immunity News and Research

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Tamiflu could halve the pandemic influenza death toll versus no intervention

Treatment with the oral antiviral Tamiflu (oseltamivir) and prophylaxis for people exposed to infected patients could be one of the most cost-effective strategies for reducing illness and death during an influenza pandemic.

23 Jun 2007

New understanding of modern pandemic infection

Human resistance to a retrovirus that infected chimpanzees and other nonhuman primates 4 million years ago ironically may be at least partially responsible for the susceptibility of humans to HIV infection today.

23 Jun 2007

New treatment slows the growth of colon and liver cancers

A. Navarro, a researcher at the School of Pharmacy of the University of Navarra, has developed a new treatment which slows the growth of colon and liver cancers.

23 Jun 2007

PepTcell vaccine could provide immunity against all strains of influenza virus

Previously undisclosed pre-clinical data showing how a new flu vaccine has the potential to protect against all strains of influenza, including pandemic and annual, was presented by PepTcell, at the 2007 Options for the Control of Influenza VI (Options) Conference, in Toronto, Canada.

20 Jun 2007

Acquired DNA key to certain bacterial infection

Researchers announced this week the discovery of a mechanism by which Mycobacterium avium - a bacterium which can result in serious lung infections and is prevalent in emphysema and AIDS patients among others - infects tissue cells or macrophages and thus compromises the body's immunity.

19 Jun 2007

How 'memory' T cells protect the body from viral diseases

A scientific discovery by Fox Chase Cancer Center researchers helps explain how 'memory' T cells protect the body from viral diseases.

19 Jun 2007

Common DNA variations underlie susceptibility to fever after smallpox vaccination

Their finding is the first to link individual differences written into the genetic code with a vaccine-related complication, albeit a mild one.

19 Jun 2007

Better understanding of how the body fights off mucosal pathogens

In a finding that could have important implications for HIV vaccine research, new research at Weill Cornell Medical College illuminates the ways in which the body prevents its mucosal surfaces from being overwhelmed by bacteria.

17 Jun 2007

Sanofi pasteur to supply H5N1 vaccines to WHO stockpile

Sanofi pasteur has announced that it is ready to supply a significant number of doses of H5N1 vaccine for the establishment of an international stockpile through a World Health Organization (WHO) partnership.

17 Jun 2007

New cellular pathway that operates to restrict inflammation and immunity

Jonsson Cancer Center have discovered a novel anti-inflammatory cell signaling pathway that may serve as a vital Yin-Yang mechanism to maintain the delicate balance of immune response.

16 Jun 2007

New data on the performance of meningitis vaccine in West African children

The Meningitis Vaccine Project (MVP) today released new data on the performance of a meningitis vaccine in West African children, suggesting that the new vaccine,expected to sell initially for 40 US cents a dose,will be much more effective in protecting African children and their communities than any vaccine currently on the market in the region.

14 Jun 2007

Autism - MMR vaccine has it's day in court

A test case in an American court could in one way or another settle the debate on the possible link between autism and childhood vaccines.

11 Jun 2007

Community-based care for severely malnourished children

An innovative approach is showing progress in addressing severe acute malnutrition, which affects an estimated 20 million children under the age of five worldwide.

8 Jun 2007

In mice, drug protects against diabetes and atherosclerosis

Blocking a single protein with an experimental drug prevented and treated both type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis in laboratory mice that had been fed unhealthy diets and were genetically predisposed to these common killers, according to an article published online in Nature.

8 Jun 2007

Directly observed HIV therapy for children is promising

Directly observed antiretroviral therapy is a promising strategy to ensure that HIV-infected children in developing countries take life-saving medications, new research from The Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University shows.

3 Jun 2007

Human antibodies protect mice from H5N1 avian influenza

An international team of scientists, including researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), report using antibodies derived from immune cells from recent human survivors of H5N1 avian influenza to successfully treat H5N1-infected mice as well as protect them from an otherwise lethal dose of the virus.

30 May 2007

H5N1 influenza virus survivors' antibodies effective at neutralising H5N1 strain

Adults who have recovered from the potentially deadly H5N1 strain of avian influenza may hold the key to future treatments for the virus, according to an international team of researchers.

30 May 2007

Significant breakthrough in the search for an effective malaria vaccine

One person dies of it every 30 seconds, it rivals HIV and tuberculosis as the world's most deadly infection and the vast majority of its victims are under five years old.

28 May 2007

Significant breakthrough in the search for an effective malaria vaccine

One person dies of it every 30 seconds, it rivals HIV and tuberculosis as the world's most deadly infection and the vast majority of its victims are under five years old.

24 May 2007

Natural immune-control system may aid treatment of autoimmune disease and tissue rejection

The immune system's ability to police itself may offer a new method of arresting the cells responsible for autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and for the rejection of transplanted organs and tissues, scientists at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute report in a study in the May issue of the journal Immunity.

18 May 2007