Immune System News and Research

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New rapid blood test for tuberculosis

A new blood test could enable doctors to rule out tuberculosis (TB) infection within days rather than weeks, according to a new study published this week in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine.

10 Mar 2008

Fugitive cancer cells can be blocked by stopping blood cells that aid them

Cancer cells get a helping hand from platelets, specialized blood cells involved in clotting.

10 Mar 2008

Once-a-week arthritis pill significantly reduces the risk of heart attacks

A once-a-week pill to treat rheumatoid arthritis significantly reduces the risk of heart attack and stroke for people with the painful joint condition.

10 Mar 2008

Exercise doesn't stop the clock on aging, but it seems to slow it down

Evidence continues to mount that exercise provides many benefits to help people look and feel younger. The March issue of Mayo Clinic Women's HealthSource offers a recap of the many benefits of regular exercise.

6 Mar 2008

ISG15 protein inhibits Ebola from reaching out to infect neighboring cells

Scientists at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine have identified a protein, ISG15, that inhibits the Ebola virus from budding, the process by which viruses escape from cells and spread to infect neighboring cells.

6 Mar 2008

New malaria drug also treats toxoplasmosis

A new drug that will soon enter clinical trials for treatment of malaria also appears to be 10 times more effective than the key medicine in the current gold-standard treatment for toxoplasmosis, a disease caused by a related parasite that infects nearly one-third of all humans—more than two billion people worldwide.

6 Mar 2008

Neural progenitor cells as reservoirs for HIV in the brain

Impaired brain function is a prominent and still unsolved problem in AIDS.

6 Mar 2008

MIT cell-based sensor technology quickly detects airborne pathogens

Researchers at MIT Lincoln Laboratory have developed a powerful sensor that can detect airborne pathogens such as anthrax and smallpox in less than three minutes.

6 Mar 2008

Doubts cast over aromatherapy in new study

According to new research while aromatherapy has a positive effect on mood it does not offer any other health benefits.

5 Mar 2008

Watery pools in bone marrow key to psoriatic arthritic damage

Researchers have learned more about how a leading drug prevents certain types of arthritis from eating away at bone, according to a study published in the March edition of the Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases.

4 Mar 2008

Protein in embryonic stem cells control malignant tumor cells

A protein that governs development of human embryonic stem cells (hESCs) also inhibits the growth and spread of malignant melanoma, the deadliest skin cancer, Northwestern University researchers have discovered.

4 Mar 2008

New inexpensive test for malaria detection

ETH Zurich professor Peter Seeberger has been working on a sugar-based malaria vaccine for years.

4 Mar 2008

Aromatherapy and pain relief?

One of the most comprehensive investigations done to date on aromatherapy failed to show any improvement in either immune status, wound healing or pain control among people exposed to two often-touted scents.

4 Mar 2008

New genetic risk factor for coeliac disease

Scientists who last year identified a new genetic risk factor for coeliac disease, have, following continued research, discovered an additional seven gene regions implicated in causing the condition.

3 Mar 2008

New way to develop tumor vaccines

Researchers at the University of Southern California (USC) have uncovered a new way to develop more effective tumor vaccines by turning off the suppression function of regulatory T cells.

3 Mar 2008

Novel mechanism found that may boost impaired function of leukemia protein

A new study led by researchers at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center (MSKCC) reports on a novel mechanism that can enhance the function of a protein that is frequently impaired in patients with acute forms of leukemia.

3 Mar 2008

New discovery on programmed cell death

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have discovered a dance of proteins that protects certain cells from undergoing apoptosis, also known as programmed cell death. Understanding the fine points of apoptosis is important to researchers seeking ways to control this process.

1 Mar 2008

Statistical modeling improves quality of laboratory data

Many areas of research and medicine rely critically upon knowing a person's individual immune system proteins, as they determine an individual's ability to fight disease or mistakenly attack their own tissues.

1 Mar 2008

Customized treatments for sepsis lower treatment time and reduce length of ICU stays

Using a blood test and a decision algorithm, rather than standard hospital protocols, to determine the appropriate length of antibiotic therapy in patients with severe sepsis or septic shock can reduce duration of treatments, shorten ICU stays, and lower hospital costs - all without adverse effects on patients, according to new research.

1 Mar 2008

Gene expression differences between Europeans and Africans affect response to drugs, infections

Differences in gene expression levels between people of European versus African ancestry can affect how each group responds to certain drugs or fights off specific infections, report researchers from the University of Chicago Medical Center and the Expression Research Laboratory at Affymetrix Inc. of Santa Clara, CA.

28 Feb 2008