immunity News and Research

RSS

Long-term outcomes for liver transplantation due to hepatitis C

A new study on liver transplants necessitated by the hepatitis C virus (the most common indication for this type of transplant) found that long-term outcomes are similar to patients receiving transplants due to other diseases.

8 Sep 2004

50 year old frozen smallpox vaccines are nearly 100 percent effective

Diluted doses of a smallpox vaccine, originally manufactured in the 1950s and stored as a frozen preparation, are nearly 100 percent effective, allowing for expansion of the current stockpile if needed, according to an article in the September 8 issue of JAMA.

8 Sep 2004

MRSA bugs immunity to hospital disinfectants and antiseptics

Dangerous multi-drug-resistant bacteria are also developing immunity to hospital disinfectants and antiseptics, according to new research presented today at the Society for General Microbiology’s 155th Meeting at Trinity College Dublin.

8 Sep 2004

Australian research studies health impacts of living in a high-rise apartment

More Australians are choosing to live in inner city high-rise apartments with estimates for Melbourne and Sydney pointing to a three-fold increase in this style of living. But are those living high living healthy?

7 Sep 2004

Chickenpox (Varicella) vaccine has saved the U.S. hundreds of millions of dollars since its introduction

A new University of Michigan study has found that the Chickenpox (Varicella) vaccine has saved the U.S. hundreds of millions of dollars since its introduction in 1995 by preventing the kinds of severe cases that used to send children, teens and adults to the hospital.

7 Sep 2004

Generic tritherapy can be used as a basic treatment for AIDS

A clinical trial, conducted in Cameroon by IRD researchers working with other organizations and supported by the ANRS, has demonstrated that one of the most common combinations currently deployed in Africa, using nevirapine, stavudine and lamivudine, satisfies these criteria.

5 Sep 2004

Counseling for breast cancer patients means healthier diets, reduced smoking and stronger immune systems

Regular psychological counseling for breast cancer patients may do more than just lower their stress and anxiety. A new study says the right kind of intervention can also mean healthier diets, reduced smoking, and most surprising of all – a stronger immune system.

2 Sep 2004

Major trends in AIDS research that the different research teams throughout the world are pursuing

The science will be presented during the conference which is taking place in Lausanne until September 1, 2004. The advances in fundamental research, notably through a better understanding of the complex processes of immune defence, HIV and the functioning of vaccines, promote the genesis and development of new vaccine candidates.

30 Aug 2004

Regular exercise boosts immune system in older men

As it turns out, judging by the reaction strength of their immune system to an unknown, but harmless, protein antigen, it’s possible for men over 70 to mount an immune response similar to that produced by much younger men -- if they get regular moderate physical activity of about six hours a week.

25 Aug 2004

Surprise finding could lead to hepatitis C vaccine

New research from the University of New South Wales shows some people may repeatedly be able to clear hepatitis C virus from their bodies, without any biological traces of the potentially serious infection.

23 Aug 2004

Hong Kong suspends bird and poultry imports from Malaysia, after deadly H5 avian influenza was found

The Hong Kong Government has suspended the import of live birds and poultry meat from Malaysia, after a strain of the deadly H5 avian influenza was found in Kelantan.

20 Aug 2004

Contract for the production of an investigational vaccine based on an H9N2 strain of avian influenza virus

In 1999 and 2003, an H9N2 influenza strain caused illness in three people in Hong Kong. Scientists are concerned about H9N2 and other emerging types of avian influenza viruses because as they spread—most commonly through poultry—they continually mutate, increasing chances that they may infect humans, evade the body’s immune response and become more lethal.

17 Aug 2004

Immunotherapy and chemotherapy combined, slows tumor progression and extends survival of patients with glioblastoma multiforme

Researchers at Cedars-Sinai's Maxine Dunitz Neurosurgical Institute have found that the combination of immunotherapy and chemotherapy significantly slowed tumor progression and extended survival of patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM).

17 Aug 2004

WHO tackles the parasitic disease Leishmaniasis in Afghanistan

A rapid intervention by the World Health Organization and its partners, the Massoud Foundation and HealthNet International, in Kabul, Afghanistan, made possible by a donation from the Belgian government, should dramatically reduce the incidence of leishmaniasis in less than two years.

10 Aug 2004

Gravity model applicable to disease spread

Tracking the spread of new or re-emergent diseases such as SARS or smallpox is essential in controlling disease epidemics, but horse-and-buggy concepts of how diseases spread have been supplanted by 21st-century realities.

9 Aug 2004

Significant advance in the understanding of the hepatitis C virus (HCV)

Researchers have made a significant advance in the understanding of the hepatitis C virus (HCV) by identifying new genetic factors associated with clearing the virus spontaneously without the necessity for additional treatment.

9 Aug 2004

Fathers Support Breastfeeding campaign

On August 5, the Office of Minority Health at the Indiana State Department of Health will launch its "Fathers Support Breastfeeding" campaign by hosting the first of six meetings of a support group for fathers in Indianapolis.

5 Aug 2004

Experimental vaccine against ricin

Scientists have developed an experimental vaccine against ricin, a potential biological threat agent, which fully protected mice from aerosol challenge with lethal doses of the toxin.

5 Aug 2004

Successfully cloning mice from an advanced melanoma cell

Nature can reset the clock in certain types of cancer and reverse many of the elements responsible for causing malignancy, reports a research team led by Whitehead Institute Member Rudolf Jaenisch, in collaboration with Lynda Chin from Dana Farber Cancer Institute.

3 Aug 2004

Tetanus protection requires booster shots every 10 years, starting in adolescence

As the final weeks of summer dwindle away, parents are scurrying to provide their kids with all the books, supplies and sports equipment needed to meet this year's upcoming academic and athletic challenges.

29 Jul 2004