Immune System News and Research

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Evaluation of an inactivated subunit H5N1 influenza virus vaccine in humans

Results from a clinical trial demonstrate that high doses of an experimental H5N1 avian influenza vaccine can induce immune responses in healthy adults.

11 Apr 2006

Epstein-Barr virus infection linked to multiple sclerosis

Young adults with high levels of antibodies against the Epstein-Barr virus, the virus that most often causes mononucleosis, may be more likely to develop multiple sclerosis 15 to 20 years later, according to a study in the Archives of Neurology.

11 Apr 2006

Antifibrotic effect of hepatocyte growth factor is impaired in lung fibroblasts isolated from African-Americans

Of the more than 40,000 persons who die each year in the U.S. from pulmonary fibrosis, the mortality rate among African-Americans is twice as high Caucasians.

11 Apr 2006

Researchers engineer cells in the eye to be light sensitive that were not before

In an experiment that could offer a new pathway to restoring vision in people with inherited retinal degeneration, researchers have engineered cells in the eye to be light sensitive that were not before.

11 Apr 2006

Minimal nutritional requirements for growing and maintaining human embryonic stem cells

Researchers at Yale have established the minimal nutritional requirements for growing and maintaining human embryonic stem cells, a recipe that is critical for clinical application and for developmental studies, according to a report in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

11 Apr 2006

New approach to treating hepatitis C virus

Last year Peter Sarnow, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology at the Stanford University School of Medicine, identified a previously unknown mechanism that the hepatitis C virus uses to replicate, yielding a promising new approach to combating the disease-causing virus.

10 Apr 2006

Discovery of new human retrovirus

Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers and their colleagues have discovered a new retrovirus in humans that is closely related to a cancer-causing virus found in mice. Their findings describe the first documented cases of human infection with a retrovirus that is native to rodents.

10 Apr 2006

Researchers improve Botox treatment

There may soon be a better way to fight unsightly wrinkles. Researchers have discovered a novel way to increase the potency of botulinum neurotoxin treatments - commonly known as Botox - that they say could one day allow patients to receive the injections less frequently while maintaining or even enhancing its cosmetic benefits.

7 Apr 2006

More than a billion may suffer from vitamin D deficiency

More than a billion may suffer from vitamin D deficiency. Consequences may be more severe than thought. Prominent clinician calls for action.

6 Apr 2006

Drug trial disaster will discourage future volunteers

According to the British government agency responsible for medical safety, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA), no evidence has been found to suggest there were any problems with the manufacturing of a drug which left six volunteers seriously ill.

6 Apr 2006

MIT look at how cells make life-or-death decisions

The biological processes underlying diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and cancer are fundamentally linked, and should be linked in how they are treated with drugs, a series of MIT studies indicates.

6 Apr 2006

Researchers aim to develop instrument to help physicians estimate risk for developing lung cancer

Physicians have little to help them predict development of lung cancer in their patients - even a history of heavy smoking doesn't really help, since only a small fraction of lifetime smokers develops the cancer.

6 Apr 2006

Inflammation cuts both ways

Inflammation cuts both ways. When invaded by an infectious agent, for example, the body calls on the forces of inflammation to fight and defeat the intruder.

6 Apr 2006

Evidence of estrogen and progesterone hormone allergy discovered

Some women with menstrual cycle disorders like asthma and migraine headaches may be experiencing allergies to their own estrogen and progesterone hormones, Texas researchers have discovered.

4 Apr 2006

New mechanism that initiates metastasis

Researchers have known for years that the enzyme MMP-9 plays a key role in the spread of colorectal cancer. Now, scientists at Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia have found out how the enzyme helps initiate the process, known as metastasis.

4 Apr 2006

Nrf2 gene findings may offer therapeutic potential for sepsis treatment

Disruption of a single gene, Nrf2, plays a critical role in regulating the body's innate immune response to sepsis and septic shock, according to a study by a research team led by Shyam Biswal, PhD, at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

4 Apr 2006

Novel approach to creating a vaccine to treat melanoma

A novel approach to creating a vaccine to treat melanoma has demonstrated promising effectiveness in a new laboratory study led by researchers at The Wistar Institute. About a third of melanoma patients might benefit from such a vaccine.

4 Apr 2006

Moderate alcohol intake stimulates tumor angiogenesis and expression of vascular endothelial growth factor in a mouse model

University of Mississippi researchers say they have created the first-ever mammalian model of how alcohol consumption spurs tumor growth, showing that even moderate drinking resulted in larger and more robust tumors.

4 Apr 2006

Researchers reverse juvenile diabetes in animal model

Groundbreaking human clinical trial for type 1 diabetes to start this spring in Pittsburgh - Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh of UPMC researchers reverse juvenile diabetes in animal model; Phase 1 clinical trial approved by FDA.

4 Apr 2006

Multi-site vaccinations could protect against all four dengue viruses

An innovative new study explains, for the first time, the failure of previous attempts to vaccinate against the four known Dengue viruses, and it suggests a very simple solution - injecting the four vaccines simultaneously at different locations on the body.

4 Apr 2006