Immune Response News and Research

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Scientists identify the role of vitamin D in activation of T cells

Scientists at the University of Copenhagen have discovered that Vitamin D is crucial to activating our immune defenses and that without sufficient intake of the vitamin, the killer cells of the immune system - T cells - will not be able to react to and fight off serious infections in the body.

8 Mar 2010

Peptimmune granted US patent for PI-2301 peptide copolymer in treatment of multiple sclerosis

Peptimmune, Inc. a privately held biotechnology company, announced today the grant of US Patent Number 7,655,221 (the '221 patent) which protects the target product profile for its PI-2301 peptide copolymer for the treatment of multiple sclerosis, and other autoimmune diseases.

6 Mar 2010

New anti-tumour vaccine for mesothelioma shows promising results

A vaccine against mesothelioma, a cancer associated with exposure to asbestos, has shown early promise in its first clinical trial.

5 Mar 2010

Investigators disprove reports that well-fed children are more vulnerable to dengue virus

A new study led by St. Jude Children's Research Hospital investigators disproves reports that well-fed children are more vulnerable to the dengue virus. Mosquitoes spread the virus, which can cause severe flu-like symptoms and sometimes lethal complications.

5 Mar 2010

Advaxis' Listeria based fusion protein granted U.S. patent

The US Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has issued Advaxis, Inc.,, the live, attenuated Listeria monocytogenes (Listeria) immunotherapy company, patent #7662396 titled “Compositions and Methods for Enhancing the Immunogenicity of Antigens” for the use of fusion proteins that have been found to be effective in numerous models for the treatment of cancer in the presence of immune tolerance.

5 Mar 2010

Risk of MS increases by many folds following infection with EBV: Study

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Walter Reed Army Institute of Research, and a team of collaborators have observed for the first time that the risk of multiple sclerosis (MS) increases by many folds following infection with the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV).

5 Mar 2010

Argos Therapeutics' AGS-004 immunotherapy for HIV demonstrates clinical and commercial potential

Argos Therapeutics today announced the publication of a manuscript in the February edition of Clinical Immunology, detailing positive immune response, safety and manufacturing data for its AGS-004 immunotherapy for HIV. AGS-004 is a product of the Company’s Arcelis™ technology, and is a personalized, RNA-loaded dendritic cell-based immunotherapy that is perfectly matched to each patient’s unique HIV viral burden. The manuscript details a clinical study in which AGS-004 was evaluated in type-1 HIV-infected adults who were being treated with antiretroviral therapy (ART).

5 Mar 2010

Study: Genetic variant of LTA4H offers protection against TB and leprosy

A study into why some people are more resistant than others to diseases such as tuberculosis (TB) and leprosy has identified a new genetic variant which affects susceptibility to these diseases. The findings, published today in the journal Cell, may have implications for future treatments for the two conditions.

5 Mar 2010

BioVex commences dosing in Phase 1 study of ImmunoVEX live attenuated genital herpes vaccine

BioVex Inc, a private biotechnology company developing new generation biologics for the treatment of cancer and prevention of infectious disease, announced today that the first subject had been dosed in the Phase 1 study of its live attenuated genital herpes vaccine, ImmunoVEXHSV2. The Phase 1 study is an open label ascending dose trial, assessing safety and immune response in healthy volunteers. The study is taking place in the UK at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital in London and will involve up to 42 already identified subjects.

4 Mar 2010

Mosaic vaccines show promise in reducing HIV spread

Two teams of researchers-including Los Alamos National Laboratory theoretical biologists Bette Korber, Will Fischer, Sydeaka Watson, and James Szinger-have announced an HIV vaccination strategy that has been shown to expand the breadth and depth of immune responses in rhesus monkeys. Rhesus monkeys provide the best animal model currently available for testing HIV vaccines.

4 Mar 2010

Boosting immune response to vaccinations: Role of aluminium adjuvants

An imminent publication in Trends in Immunology by a leading researcher in the bioinorganic chemistry of aluminium, Dr Christopher Exley, Reader in Bioinorganic Chemistry at The Birchall Centre, Keele University in Staffordshire, has now gone some way to giving the fullest possible explanation of how aluminium adjuvants work in boosting the immune response to vaccination.

4 Mar 2010

Cryoablation kills breast tumors in mice

Freezing a cancer kills it in its place, and also appears to generate an immune response that helps stop the cancer's spread, leading to improved survival rates over surgery, according to a new study in mice from researchers at the University of Michigan Comprehensive Cancer Center.

