Immune Response News and Research

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Combination of two topical creams can prevent cancer

A combination of two topical creams already shown to clear precancerous skin lesions from sun-damaged skin also lowers the risk that patients will later develop squamous cell carcinoma of the skin.

22 Mar 2019

Allergic reaction during pregnancy may alter sexual-development in offspring's brain

A single allergic reaction during pregnancy prompts sexual-development changes in the brains of offspring that last a lifetime, new research suggests.

22 Mar 2019

Role of immunological imprinting in elicitation of new antibodies

We are repeatedly exposed to the influenza virus via infections, vaccinations and our communal environments. The annual flu shot is believed to be the best line of defense, and doctors recommend vaccinations every year because the flu virus is in a constant state of adaptation and mutation, rendering older vaccines obsolete.

21 Mar 2019

Scientists identify generation of key immune response in mice on introducing solid food

Microbes colonize all body surfaces and help to balance the immune system. In newborn infants, gut microbiota is first conditioned by breast milk components.

20 Mar 2019

Enzyme inhibitor stops inflammation and neurodevelopmental disorders in mouse models

Work published this week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows that an enzyme inhibitor developed by Professor Bruce Hammock and colleagues at UC Davis reduced inflammation in the brains of mice born to mothers with maternal immune activation.

20 Mar 2019

Study suggests potential new approach to treat atopic dermatitis

How does the immune system respond to fungi on our skin? Researchers at the University of Zurich have demonstrated that the same immune cells that protect us against skin fungi also encourage the inflammatory symptoms of atopic dermatitis. An antibody therapy could alleviate this chronic inflammatory skin disease.

18 Mar 2019

Long-awaited structure offers new insights into rejection of transplanted organs

Rejection of any kind is always hard to deal with, but when one's body rejects a precious organ transplant, the consequences can be devastating. Professor A. Vathsala, Co-director of the National University Centre for Organ Transplantation at the National University Hospital and Professor of Medicine, shared that between 30% to 40% of kidney transplants are lost over time to rejection.

15 Mar 2019

Deadly inherited blood disorders cured with bone marrow transplant

Doubling the low amount of total body radiation delivered to patients undergoing bone marrow transplants with donor cells that are only "half-matched" increased the rate of engraftment from only about 50 percent to nearly 100 percent, according to a new study by Johns Hopkins researchers.

15 Mar 2019

Avocado seed extract could be potential source for novel anti-inflammatory compounds

An extract from the seeds of avocados exhibited anti-inflammatory properties in a laboratory study, according to Penn State researchers, and it represents a potential source for novel anti-inflammatory compounds that could be developed as a functional food ingredient or pharmaceuticals.

13 Mar 2019

Study unravels how cancer medication works in brains of Parkinson's patients

Laboratory analysis from the first arm of a phase II clinical trial testing the use of nilotinib in patients with Parkinson's disease demonstrates precisely how the agent increases levels of dopamine in the brains of study participants, says a research team at Georgetown University Medical Center. Symptoms of Parkinson's, such as motor dysfunction, are a result of a dopamine loss.

13 Mar 2019

Precision cancer drugs spark powerful immune response and boost effects of immunotherapy

Precision cancer drugs called PARP inhibitors have a previously unknown ability to boost the immune system, and could help many more patients benefit from immunotherapy, a new study reveals.

11 Mar 2019

Researchers identify gene that increases risk of antibiotic reaction

Researchers at Vanderbilt University Medical Center and colleagues have identified a gene that increases the risk for a severe and potentially life-threatening reaction to the commonly prescribed antibiotic vancomycin.

11 Mar 2019

Viruses behave altruistically to avoid the immune system, study shows

Pilar Domingo, Ernesto Segredo, María Durán and Rafael Sanjuán, from the Institute of Integrated Systems Biology, a mixed center of the University of Valencia and the Spanish National Research Council, have shown that viruses behave altruistically to avoid the immune system.

11 Mar 2019

Zinc could help develop new non-antibiotic treatment for bacterial diseases

New details about the role of zinc in our immune system could help the development of new non-antibiotic treatment strategies for bacterial diseases, such as urinary tract infections.

9 Mar 2019

Mechanism through which bacteria attack the immune system discovered

A research team led by Prof. Dr. Winfried Römer and Dr. Elias Hobeika from the University of Freiburg and the University Medical Center in Ulm has discovered a mechanism with which bacteria activate white blood cells and attack an organism's immune system. The scientists recently published the results in the journal Science Signaling.

7 Mar 2019

Better regulation of the immune system may help manage preeclampsia

Boosting the body's levels of interleukin-4 (IL-4)--an immune system protein that controls inflammation--may help manage the pregnancy complication preeclampsia, according to a new rodent study.

7 Mar 2019

Discovery of protein, lipid connection could lead to new influenza therapies

The connection between an influenza virus surface protein and a host cell lipid has been discovered by researchers at the University of Maine and the National Institutes of Health. Confirmation of direct interaction between the protein and lipid could lead to new antiviral therapies.

6 Mar 2019