Immune System News and Research

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Scientists discover how T-cell leukemia viruses evade defense mechanisms

National Cancer Institute (NCI) scientists have discovered how human T-cell leukemia virus type 1 (HTLV-1), which infects about 20 million people worldwide, evades being held in check by one of the body's natural defense mechanisms.

6 Feb 2007

Spring births increase likelihood of preterm birth

Women who become pregnant in spring are more vulnerable to preterm birth than those who conceive in other seasons, according to researchers at the University of Pittsburgh.

5 Feb 2007

New understanding of blood pressure gene could lead to new treatments

Research by scientists at UCL (University College London) has clearly demonstrated for the first time the structure and function of a gene crucial to the regulation of blood pressure. The discovery could be important in the search for new treatments for illnesses such as heart disease, the UK's biggest killer.

5 Feb 2007

Researchers identify human pancreatic cancer stem cells

Researchers at the University of Michigan Medical Center have, for the first time, identified human pancreatic cancer stem cells. Their work indicates that these cells are likely responsible for the aggressive tumor growth, progression, and metastasis that define this deadly cancer.

1 Feb 2007

Peptide vaccine fights off breast tumors with help of bacteria-mimicking agents

With the help of immune system-stimulating molecules that mimic bacterial components, researchers have used a type of cancer vaccine to both delay and prevent breast tumors in mice.

1 Feb 2007

Novel approach to synthesizing nanowires

A novel approach to synthesizing nanowires (NWs) allows their direct integration with microelectronic systems for the first time, as well as their ability to act as highly sensitive biomolecule detectors that could revolutionize biological diagnostic applications, according to a report in Nature.

31 Jan 2007

Different treatments may be needed for chronic asthma, depending on whether it results from allergies or lung infections

Researchers have now identified a particular gene that influences how severe a M. pneumoniae infection may be, which in turn suggests that a different strategy might be needed for treating asthma resulting from this and similar lung infections rather than allergies.

31 Jan 2007

Investigational treatment for cervical dysplasia

Temple University Hospital's Center For Women's Health is participating in a national study to determine the safety and effectiveness of an investigational treatment for cervical dysplasia.

30 Jan 2007

GlaxoSmithKline's new influenza vaccine accepted for review in Europe

GlaxoSmithKline has announced that its new generation H5N1 split antigen pre-pandemic influenza vaccine has been accepted for review by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP) in Europe.

29 Jan 2007

Polymer nanoparticles for immunotherapy from encapsulated tumor-associated antigens and whole tumor cells

Using a biodegradable nanoparticle as a means of delivering tumor cell debris and proteins to the immune system, investigators at Yale University have developed a promising new method for creating therapeutic anticancer vaccines.

29 Jan 2007

Cellular mechanism linked to inflammation and cancer

A team led by biochemists at the University of California, San Diego has found what could be a long-elusive mechanism through which inflammation can promote cancer. The findings may provide a new approach for developing cancer therapies.

28 Jan 2007

Manipulation of proliferation and differentiation of human bone marrow derived neural stem cells in vitro and in vivo

Stem cells taken from adult human bone marrow have been manipulated by scientists at the Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to generate aggregates of cells called spheres that are similar to those derived from neural stem cells of the brain.

28 Jan 2007

Possible reason for severe side-effects of Northwick Park clinical trial

A possible reason why the Northwick Park clinical trial of the drug TGN1412 caused multiple organ failure in human volunteers is revealed in research presented at a conference near Paris.

25 Jan 2007

Human immune system has not adapted to changes in the environment

It seems that the current "allergy epidemic" is due not so much to an increase in allergenic risk factors as to the disappearance of factors protecting people against allergies.

25 Jan 2007

New drug to combat Gastrointestinal graft-vs.-host disease in stem-cell patients shows significant reduction in deaths

Gastrointestinal graft-vs.-host disease is a common and potentially deadly side effect for patients who undergo an allogeneic stem-cell transplant to treat certain blood cancers.

23 Jan 2007

New understanding of the hit-and-run tactics used by infectious bacteria

New research from scientists at the University of Cambridge has the potential to radically change our understanding of how infection spreads around the body and improve the methods used to control it.

22 Jan 2007

Researchers to study use of carbon monoxide in treating disease

Scientists at the University of York have won a grant of £110,000 to investigate potential uses of carbon monoxide in treating disease.

22 Jan 2007

Novavax's pandemic flu vaccines show promise

Novavax, Inc.'s novel virus-like particle (VLP) vaccines have been shown to be effective in generating protection against pandemic influenza as well as cross protection against different strains of the virus in pre-clinical studies, according to data presented at the Phacilitate Vaccine Forum.

22 Jan 2007

New approach offers hope for an effective herpes vaccine

A researcher at Montana State University has called for an innovative, new approach in developing a vaccine against genital herpes.

10 Jan 2007

Study shows why the body's immune system doesn't attack tissues in the small intestine

Answering one of the oldest questions in human physiology, researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute have discovered why the body's immune system - perpetually on guard against foreign microbes like bacteria - doesn't attack tissues in the small intestine that harbor millions of bacteria cells.

9 Jan 2007