Immune System News and Research

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New study reveals potential role of TGF-β1 in kidney disease

Fibrosis in the kidney is one of the key causes of progressive renal failure. High levels of the inflammatory molecule TGF-β1 in the kidney tubules due to tissue damage can cause fibrosis as well as nephron degeneration, resulting in loss of kidney function. To clarify the mechanisms regulating TGF-β1-mediated renal fibrosis, Koesters et al expressed high levels of TGF-β1 in renal tubules of mice. Nephron degeneration in this system was mediated by decomposition of the tubular cells. These data suggest that TGF-β1 may play a novel role in cell death of renal cells, thus contributing to renal fibrosis.

28 Jul 2010

Antigenics announces positive results of AG-707 genital herpes vaccine

Antigenics announced positive results with AG-707, an investigational therapeutic vaccine being developed to treat herpes simplex virus-2,the virus that causes genital herpes, in infected patients. Developed by Antigenics, the vaccine triggers a cellular immune response, stimulating both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells.

28 Jul 2010

Researchers reveal biological rationale for why corticosteroids help people with lupus

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have uncovered the biological rationale for why large doses of corticosteroids given repeatedly over several weeks may help individuals with lupus, a chronic inflammatory disease that affects more than 1 million people in the U.S.

27 Jul 2010

Scientists discover mechanism behind flushing reaction caused by nicotinic acid treatment

Cholesterol influences the health of our hearts and blood vessels. Conventional treatment attempts to reduce the level of "bad" cholesterol, LDL cholesterol, in the blood plasma. The opposite approach, which involves increasing the concentration of "good" HDL cholesterol using nicotinic acid, has proven unpopular among patients up to now. The reason for this is that treatment with nicotinic acid has an unpleasant but harmless side-effect: the drug makes patients turn quite red in the face. Scientists at the Max Planck Institute for Heart and Lung Research in Bad Nauheim have now discovered the mechanism behind this effect, which is known as flushing. This will enable the development of flush inhibitors and thereby the more effective prevention of cardiovascular diseases.

27 Jul 2010

Albert Einstein College of Medicine receives research grant to help people with MDR-TB

For the third time in four months, the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases of the National Institutes of Health has awarded Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University a research grant aimed at helping people infected with multidrug-resistant tuberculosis. Taken together, all three NIH grants total $8.57 million.

27 Jul 2010

GenVec creates novel vectors for vaccine development

GenVec, Inc. announced that research regarding GenVec's efforts to create novel vectors for vaccines is appearing in Vol. 28, issue 35, pages 5691-5702 of Vaccine. The article, "Potent immune responses and in vitro pro-inflammatory cytokine suppression by a novel adenovirus vector based on rare human serotype 28," describes GenVec's efforts to identify and utilize novel adenovirus serotypes as vectors in vaccine development.

27 Jul 2010

FDA grants Biovest's BiovaxID vaccine Orphan Drug Designation for mantle cell lymphoma

Biovest International, Inc. today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Orphan Drug Designation to BiovaxID®, Biovest's personalized cancer vaccine, for a second lymphoma indication: mantle cell lymphoma. Mantle cell lymphoma is an aggressive and lethal B-cell blood cancer for which there is no current consensus standard-of-care.

26 Jul 2010

Axela acquires Xceed Molecular

Axela Inc., an innovator in systems that multiplex protein biomarker testing in clinical research and diagnostics, has acquired Xceed Molecular, developer of the award-winning Ziplex® System for gene-expression analysis, the Breast Cancer Prognostic Assay, and Colon Cancer Xpress chip. The new Axela will be introduced at the 2010 American Association of Clinical Chemistry (AACC) annual meeting and Clinical Lab Expo, which takes place July 25 – 29 at the Anaheim Convention Center in California.

26 Jul 2010

IDC secures $32 million in Series B financing

Immune Design Corp. (IDC), a privately held biotechnology company focused on developing novel vaccines and immunotherapies for infectious disease and cancer, announced today that it has secured $32 million in Series B financing. The round was led by ProQuest Investments and was joined by current investors: The Column Group, Versant Ventures, and Alta Partners. The Series B financing brings the total amount of equity capital raised by IDC to $50 million since its inception in 2008.

26 Jul 2010

Nano-patch to replace needles for vaccination soon: Study

Those who fear needles have good news awaiting them. Australian researchers have developed a new method of vaccine delivery using needle-free nano-patches. These could also be mailed to people during pandemics. This breakthrough is published in the latest edition of the journal Small.

26 Jul 2010

Neu5Gc in drugs provokes strong immune response

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have discovered that a kind of sugar molecule common to chimpanzees, gorillas and other mammals but not found in humans provokes a strong immune response in some people, likely worsening conditions in which chronic inflammation is a major issue.

