Immune System News and Research

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Vivakor completes third-party validation testing of its VivaBlend nutraceutical product

Vivakor™, Inc. (OTCBB: VIVK) today announced the results of independent, third-party validation testing of its VivaBlend™ nutraceutical product. VivaBlend is a powerful extract developed by the scientists at Vivakor and is derived from over 18 highly bioactive fruits, vegetables and legumes. Through a proprietary formulation and extraction process, Vivakor scientists have maximized the health benefits of VivaBlend by creating an optimum blend of super-antioxidants and powerful plant phenolics and flavonoids.

14 Sep 2009

H1N1 vaccine to be available in U.S. earlier than anticipated

Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said on Sunday that the H1N1 (swine) flu vaccine will be available in the U.S. earlier than previously anticipated, the Wall Street Journal reports. "We are on track to have an ample supply rolling out by mid-October, but we may have some early vaccine as early as the first full week in October. And we plan to get the vaccine rolling out the door as fast as it hits the production line," Sebelius said (Davis, 9/13).

14 Sep 2009

New data confirm link between Epstein-Barr virus and multiple sclerosis

Over the last 40 years, Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) has been repeatedly associated with multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases. During the 2nd European Congress of Immunology ECI 2009 held in Berlin, Francesca Aloisi, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Rome, will present new data that further support the link. In the brain lesions of patients with multiple sclerosis her team found abnormal accumulation of EBV infected B lymphocytes.

14 Sep 2009

Malnutrition, poor sanitary conditions and HIV leads to defective immune system

The most common causes worldwide include malnutrition, poor sanitary conditions and human immune deficiency virus (HIV) infection. Other causes of temporary or permanent damage to the immune system include old age, medications (e.g. cortisone, cytostatic drugs), radiotherapy, stress after surgery and malignant tumors of the bone marrow and the lymph nodes.

14 Sep 2009

Celldex commences dosing patients in Phase 1/2 study of its CDX-1401 vaccine candidate

Celldex Therapeutics, Inc. (NASDAQ: CLDX) today announced that the first patient has been dosed in a Phase 1/2 study of its vaccine candidate, CDX-1401, in patients with malignant solid tumors that express NY-ESO-1. CDX-1401 is a fully human monoclonal antibody designed to selectively deliver the NY-ESO-1 antigen to dendritic cells to generate a robust immune response against cancer cells expressing NY-ESO-1.

14 Sep 2009

Early vaccination minimizes the risk of damage by potentially harmful infections

Parents should not be worried, that early vaccination would overwhelm their babies. Recent data show, that the immune system of newborns is able to respond to a world full of antigens already at birth.

14 Sep 2009

Altair announces positive Phase I results for AIR645 in treating asthma

Altair Therapeutics, Inc., a privately-held, biopharmaceutical company developing novel therapeutics for respiratory diseases, today announced positive results from a phase I multiple dose safety and pharmacokinetic study of its lead product, once-weekly inhaled AIR645 in healthy adults and mild asthmatics.

14 Sep 2009

Massage Envy clinics to donate funds to support breast cancer education

On Tuesday, September 15, at all Massage Envy clinics in the D.C. metro area, you can relax, get healthier, and help in the fight against breast cancer. All 18 area clinics in Maryland, D.C. and Virginia are offering massages at more than half-off the regular price, with $10 from each session being donated directly to area affiliates of Susan G. Komen for the Cure.

14 Sep 2009

VBI's flu vaccine offers protection against H1N1

Variation Biotechnologies, Inc. (VBI), an emerging leader in the discovery and development of novel vaccines to fight infectious diseases, today reported that the company’s proprietary influenza vaccine triggered a robust immune response and provided protection against the H1N1 strain of influenza.

14 Sep 2009

Phase III STARTMRK clinical study on ISENTRESS in comparison to efavirenz

ISENTRESS , an integrase inhibitor from Merck & Co., Inc., was studied in comparison to efavirenz in maintaining viral load suppression to undetectable levels (less than 50 copies/mL) and at improving CD4 cell counts in previously untreated (treatment-naïve) HIV-1-infected patients through 96 weeks in a Phase III study called STARTMRK.

14 Sep 2009

Eat healthy foods to prevent flu

As flu season grips the nation with heightened awareness of hand washing and cough covering, healthy eating is a potent prevention method getting left out in the cold.

14 Sep 2009

Phase IIa trial results of panobacumab released

Kenta Biotech has presented positive Phase IIa results of its lead drug candidate, panobacumab (KBPA101), showing it is safe and well tolerated in patients with hospital-acquired pneumonia caused by Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The compound, a fully human IgM monoclonal antibody, has the potential to reduce mortality rates.

14 Sep 2009

Master gene could lead to new ways of cancer treatments

The master gene that causes blood stem cells to turn into disease-fighting 'Natural Killer' (NK) immune cells has been identified by scientists, in a study published in Nature Immunology today. The discovery could one day help scientists boost the body's production of these frontline tumour-killing cells, creating new ways to treat cancer.

14 Sep 2009

NIAID conducts human clinical trials of 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccines

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, also is conducting clinical trials of 2009 H1N1 influenza vaccines, produced by Sanofi Pasteur and CSL Limited. The NIAID trials are testing two different dosages (15 micrograms versus 30 micrograms) and evaluating the immune response to one and two doses of these vaccines.

14 Sep 2009

Phase 2 MS clinical trial data continues to show durable reductions in relapse rate

Genzyme Corporation reported today that four-year follow-up data from its completed Phase 2 multiple sclerosis (MS) trial continued to show durable reductions in relapse rate and sustained accumulation of disability three years after the majority of patients received their last course of the investigational compound alemtuzumab.

14 Sep 2009

U.S., Australian researchers say single H1N1 vaccine dose protects adults against virus

The results of clinical trials have shown one dose of the H1N1 (swine) flu vaccine is enough to offer adults protection against the virus, U.S. and Australian researchers said Thursday, the Associated Press reports (Neergaard, 9/11).

11 Sep 2009

Phase II human clinical trial of Exsulin commences

Exsulin Corporation today announced the start of a phase II human clinical trial of Exsulin, a peptide drug product aimed at restoring insulin production in people with diabetes mellitus. The randomized, controlled 12-week trial in patients with established Type 1 diabetes (T1DM) will be co-led by Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., and McGill University Health Centre in Montreal, Canada.

10 Sep 2009

NIH provides Inviragen second major grant to develop a dengue vaccine

Inviragen has received a $600,000 grant from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, to partially support its continued efforts to develop a safe and effective dengue vaccine. The two-year grant will fund a collaborative effort led by Inviragen and involving scientists at the University of Wisconsin and Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The supported work will include additional optimization of Inviragen’s vaccine to generate more potent immune responses.

10 Sep 2009

New treatment strategies for multiple sclerosis

The drawback in the new immunotherapies in multiple sclerosis (MS) includMe severe infections that can be fatal. For example, treatment with natalizumab, which reduces the immune surveillance of the brain, can lead to the development of progressive multifocal leukoencephalopathy (PML), a typically fatal form of viral encephalitis.

10 Sep 2009

Therapeutic principles of monoclonal antibodies

Professor Joachim R. Kalden, Member of the Department for Molecular Immunology, Nikolaus-Fiebiger-Zentrum, University Medical School Erlangen-Nuremberg, presents therapeutic principles based on monoclonal antibodies.

10 Sep 2009