B Cell News and Research

RSS

Mercury's link to heart disease

Heavy metals and other toxins have been linked to many human diseases, but determining exactly how they damage the body remains a mystery in many cases.

1 Jun 2007

Human stem cell treatment restores motor function in paralyzed rats

Rats paralyzed due to loss of blood flow to the spine returned to near normal ambulatory function six weeks after receiving grafts of human spinal stem cells (hSSCs), researchers from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) School of Medicine report.

1 Jun 2007

Groundbreaking robotic pancreatectomy

Surgeons at the University of Illinois Medical Center at Chicago performed a groundbreaking robotic pancreatectomy in a 39-year-old man to relieve him of debilitating pain.

1 Jun 2007

Existence of muscle-building stem cells points to regenerative therapies for muscular disease

A new report in the June 1 issue of the journal Cell, a publication of Cell Press, confirms the existence of some apparently uncommitted stem cells amongst cells responsible for generating the bulging biceps of body builders and the rippling abs of fitness buffs.

1 Jun 2007

Common cancer gene p53 sends death order to tiny killer

Scientists at Johns Hopkins have discovered one way the p53 gene does what it's known for stopping the colon cancer cells.

1 Jun 2007

Nurse cells play important role in deciding which T cells live and which die

"Nurse cells" play an important role in deciding which developing infection-fighting cells, called T cells, live and which die, according to research funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and reported in the June issue of the journal Experimental Biology and Medicine.

30 May 2007

Investigational device to treat brain cancer shows promise in early studies

New early data showed that an investigational device that specifically targets rapidly growing cancer cells with intermediate frequency electrical fields -- called Tumor-Treating Fields (TTFields) -- more than doubled the median overall survival rates in patients with recurrent glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most common and aggressive type of malignant brain tumor.

30 May 2007

Dentists need more training in oral cancer detection

More than 92 percent of Illinois dentists provide oral cancer examinations for their patients, but many are not performing the procedures thoroughly or at optimum intervals, according to a new University of Illinois at Chicago study.

30 May 2007

Natalizumab returns to market

Just months after receiving FDA approval, natalizumab, a medication for the treatment of multiple sclerosis (MS) and other inflammatory disorders, was voluntarily withdrawn by its manufacturers after three patients developed a brain infection known as Progressive Multifocal Leukoencephalopathy (PML).

28 May 2007

New understanding of C. difficile bacteria

Researchers studying the genetics behind why C. difficile causes disease have come to a simple conclusion -- the bacteria do it because they are starving.

28 May 2007

Research reveals a new mechanism of learning in the brain

Mice genetically engineered to lack a single enzyme in their brains are more adept at learning than their normal cousins, and are quicker to figure out that their environment has changed, a team led by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center has found.

28 May 2007

New candidate breast-cancer susceptibility gene

Researchers at the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute of the University of Pennsylvania and the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute describe in this week's issue of Science a new candidate breast-cancer susceptibility gene.

28 May 2007

Scientists develop a more human-like mouse model of cancer

A team led by Dana-Farber Cancer Institute scientists has developed a more human-like mouse model of cancer they say will aid the search for cancer-causing genes and improve the predictive value of laboratory drug testing.

28 May 2007

Researchers shed light on the link between chronic inflammation and atherosclerosis

Rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other inflammatory rheumatic diseases are associated with a high rate of death from heart disease.

28 May 2007

Researchers explore the glycosylation process

By studying the addition of sugars to proteins — a process called glycosylation — in the nervous system of insects, Temple University researcher Karen Palter believes she may be able to better understand neurodegenerative diseases in humans.

28 May 2007

Researchers identify novel molecular target for Yersinia

Effector proteins are the bad guys that help bacterial pathogens do their job of infecting the host by crippling the body's immune system.

28 May 2007

Co-infection of HIV and HCV a significant health concern due to increasing prevalence

Researchers at Boston Medical Center (BMC) and Boston University School of Public Health (BUSPH) have found that persons infected with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), who also have alcohol problems, were negatively affected by co-infection with the hepatitis C virus (HCV).

28 May 2007