White Blood Cell News and Research

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Prognosis still poor for EVB in cirrhosis

The current standard of care for esophageal variceal bleeding in liver cirrhosis is very effective at controlling bleeding but patient prognosis remains poor, say the authors of an Italian study.

1 Oct 2012

WBC counts in diabetes risk prediction

An elevated white blood cell count in young men is an independent predictor for the development of diabetes in later life, suggest study findings.

1 Oct 2012

UCSD receives NCI grant to continue research into chronic lymphocytic leukemia

An international consortium of scientists studying chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL), based at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine, has been awarded a 5-year, $20 million grant by the National Cancer Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health.

28 Sep 2012

Increasing doses of radium chloride effective, tolerated in prostate cancer

Radium chloride treatment has dose-dependent beneficial effects on health outcomes in patients with castration-resistant prostate cancer and bone metastases, report researchers.

26 Sep 2012

Novel method could help advance fight against persistent 'HIV latency'

Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes have gotten us one step closer to understanding and overcoming one of the least-understood mechanisms of HIV infection-by devising a method to precisely track the life cycle of individual cells infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

12 Sep 2012

Arsenic induces acute promyelocytic leukemia remission

Elderly patients with acute promyelocytic leukemia have a high rate of response to arsenic trioxide, say researchers who believe the drug should be a first-line treatment in this population.

5 Sep 2012

Research identifies new pathway to target with anti-inflammatory drugs

Scientists' discovery of an important step in the body's process for healing wounds may lead to a new way of treating inflammation.

31 Aug 2012

Researchers discover new immune response mechanism during infection

Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered a new "first response" mechanism that the immune system uses to respond to infection. The findings challenge the current understanding of immunity and could lead to new strategies for boosting effectiveness of all vaccines. The study, conducted in mice, published online today in the journal Immunity.

31 Aug 2012

Nicotinamide may combat antibiotic-resistance staph infections

A new study suggests that nicotinamide, more commonly known as vitamin B3, may be able to combat some of the antibiotic-resistance staph infections that are increasingly common around the world, have killed thousands and can pose a significant threat to public health.

28 Aug 2012

Meritage commences OBS Phase 2 clinical trial for eosinophilic esophagitis

Meritage Pharma, Inc. announced that it has initiated a Phase 2 clinical trial to evaluate oral budesonide suspension (OBS) for the treatment of adolescents and young adults with eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), an allergic inflammatory condition of the esophagus. EoE is a chronic disease characterized by symptoms related to esophageal dysfunction and eosinophil-predominant inflammation.

13 Aug 2012

FDA approved drug to treat Ph- acute lymphoblastic leukemia

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Marqibo (vincristine sulfate liposome injection) to treat adults with a rare type of leukemia called Philadelphia chromosome negative (Ph-) acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL). ALL is a rapidly progressing form of blood and bone marrow cancer that is more commonly diagnosed in children than adults.

10 Aug 2012

Changes in monocytes are biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis

Researchers from Brigham and Women's Hospital (BWH) are the first to discover that changes in monocytes (a type of white blood cell) are a biomarker for amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), or Lou Gehrig's disease. This finding also brings the medical community a step closer toward a new treatment for the debilitating neurological disease that affects approximately 30,000 Americans.

7 Aug 2012

Neutrophils play an unexpected role in mediating insulin resistance

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine say neutrophils, an abundant type of white blood cell typically tasked with attacking bacteria and other foreign invaders, also plays an unexpected role in mediating insulin resistance - the central characteristic of type 2 diabetes, which afflicts an estimated 26 million Americans.

6 Aug 2012

Sanofi-aventis receives FDA approval for Zaltrap to treat colorectal cancer

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Zaltrap (ziv-aflibercept) for use in combination with a FOLFIRI (folinic acid, fluorouracil and irinotecan) chemotherapy regimen to treat adults with colorectal cancer.

6 Aug 2012

B-cell substances may play a role in MS progression

Wayne State University School of Medicine researchers, working with colleagues in Canada, have found that one or more substances produced by a type of immune cell in people with multiple sclerosis (MS) may play a role in the disease's progression. The finding could lead to new targeted therapies for MS treatment.

2 Aug 2012

Researchers describe new human tissue dendritic cell with cross-presenting function

Researchers in Newcastle and Singapore have identified a new type of white blood cell which activates a killing immune response to an external source - providing a new potential target for vaccines for conditions such as cancer or Hepatitis B.

30 Jul 2012

Helper T cells may be frontline warriors when battling hepatitis A infection

Helper cells traditionally thought to only assist killer white blood cells may be the frontline warriors when battling hepatitis A infection. These are the findings from a Nationwide Children's Hospital study appearing in a recent issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine.

17 Jul 2012