4 Mar 2010

Abbott enters into agreement with GSK to develop molecular diagnostic test for skin cancer treatment

Abbott announced today that it has entered into an agreement with GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) to develop a molecular diagnostic test intended for use as an aid in selecting patients who may benefit from a skin cancer treatment in development by GSK.

4 Mar 2010

Researchers demonstrate the safety of potential vaccine against mesothelioma

Researchers have demonstrated the safety of a potential vaccine against mesothelioma, a rare cancer associated primarily with asbestos exposure. The vaccine, which infuses uses a patient's own dendritic cells (DC) with antigen from the patient's tumor, was able to induce a T-cell response against mesothelioma tumors.

4 Mar 2010

Gene therapy for LCA clears another hurdle: Study

Gene therapy for a severe inherited blindness, which produced dramatic improvements last year in 12 children and young adults who received the treatment in a clinical trial, has cleared another hurdle. The same research team that conducted the human trial now reports that a study in animals has shown that a second injection of genes into the opposite, previously untreated eye is safe and effective, with no signs of interference from unwanted immune reactions following the earlier injection.

4 Mar 2010

Belatacept drug can prevent graft rejection in kidney transplant recipients

The experimental drug belatacept can prevent graft rejection in kidney transplant recipients while better preserving kidney function when compared with standard immunosuppressive drugs, data from two international phase III clinical trials show.

4 Mar 2010

Vaccine researchers at HZI find c-di-IMP molecule, more effective than known adjuvants

The adjuvants present in vaccines have a bad reputation. For most people, they are only unnecessary compounds within a medicinal product. This is a misunderstanding since adjuvants have a critical impact on the success of a vaccination. In the best case scenario, one single vaccination shot would be now sufficient for conferring life-long protection.

3 Mar 2010

Ichor, Profectus announce agreement for clinical development of DNA vaccine programs

Ichor Medical Systems (Ichor) and Profectus Biosciences (Profectus) announced today that they have entered into a long-term development, license, and supply Agreement providing Profectus with commercial access to Ichor’s TriGrid™ Delivery System (TriGrid™) for the clinical development of its DNA vaccine programs, with an option for Ichor to co-develop.

3 Mar 2010

Phase III study results of Merck's allergy immunotherapy tablet

In new data from a Phase III study in 345 children and adolescents (ages 5-17 years), patients with grass pollen allergic rhinoconjunctivitis treated with Merck's investigational sublingual grass (Phleum Pratense) allergy immunotherapy tablet (AIT) showed a 26 percent greater improvement in the total combined score (daily symptom score and daily medication score), compared to patients receiving placebo

3 Mar 2010

Study shows cryoablation technique offers a potential treatment for breast cancer

3 Mar 2010

Immune Response News and Research

Scientists identify the role of vitamin D in activation of T cells

Peptimmune granted US patent for PI-2301 peptide copolymer in treatment of multiple sclerosis

New anti-tumour vaccine for mesothelioma shows promising results

Investigators disprove reports that well-fed children are more vulnerable to dengue virus

Advaxis' Listeria based fusion protein granted U.S. patent

Risk of MS increases by many folds following infection with EBV: Study

Argos Therapeutics' AGS-004 immunotherapy for HIV demonstrates clinical and commercial potential

Study: Genetic variant of LTA4H offers protection against TB and leprosy

BioVex commences dosing in Phase 1 study of ImmunoVEX live attenuated genital herpes vaccine

Mosaic vaccines show promise in reducing HIV spread

Boosting immune response to vaccinations: Role of aluminium adjuvants

Cryoablation kills breast tumors in mice

Abbott enters into agreement with GSK to develop molecular diagnostic test for skin cancer treatment

Researchers demonstrate the safety of potential vaccine against mesothelioma

Gene therapy for LCA clears another hurdle: Study

Belatacept drug can prevent graft rejection in kidney transplant recipients

Vaccine researchers at HZI find c-di-IMP molecule, more effective than known adjuvants

Ichor, Profectus announce agreement for clinical development of DNA vaccine programs

Phase III study results of Merck's allergy immunotherapy tablet

Study shows cryoablation technique offers a potential treatment for breast cancer

Understanding the DNA Damage Response in Innate Immunity eBook

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

Expanding access to NMR with the Fourier 80 Duo

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