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Scientists discover master regulator gene needed for development of M cells

Scientists have found a master regulator gene needed for the development of M cells, a mysterious type of intestinal cell involved in initiating immune responses.

18 Jun 2012

Study unveils crystal structure of H. pylori's acid receptor

University of Oregon scientists have discovered how the bacterium Helicobacter pylori navigates through the acidic stomach, opening up new possibilities to inactivate its disease-causing ability without using current strategies that often fail or are discontinued because of side effects.

15 Jun 2012

FDA approves Menhibrix for vaccination against meningococcal and Hib diseases

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved Menhibrix, a combination vaccine for infants and children ages 6 weeks through 18 months, for prevention of invasive disease caused by Neisseria meningitidis serogroups C and Yand Haemophilus influenzae type b.

15 Jun 2012

Gladstone investigators play key part in Human Microbiome Project

Scientists at the Gladstone Institutes today are announcing their role in an unprecedented collaboration organized by the National Institutes of Health, which used groundbreaking methods to vastly improve our understanding of bacteria that reside in and on the human body.

14 Jun 2012

First inventory of microbial diversity in the world's oceans

The landmark publication this week of a "map" of the bacterial make-up of healthy humans has deep roots in an unexpected place: the ocean.

14 Jun 2012

Western-style diets may increase risk of inflammatory bowel disease

Certain saturated fats that are common in the modern Western diet can initiate a chain of events leading to complex immune disorders such as inflammatory bowel diseases (IBD) in people with a genetic predisposition, according to a study to be published early online in the journal Nature.

14 Jun 2012

Children of GBS meningitis continue to have substantial long-term morbidity

Parents of infants who survive bacterial meningitis caused by group B Streptococcus might have to live with the effects of the disease on their children long after they're discharged from the hospital. A new study in the journal Pediatrics finds that even though mortality rates of children infected with GBS meningitis have decreased in the past 25 years, just under half of children who survive the disease will suffer impairment as a result of the disease.

13 Jun 2012

Investigators identify alcohol prep pads contaminated with Bacillus cereus bacteria

A small cluster of unusual illnesses at a Colorado children's hospital prompted an investigation that swiftly identified alcohol prep pads contaminated with Bacillus cereus bacteria, according to a report in the July issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

13 Jun 2012

Caspase-11 enzyme plays an important role in Legionella infection

New research shows that an enzyme that has long been considered relatively useless to the immune response instead has an important role in setting up immune cells to kill infection-causing bacteria.

13 Jun 2012

Billions of specific gut bacteria may play a role in autoimmune diseases

The billions of bugs in our guts have a newfound role: regulating the immune system and related autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, according to researchers at Mayo Clinic and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

13 Jun 2012

Gut microbes regulate brain levels of serotonin

UCC scientists have shown that brain levels of serotonin, the 'happy hormone' are regulated by the amount of bacteria in the gut during early life. Their research is being published today in the leading international psychiatry journal, Molecular Psychiatry.

13 Jun 2012

FDA clears Immunetics’ BacTx rapid test for bacterial contamination in platelet units

Immunetics, Inc., has received U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance for its BacTx rapid test for bacterial contamination in platelet units, Andrew E. Levin, Ph.D., Immunetics Chief Executive Officer and Scientific Director, announced today.

13 Jun 2012

Hospitalization rates in NYC for patients with CA-MRSA more than tripled between 1997-2006

Hospitalization rates in New York City for patients with community-acquired methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CA-MRSA), a potentially deadly bacterial infection that is resistant to antibiotic treatment, more than tripled between 1997 and 2006, according to a report published in the July issue of Infection Control and Hospital Epidemiology, the journal of the Society for Healthcare Epidemiology of America.

13 Jun 2012

New approach can design antibiotics that kill even 'superbugs'

The world needs new antibiotics to overcome the ever increasing resistance of disease-causing bacteria - but it doesn't need the side effect that comes with some of the most powerful ones now available: hearing loss. Today, researchers report they have developed a new approach to designing antibiotics that kill even "superbugs" but spare the delicate sensory cells of the inner ear.

12 Jun 2012

Premature cancer death risk may be increased by dental plaque

Persistent dental plaque may increase the risk of dying early from cancer, suggests an observational study published in the online journal BMJ Open.

12 Jun 2012

Study shows how infections provoke tissues into becoming cancerous

One of the biggest risk factors for liver, colon or stomach cancer is chronic inflammation of those organs, often caused by viral or bacterial infections. A new study from MIT offers the most comprehensive look yet at how such infections provoke tissues into becoming cancerous.

12 Jun 2012

Routine screening with echocardiogram can detect more cases of RHD

Routine screening with echocardiogram can detect three times as many cases of rheumatic heart disease (RHD) as clinical examinations, offering a novel approach in preventing this common disease, according to a new study in Circulation.

12 Jun 2012

Aminoacyl-tRNA synthetases important targets for development of new drugs against major diseases

Researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, are working to develop substances that can prevent parasites, bacteria and fungi from producing essential proteins, research that could, in the long term, lead to new drugs for several major diseases.

12 Jun 2012

Study documents altruistic behavior by human embryonic stem cells

When most groups of mammalian cells are faced with a shortage of nutrients or oxygen, the phrase "every man for himself" is more apt than "all for one, one for all." Unlike colonies of bacteria, which often cooperate to thrive as a group, mammalian cells have never been observed to help one another out. But a new study led by a researcher at the Stanford University School of Medicine has shown that certain human embryonic stem cells, in times of stress, produce molecules that not only benefit themselves, but also help nearby cells survive.

12 Jun 2012

Scientists discover new genetic information linked with shigellosis

Scientists have found new genetic information that shows how harmful bacteria cause the acute diarrheal disease shigellosis, which kills more than a million people worldwide each year.

12 Jun 2012