Immune System News and Research

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Prenatal exposure to alcohol can change child's circadian rhythms

Altered sleeping and eating patterns, behavioral problems, attention deficits and depression in children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders may indicate that their biological rhythms, which are controlled by circadian systems, have been affected by alcohol exposure during development.

25 Apr 2006

Study shows drugs work differently in the brains of men and women

A Johns Hopkins discovery could lead to tailored treatments for drug abuse and neurological diseases after providing what is believed to be the first evidence in people that amphetamines have a greater effect on men's brains than women's.

24 Apr 2006

Study reveals findings on how insulin-producing beta cells grow and function

A new Joslin Diabetes Center-led study has shown conclusively that two receptors in the insulin-producing beta cell do not affect developmental growth, refuting a long-held hypothesis in diabetes research.

23 Apr 2006

Drug combo might beat type 1 diabetes

Scientists in California have developed a cocktail of drugs which can reverse diabetes and say the discovery is an important step towards a potential cure.

23 Apr 2006

Australian scientists tackle deadly Q fever

Scientists at James Cook University have taken the lead in developing a new vaccine against a highly infectious cattleyard disease caused by a bacteria which has the potential to be developed as a bioterrorist weapon.

20 Apr 2006

Corticosteroids do not improve survival in patients with late-stage acute respiratory distress syndrome

The study is the first multi-center randomized clinical trial to evaluate the effects of moderate doses of steroids in ARDS patients when treatment is started 7 days or more after the onset of the condition.

20 Apr 2006

Researchers find gene connected to Lupus

Researchers at the University of Minnesota have identified a variant of a gene that is present in most people with lupus, a complex and chronic autoimmune disease.

20 Apr 2006

New method designed to analyze the genes that regulate the immune system

Seattle scientists have developed a new method for analyzing the Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) of the human genome.

20 Apr 2006

Discovery points to more effective ways of regulating cell signalling

A discovery made at The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute provides new insights into enhancing the function of the protein SOCS3, which regulates the response of cells to external stimuli.

20 Apr 2006

Seniors unhappy in marriage risk ill health

According to a new study an unhappy marriage takes it's toll on those within it especially as they age.

19 Apr 2006

Scientists document an organ-specific innate immune system

In research published in the April 18 edition of the journal Immunity, scientists at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine outline the unique mechanism by which the lung shapes its defensive strategies against microbial invasion.

18 Apr 2006

Doses of DNA-gene-coated gold particles protect against harmful protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease

Doses of DNA-gene-coated gold particles protect mice against a protein implicated in Alzheimer's disease, researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have found.

16 Apr 2006

Potent induction of chondrocytic differentiation of human adipose-derived adult stem cells by bone morphogenetic protein 6

A novel growth factor significantly improves the ability of specialized stem cells derived from human fat to be transformed into cartilage cells, according to Duke University Medical Center and Pratt School of Engineering researchers.

16 Apr 2006

IL-25 both promotes and limits inflammatory diseases

The same signal responsible for promoting the type of immune responses that cause asthma and allergy can also limit the type of inflammation associated with debilitating diseases like inflammatory bowel disease, arthritis and multiple sclerosis, according to researchers from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine.

13 Apr 2006

Research provides clues to obesity's cause

Hot fudge sundaes and french fries aside, new research suggests obesity is due at least in part to an attraction between leptin, the hormone that signals the brain when to stop eating, and a protein more recently associated with heart disease.

13 Apr 2006

Swine disease in China caused toxic shock syndrome

A large and deadly outbreak of Streptococcus suis disease, in Sichuan province in China last year alarmed health officials worldwide and now scientists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and other Chinese institutions have published the first scientific details of the outbreak.

12 Apr 2006

New insights into how anti-rejection drug daclizumab (Zenapax) helps MS patients

A research team led by the University of Cincinnati's Bibiana Bielekova, MD, report new insights into the role of the MS drug daclizumab (Zenapax) in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

11 Apr 2006

Stem cells can repair damaged spinal tissue and help restore function in rats with spinal cord injuries

Each year, some 11,000 Americans sustain spinal cord injury, most often in traffic accidents. Costs of the condition approach $10 billion per year.

11 Apr 2006

Researchers identify critical human cell surface molecule involved in infection by Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus

Researchers at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID) have identified a critical human cell surface molecule involved in infection by Kaposi's sarcoma herpesvirus (KSHV), the virus that causes Kaposi's sarcoma and certain forms of lymphoma.

11 Apr 2006