Immune System News and Research

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Transplanted insulin-producing cells survive better when the activation of NKT cells are blocked

Scientists in Japan have found a way to improve on a promising diabetes treatment. In the October 3 issue of The Journal of Experimental Medicine, Masaru Taniguchi and colleagues report that transplanted insulin-producing cells survive better when the activation of a specific type of immune cell is blocked.

27 Sep 2005

Cancer vaccine based on the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, can cure mice with breast tumors

A team from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine has shown that by using a cancer vaccine based on the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, they can cure mice with established breast tumors. Cancer vaccines, which are more properly described as immunotherapy, work by boosting an immune response against tumor-associated antigens.

27 Sep 2005

Pneumonia doesn't appear to harm HIV-positive patients any more than those without HIV

In a two-year study that documented cases in 26 hospitals in 11 countries including the United States, Canada, South Africa, Chile and Spain, outcomes for 58 HIV-positive patients with CAP, or community-acquired pneumonia (pneumonia contracted outside of hospitals) were compared with outcomes for 174 HIV-negative patients suffering a similar severity of CAP.

27 Sep 2005

Computer program helps explain how the same proteins can play different roles in a wide range of cellular processes

University of California, San Diego biochemists have developed a computer program that helps explain a long-standing mystery: how the same proteins can play different roles in a wide range of cellular processes, including those leading to immune responses and cancer.

27 Sep 2005

Discovery of molecule that causes transverse myelitis

Hopkins researchers have discovered a single molecule that is a cause of an autoimmune disease in the central nervous system, called transverse myelitis (TM), that is related to multiple sclerosis.

26 Sep 2005

Vaccine candidate? Researchers synthesize oligosaccharide from anthrax pathogen

For weeks a white powder caused fear and shock for the American population: a few days after the attacks on September 11th, 2001, four innocent people became the victims of letters that contained the powder - spores of the anthrax pathogen. German researchers have now synthesized a molecule characteristic of anthrax in the laboratory which may be the basis for a new anthrax vaccine.

26 Sep 2005

Aquaporin-4 is the first specific molecule to be defined as a target for the autoimmune response in any form of MS

Researchers have identified a molecular suspect in a disorder similar to multiple sclerosis (MS) that attacks the optic nerve and spinal cord, according to a report presented at the 130th annual meeting of the American Neurological Association in San Diego. The protein, called aquaporin-4, is a channel protein that allows water to move in and out of cells.

26 Sep 2005

Surprising immune system cells discovery

Immune system cells are connected to each other by an extensive network of tiny tunnels that, like a building's hidden pneumatic tube system, are used to shoot signals to distant cells.

26 Sep 2005

Abnormal leakage of lymph fluid from the ruptured lymphatic vessels stimulates the accumulation of fat

Leaky lymphatic vessels are the leading cause of the adult onset obesity observed in a laboratory model developed by investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

26 Sep 2005

New nutritional challenges in HIV/AIDS care have emerged

Nutritional therapy for HIV-infected patients is shifting focus. Drug treatments designed to combat the HIV virus have improved, decreasing some nutritional problems, while bringing others to light.

26 Sep 2005

Polymorphisms in a receptor called CD32 influence the response to antibody therapy in cancer

In a paper appearing online in advance of print publication of the October 1 issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, Adam Boruchov and colleagues from Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center dissect the contributions of CD32 isoforms in human dendritic cell (DC) activation and function.

26 Sep 2005

Exposure to hydraulic oil increases the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis

Occupational exposure to mineral oils, in particular hydraulic or motor oil, increases the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis by 30%. These are the results of a study published today in Arthritis Research & Therapy.

26 Sep 2005

Israeli scientists successfully transplant ovaries in sheep and trigger early embryonic development

Israeli scientists report in Human Reproduction that they have successfully transplanted whole frozen and thawed ovaries in sheep, retrieved oocytes from these ovaries and triggered them in the laboratory into early embryonic development.

26 Sep 2005

Researchers discover way to dramatically boost the output of immune system cells from the thymus

Mayo Clinic researchers have discovered a way to dramatically boost the output of immune system cells from the thymus, which may lead to improved cancer vaccines, as well as to ways to otherwise strengthen immune responses.

26 Sep 2005

New technique may provide a better way of monitoring response to melanoma treatment

A new study published in PLoS Medicine describes a way to measure the immune response in people treated with an experimental vaccine to melanoma.

26 Sep 2005

People who receive a kidney transplant are nearly four times more likely to develop melanoma

...a rare but deadly form of skin cancer, according to a study in the November 1, 2005 issue of Cancer, a peer-reviewed journal of the American Cancer Society.

26 Sep 2005

HIV-infected macrophages in the brain continuously travel to part of the brain Alzheimer's disease often damages

Bacteria-eating cells that generally fight infection may cause dementia in HIV patients, University of Florida and University of California at San Francisco researchers have found.

26 Sep 2005

New treatment approach for severe asthma

Researchers have uncovered a potentially new treatment approach for severe asthma, by blocking a powerful immune system chemical, present in large amounts in patients with the severe form of the disease, a small study in Thorax reveals.

26 Sep 2005

Long-term alcoholics are at a higher risk for postoperative infections following elective cardiac surgery

Previous research has shown that post-surgery rates of disease and death are two-to-five times greater among long-term alcoholics than nonalcoholic patients. Of all the possible complications, infection can be the most serious.

22 Sep 2005

Definitive multiple sclerosis linkage screen

A cluster of genes on chromosome six is the only one that plays a significant role in multiple sclerosis (MS), according to the most complete genetic study to date in the disorder, presented at the 130th annual meeting of the American Neurological Association in San Diego.

22 Sep 2005

Immune System News and Research

Transplanted insulin-producing cells survive better when the activation of NKT cells are blocked

Cancer vaccine based on the bacterium Listeria monocytogenes, can cure mice with breast tumors

Pneumonia doesn't appear to harm HIV-positive patients any more than those without HIV

Computer program helps explain how the same proteins can play different roles in a wide range of cellular processes

Discovery of molecule that causes transverse myelitis

Vaccine candidate? Researchers synthesize oligosaccharide from anthrax pathogen

Aquaporin-4 is the first specific molecule to be defined as a target for the autoimmune response in any form of MS

Surprising immune system cells discovery

Abnormal leakage of lymph fluid from the ruptured lymphatic vessels stimulates the accumulation of fat

New nutritional challenges in HIV/AIDS care have emerged

Polymorphisms in a receptor called CD32 influence the response to antibody therapy in cancer

Exposure to hydraulic oil increases the risk of developing rheumatoid arthritis

Israeli scientists successfully transplant ovaries in sheep and trigger early embryonic development

Researchers discover way to dramatically boost the output of immune system cells from the thymus

New technique may provide a better way of monitoring response to melanoma treatment

People who receive a kidney transplant are nearly four times more likely to develop melanoma

HIV-infected macrophages in the brain continuously travel to part of the brain Alzheimer's disease often damages

New treatment approach for severe asthma

Long-term alcoholics are at a higher risk for postoperative infections following elective cardiac surgery

Definitive multiple sclerosis linkage screen

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