have identified the mechanism through which TRPM2 is activated by body temperature with hydrogen peroxide (a kind of reactive oxygen species) produced by immune reactions.

10 Apr 2012

Researchers uncover mechanism that explains link between autoimmunity and atherosclerosis

Patients with autoimmune diseases often show a predisposition to develop "hardening of the arteries" or atherosclerosis. LMU researchers have now uncovered a mechanism that establishes a causal link between the two disorders.

5 Apr 2012

Positive preclinical results from Cancer Therapeutics' CTX-0294945 plus Avastin study

Cancer Therapeutics, a company focused on translating cancer biology research into novel treatments for cancer, today announced positive preclinical results for CTX-0294945 as an adjuvant therapy to the cancer drug Avastin (bevacizumab - Genentech/Roche). The data is presented today in a late breaking poster at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2012 in Chicago, USA.

4 Apr 2012

Potential new therapy that kills cancer cells selectively

Researchers have made a drug that helps the immune system to break down cancerous tumors. It has worked on breast, bowel, prostate, ovarian, brain, bladder and liver cancers, while previous studies show it can also be used to fight some blood cancers. If given early, the drug could even be a cure, researchers say.

28 Mar 2012

Pfizer to present data on ADCs at AACR 2012

Pfizer Oncology will present data from a variety of preclinical and clinical studies of Pfizer's early-stage compounds, including data from Pfizer's investigational antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) portfolio and research evaluating several molecules targeting novel pathways that play a crucial role in basic cellular functions, at the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) Annual Meeting 2012 in Chicago, IL, from March 31-April 4.

27 Mar 2012

Kyolic AGE may reduce duration of cold and flu symptoms by 61%

Americans looking to impact their cold and flu symptoms this season may have a new weapon at their disposal. A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study just published by the University of Florida determined that Kyolic Aged Garlic Extract (AGE) may reduce the duration of symptoms associated with common colds or flus by as much as 61 percent.

16 Mar 2012

Panel of 10 serum protein biomarkers could help in lung cancer diagnosis

A panel of serum biomarkers could help predict the level of lung cancer risk in high-risk patients, offering doctors an option before proceeding with a biopsy. Research presented in the April 2012 issue of the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer's (IASLC) Journal of Thoracic Oncology shows that a panel of 10 serum protein biomarkers could help in the lung cancer diagnosis.

16 Mar 2012

JAK-STAT inhibitors reverse MS-like disease in mice

A new class of drugs completing clinical trials soon for rheumatoid arthritis should be examined as a treatment for multiple sclerosis, according to the authors of a University of Alabama at Birmingham study published today in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

13 Mar 2012

RhoGDI2 protein helps prevent bladder cancer metastasis to the lungs

The diagnosis of localized bladder cancer carries an 80 percent five-year survival rate, but once the cancer spreads, the survival rate at even three years is only 20 percent. A major study published today in the Journal of Clinical Investigation not only shows how bladder cancer metastasizes to the lungs but pinpoints a method for stopping this spread.

13 Mar 2012

CD4 T cells can directly kill HIV-infected cells

A subpopulation of the immune cells targeted by HIV may play an important role in controlling viral loads after initial infection, potentially helping to determine how quickly infection will progress. In the February 29 issue of Science Translational Medicine, a team of researchers from the Ragon Institute of Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), MIT and Harvard describe finding a population of HIV-specific CD4 T cells - cells traditionally thought to direct and support activities of other immune cells - that can directly kill HIV-infected cells.

1 Mar 2012

Fetus protecting enzyme also prevents autoimmune diseases

Cells that die naturally generate a lot of internal debris that can trigger the immune system to attack the body, leading to diseases such as lupus.

24 Feb 2012

Unknown facets of biological mechanism that immune cells use for creating free radicals

Sometimes our immune defence attacks our own cells. When this happens in the brain we see neurodegenerative diseases such as dementia, Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. But if the the immune defence is inhibited, the results could be disastrous.

23 Feb 2012

Elevated levels of two TLRs can trigger heart disease and diabetes

UC Davis scientists have uncovered a key suspect in the destructive inflammation that underlies heart disease and diabetes. The new research shows elevated levels of a receptor present on leucocytes of the innate immune response in people at risk for these chronic diseases.

23 Feb 2012

NK cells play an important role in rejection of porcine chondrocytes transplantation

Researchers from the Bellvitge Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBELL) have studied for the first time the response of human NK cells (Natural Killer) against porcine chondrocytes (cartilage cells).

23 Feb 2012

DRG cells may hold potential for nerve transplants

The carnage evident in disasters like car wrecks or wartime battles is oftentimes mirrored within the bodies of the people involved. A severe wound can leave blood vessels and nerves severed, bones broken, and cellular wreckage strewn throughout the body - a debris field within the body itself.

22 Feb 2012

Cedars-Sinai scientist to study potential treatments for AD

A Cedars-Sinai research scientist has been awarded two national grants totaling more than $2.5 million, including a prestigious Research Project Grant from the National Institutes of Health to study potential treatments for Alzheimer's disease.

21 Feb 2012

CDRD, NGDI-UBC collaborate to combine existing approved drugs to better treat TB

One year after The Centre for Drug Research and Development (CDRD) and the Neglected Global Diseases Initiative at the University of British Columbia (NGDI-UBC) came together to develop interventions for neglected global diseases, a project to combine existing approved drugs to better treat Tuberculosis (TB) has emerged as the collaboration's leading prospect.

21 Feb 2012

Scientists track initial steps of type 1 diabetes mellitus

Scientists have taken a remarkably detailed look at the initial steps that occur in the body when type 1 diabetes mellitus first develops in a child or young adult.

17 Feb 2012