26 Jul 2010

Inhibiting fatty acid synthase can reduce atherosclerosis: Study

Scientists at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a way to significantly reduce atherosclerosis in mice that does not involve lowering cholesterol levels or eliminating other obesity-related problems.

26 Jul 2010

Scientists study Legionella's reprogramming on cells for survival, propagation

When it infects the lungs, the Legionnaire's bacterium Legionella pneumophila causes acute pneumonia. The pathogen's modus operandi is particularly ingenious: it infiltrates deliberately into cells of the human immune system and injects a host of proteins which then interfere in the normal cellular processes. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Molecular Physiology in Dortmund have now discovered how Legionella reprogrammes the cells to ensure its own survival and to propagate. They examined a protein used by the pathogen to divert the material transport within the cells for its own purposes.

26 Jul 2010

New biophotonic imaging method monitors transformations of cellular macromolecules during apoptosis in real-time

Apoptosis, programmed cell death, is essential to normal development, healthy immune system function, and cancer prevention. The process dramatically transforms cellular structures but the limitations of conventional microscopy methods have kept much about this structural reorganization a mystery.

23 Jul 2010

New model of inflammatory bowel disease explores interactions of cells in immune system

Scientists at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute at Virginia Tech have constructed a mathematical and computational model of inflammatory bowel disease that allows researchers to simulate the cellular and molecular changes underlying chronic inflammation in humans. The model allows scientists to explore different interactions of cells in the immune system, check how these cells are linked to inflammation in the colon, and identify intervention points to perhaps stop the disease in its tracks.

23 Jul 2010

Study identifies infection mechanism of disease-causing microbes

A study published in the July 23 issue of Cell identifies the mechanism used by several types of common, virulent microbes to infect plants and cause devastating blights. Microbes using this infection mechanism include fungi that are currently causing wheat rust epidemics in Africa and Asia, and a class of parasitic algae, called oomycetes, that resulted in the Irish potato blight of the 19th Century. These microbes remain an agricultural scourge today.

23 Jul 2010

Pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria cause death of 6 million of world's poorest children

A Johns Hopkins University scientist, whose team of researchers recently identified pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria as the primary causes of death of 6 million of the world's poorest children, today called on leaders in donor and developing nations to take action to address the terrible death toll.

23 Jul 2010

Early HAART during TB treatment prolongs survival of untreated HIV-infected adults: CAMELIA study

A clinical trial in Cambodia has found it possible to prolong the survival of untreated HIV-infected adults with very weak immune systems and newly diagnosed tuberculosis (TB) by starting anti-HIV therapy two weeks after beginning TB treatment, rather than waiting eight weeks, as has been standard.

23 Jul 2010

National Jewish Health receives $31M NIH contract to study skin infections associated with atopic dermatitis

The National Institute of Allergy and Infections Disease has awarded a five-year $31 million contract to National Jewish Health, which is leading a consortium of academic medical centers seeking to better understand skin infections associated with atopic dermatitis. The researchers will focus on antibiotic-resistant staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) infections and widespread viral infections of the skin, both of which are more prevalent among atopic dermatitis patients.

23 Jul 2010

Researchers discover fundamental entry mechanism of fungal microbes into plant and human host cells

A research team led by scientists at the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) at Virginia Tech has discovered a fundamental entry mechanism that allows dangerous fungal microbes to infect plants and cause disease. The discovery paves the way for the development of new intervention strategies to protect plant, and even some animal cells, from deadly fungal infections. The findings are published in the July 23 edition of the journal Cell.

23 Jul 2010

Immune System News and Research

New study reveals potential role of TGF-β1 in kidney disease

Antigenics announces positive results of AG-707 genital herpes vaccine

Researchers reveal biological rationale for why corticosteroids help people with lupus

Scientists discover mechanism behind flushing reaction caused by nicotinic acid treatment

Albert Einstein College of Medicine receives research grant to help people with MDR-TB

GenVec creates novel vectors for vaccine development

FDA grants Biovest's BiovaxID vaccine Orphan Drug Designation for mantle cell lymphoma

Axela acquires Xceed Molecular

IDC secures $32 million in Series B financing

Nano-patch to replace needles for vaccination soon: Study

Neu5Gc in drugs provokes strong immune response

Inhibiting fatty acid synthase can reduce atherosclerosis: Study

Scientists study Legionella's reprogramming on cells for survival, propagation

New biophotonic imaging method monitors transformations of cellular macromolecules during apoptosis in real-time

New model of inflammatory bowel disease explores interactions of cells in immune system

Study identifies infection mechanism of disease-causing microbes

Pneumonia, diarrhea, and malaria cause death of 6 million of world's poorest children

Early HAART during TB treatment prolongs survival of untreated HIV-infected adults: CAMELIA study

National Jewish Health receives $31M NIH contract to study skin infections associated with atopic dermatitis

Researchers discover fundamental entry mechanism of fungal microbes into plant and human host cells

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