Viral Disease News and Research

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Immunocore, MedImmune sign oncology research collaboration and licensing agreement

Immunocore Limited, the Oxford-based biotechnology company developing novel biological drugs to treat cancer and viral disease, today announced that it has entered into an oncology research collaboration and licensing agreement with MedImmune, the global biologics research and development arm of AstraZeneca. Both companies will research and develop novel cancer therapies using Immunocore’s Immune Mobilising Monoclonal T-Cell Receptor Against Cancer technology.

8 Jan 2014

Low gut microbial diversity in infants' intestines can increase risk for asthma

Low gut microbial diversity in the intestines of infants can increase the risk for asthma development. These are the findings of the age 7 follow-up in a multi-year study led by researchers at Linköping University in Sweden.

7 Jan 2014

Clinical features not sufficiently pathognomonic in pneumonia

Clinical signs and symptoms are not sufficiently reliable to distinguish the different etiologies of pneumonia, Dutch researchers report.

6 Jan 2014

Shingles may increase risk of stroke in later life, study finds

Having shingles may increase the risk of having a stroke years later, according to research published in the January 2, 2014, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

2 Jan 2014

New approach for combating seasonal flu

Reducing glucose metabolism dials down influenza viral infection in laboratory cell cultures, providing an entirely new approach for combating seasonal flu, according to research that will be presented on Sunday, Dec. 15, at the American Society for Cell Biology annual meeting in New Orleans.

15 Dec 2013

Genetically engineered cell therapies demonstrate early efficacy, safety in patients with blood disorders

A series of advancements in genetically engineered cell therapies demonstrate early efficacy and safety in patients with blood disorders for whom standard treatments have been unsuccessful, according to data showcased today during the 55th American Society of Hematology (ASH) Annual Meeting and Exposition in New Orleans.

9 Dec 2013

Autumn-born children prone to asthma

Month of birth closely correlates with the prevalence of bronchial asthma, a major study of Taiwanese children has found.

5 Dec 2013

Isis Pharmaceuticals commences Phase 1 study of ISIS-GSK3Rx for treatment of common viral infection

Isis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that it has initiated a Phase 1 study for ISIS-GSK3Rx and earned a $3 million milestone payment from GlaxoSmithKline.

27 Nov 2013

Researchers identify immune cell protein that sets off body's initial response against viral infection

A Massachusetts General Hospital-led research team has identified an immune cell protein that is critical to setting off the body's initial response against viral infection. The report that will be published in an upcoming issue of Nature Immunology and is receiving early online release describes finding that a protein called GEF-H1 is essential to the ability of macrophages - major contributors to the innate immune system - to respond to viral infections like influenza.

25 Nov 2013

Diagnosing influenza with rapid tests leads to more efficient care

When patients in the emergency department (ED) are diagnosed with influenza by means of a rapid test, they get fewer unnecessary antibiotics, are prescribed antiviral medications more frequently, and have fewer additional lab tests compared to patients diagnosed with influenza without testing, according to a new study. Published online in the Journal of the Pediatrics Infectious Diseases Society, the findings suggest that diagnosing influenza with a rapid diagnostic test leads to more appropriate, specific, and efficient care.

14 Nov 2013

Research findings could help decrease risk of dengue

A study by an international team of researchers led by Anna M. Stewart Ibarra, Ph.D., of the Center for Global Health and Translational Science at SUNY Upstate Medical University, has provided public health officials with information that will help decrease the risk of dengue, a life-threatening mosquito-borne viral disease that is now one of the fastest spreading tropical diseases globally.

14 Nov 2013

New treatment option for patients with most difficult-to-treat forms of hepatitis C

A novel single-pill combination drug could present a new treatment option for patients with the most difficult-to-treat forms of hepatitis C, according to the results of a Phase 2 trial, published in The Lancet.

6 Nov 2013

Scientists find surprising degree of variation among genomes of individual neurons

It was once thought that each cell in a person's body possesses the same DNA code and that the particular way the genome is read imparts cell function and defines the individual. For many cell types in our bodies, however, that is an oversimplification.

4 Nov 2013

Immunocore’s Phase IIa clinical trial for IMCgp100 in melanoma initiates in the UK and USA

Immunocore Limited, the Oxford-based biotechnology company developing novel biological drugs to treat cancer and viral disease, announced that its most advanced ImmTAC drug, IMCgp100 for the treatment of late stage melanoma, has reached Maximum Tolerated Dose (MTD) and the dose escalation part of this Phase I clinical study has been completed. The company has now initiated a Phase IIa clinical trial in the UK and USA.

1 Nov 2013

Scientists find disparities in regulation of transposons between humans and non-human primate cells

Researchers at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies have, for the first time, taken chimpanzee and bonobo skin cells and turned them into induced pluripotent stem cells, a type of cell that has the ability to form any other cell or tissue in the body.

24 Oct 2013

UHN, Boehringer Ingelheim partner to improve care, education and support for hepatitis C patients

In a move to address a significant unmet need in hepatitis C in Canada, the University Health Network, together with Boehringer Ingelheim (Canada) Ltd., announced today a multi-year partnership that aims to improve care, education and support for patients with hepatitis C. The program, known as Link-C, aims to improve access to hepatitis C care and treatment in remote areas of Ontario and other parts of Canada.

23 Oct 2013

New gene transfer strategy effective for achieving persistent immunotherapy to treat tumors

Cancer immunotherapy can successfully use the body's own immune system to kill tumor cells. But some current approaches to stimulate an antitumor immune response are short-lived, with limited clinical effectiveness. A new gene transfer strategy that introduces modified, immune-stimulating human stem cells is both feasible and effective for achieving persistent immunotherapy to treat leukemias and lymophomas, according to a study published in Human Gene Therapy, a peer-reviewed journal from Mary Ann Liebert, Inc., publishers.

11 Oct 2013

Sahlgrenska Academy study finds no traces of viruses in breast cancer and glioblastoma

A major study conducted at the Sahlgrenska Academy has now disproved theories of a viral cause for breast cancer and the brain tumour, glioblastoma. The study, which was based on over seven billion DNA sequences and which is published in Nature Communications, found no genetic traces of viruses in these forms of cancer.

9 Oct 2013

GSK Adds Another Program To Isis Antisense Collab

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7 Oct 2013

Discovery paves way for development of new medicines to combat herpes infections

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden and Carnegie Mellon University have for the first time managed to measure the internal pressure that enables the herpes virus to infect cells in the human body. The discovery paves the way for the development of new medicines to combat viral infections. The results indicate good chances to stop herpes infections in the future.

3 Oct 2013