Chemokine News and Research

RSS

Chemokines are a family of small cytokines, or proteins secreted by cells. Proteins are classified as chemokines according to shared structural characteristics such as small size (they are all approximately 8-10 kilodaltons in size), and the presence of four cysteine residues in conserved locations that are key to forming their 3-dimensional shape.

Study opens new avenues for treatment of prostate cancer in obese patients

Obesity has direct consequences on health and is associated with the onset of aggressive cancers, but the mechanisms underlying this phenomenon are little known. Researchers from the Institut de Pharmacologie et he Biologie Structurale (CNRS/Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier) have recently elucidated one of these mechanisms in prostate cancer, one of the most common cancers in men: in obese patients, the adipose tissue surrounding the prostate gland facilitates the propagation of tumor cells outside the prostate.

13 Jan 2016

Scientists demonstrate workings of CCL2 mechanism that stimulates nerve regeneration

The peripheral nervous system is a vast network of nerves that exists primarily outside of brain and spinal cord and connects to the far reaches of the body. The very expanse of peripheral nerves makes them highly vulnerable to injuries such as blunt-force blows, cuts, and leg and arm fractures, as well as diseases that attack peripheral nerves such as diabetes, Charcot-Marie-Tooth, and Guillain-Barre syndrome.

6 Jan 2016

MD Anderson study reveals MDSCs as likely target for developing prostate cancer treatments

Immune suppressor cells called MDSCs (myeloid-derived suppressor cells) may be important in developing treatments for advanced prostate cancer, according to a study at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

22 Dec 2015

TaiGen releases Taigexyn (nemonoxacin) capsules in Taiwan

TaiGen Biotechnology Company, Limited today announced that together with its distribution partner, Holding Distribution, it has launched Taigexyn (nemonoxacin) capsules in Taiwan, the first market where Taigexyn is available.

16 Dec 2015

Adelaide researchers identify key protein involved in 'super-inflammatory' immune response

Researchers have made another important step in the progress towards being able to block the development of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other autoimmune diseases.

29 Oct 2015

Sun Biomedical begins DMX-200 Phase II trial for treatment of chronic kidney disease

Sun Biomedical Limited today announced the first patient had been enrolled in a Phase II study of DMX-200, an innovative new treatment that combines two different drugs to treat chronic kidney disease.

15 Sep 2015

Multiple IV administration of adipose-derived MSCs may extend healthy life and lifespan

Researchers in Korea have determined the possibility that adult mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) may extend healthy life and lifespan by intravenous injections.

28 Aug 2015

New UTMB study reveals mechanism central to pollen-induced allergies

A new study from The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston has uncovered a mechanism that is central to becoming allergic to ragweed pollen and developing allergic asthma or seasonal nasal allergies. The findings are currently available online in the American Journal of Respiratory Cell and Molecular Biology.

23 Jul 2015

Wayne State researcher receives $1.9 million grant to improve EPCs-based cell therapy for vascular diseases

Chunying Li, Ph.D., assistant professor in the Wayne State University School of Medicine's Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, has secured his first R01 grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute of the National Institutes of Health to study the role and mechanism of the chemokine receptor CXCR2 in regulating new blood vessel formation, the so-called angiogenesis.

15 Jul 2015

3SBio obtains ex-China global rights to Apexigen's anti-TNF mAb technology

3SBio Inc., a leading China-based biotechnology company focused on researching, developing, manufacturing and marketing biopharmaceutical products, today announced that it has acquired the ex-China global rights to Apexigen's anti-TNF monoclonal antibody ("mAb") technology. 3SBio previously acquired the China rights from Apexigen in 2006.

23 Jun 2015

Scientists reveal new combination method that efficiently destroys cancer cells

Scientists at the Institut Pasteur and Inserm have successfully increased the infiltration of immune cells into tumors, thus inducing the immune system to block tumor growth. In an article published in Nature Immunology, the scientists show that, in combination with existing immunotherapies, this process efficiently destroys cancer cells.

18 Jun 2015

Findings could lead to new therapies that stop breast cancer progression

Scientists have discovered a trigger that allows breast cancer cells to spread to the lungs. They have found that blocking the signals in mice with breast cancer greatly reduces the number of secondary tumours found in the lungs.

9 Jun 2015

Researchers discover new source for cells that can develop into coronary vessels

The heart has its own dedicated blood supply, with coronary arteries that supply oxygen-rich blood to the heart and cardiac veins that remove deoxygenated blood. This system of vessels nourishes the heart, enabling it to pump blood to all the other organs and tissues of the body. Yet despite their critical importance, the process and molecules required for coronary vessel development have not been fully determined.

30 May 2015

CXCR3 molecule is key mediator of melanoma metastasis, shows research

In a unique partnership demonstrating excellence in "team science," Dartmouth investigators from Norris Cotton Cancer Center identified a role for the molecule CXCR3 (widely known to regulate the migration of immune cells) as a key mediator of melanoma metastasis.

7 Apr 2015

Scientists potentially discover new therapeutic targets to halt progression of tumor cells

Chronic inflammation is directly associated with several types of cancer, yet the reasons as to why this happens at a cellular level remain unclear. Now, an international team of scientists led by researchers at The Wistar Institute has identified a multistep process showing not only how these cancers develop but also potentially discovering new therapeutic targets that could halt the formation and progression of tumor cells.

10 Feb 2015

Real-time RT-PCR TaqMan assay helps differentiate active pulmonary TB from LTBI

One of the roadblocks to the eradication of tuberculosis (TB) is the difficulty in identifying patients with latent TB infections (LTBI). Neither the tuberculin skin test (TST) nor interferon-gamma release assays (IGRAs) are capable of distinguishing active from latent infection or predicting the chance of reactivation.

7 Jan 2015

Research finding could lead to development of effective vaccines against microbial infections

The diverse functions of a special cell-recognition lipoprotein, LOX-1, weren't always fully understood. However, Baylor Research Institute investigators gained better insight into LOX-1's role in immune responses through a study recently published in Immunity. Investigators found that the lipoprotein promotes humoral responses, which could allow researchers to design effective vaccines against microbial infections, including influenza viruses and HIV.

11 Dec 2014

Researchers identify new targets for future CLL therapies

Chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) is among the most frequent leukemias affecting adults in Western countries. It usually occurs in older patients, does not cause any symptoms for a long time and is often only discovered by accident. Despite treatment, relapses frequently occur. The immunologists Dr. Kristina Heinig and Dr. Uta Höpken (Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, MDC, Berlin-Buch) and the hematologist Dr. Armin Rehm (MDC and Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin) have now discovered why this is so.

7 Dec 2014

Targeting CXCR4–CXCL12–CXCR7 axis combats mTOR inhibitor resistance in renal cancer

There is considerable crosstalk between the CXCR4–CXCL12–CXCR7 axis and the mammalian target of rapamycin pathway in human renal cell carcinoma, and targeting the axis may overcome drug resistance to mTOR inhibitors, researchers suggest.

22 Jul 2014

Inflammatory shift in long-standing bipolar disorder

Patients with chronic bipolar disorder, but not those with schizophrenia, have a shift towards an M1 rather than an M2 macrophage response, research suggests.

15 Jul 2014