CD4 News and Research

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Sequence of immunizations could be the promising route to HIV vaccine

The secret to preventing HIV infection lies within the human immune system, but the more-than-25-year search has so far failed to yield a vaccine capable of training the body to neutralize the ever-changing virus. New research from The Rockefeller University, and collaborating institutions, suggests no single shot will ever do the trick. Instead, the scientists find, a sequence of immunizations might be the most promising route to an HIV vaccine.

19 Jun 2015

Single difference in HIV's genetic code influences progression of disease

In a finding that furthers the understanding of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), researchers from Children's Hospital Los Angeles discovered two locations where a single difference in HIV's genetic code altered the way the virus infected the cell, thereby influencing the progression of the disease.

18 Jun 2015

Researchers examine proteins on surface of naive CD4+ T cells

The team headed by Dr. Kathrin Suttner, who, together with Prof. Dr. Carsten Schmidt-Weber, heads the airway immunology research group at the Helmholtz Zentrum München and Technische Universität München, concentrated its work on the so-called naive CD4+ T cells.

15 Jun 2015

PQBP1 protein could improve body's immune response to HIV vaccines

In a scientific discovery that has significant implications for preventing HIV infections, researchers at Sanford-Burnham Medical Research Institute have identified a protein that could improve the body's immune response to HIV vaccines and prevent transmission of the virus.

5 Jun 2015

Clinical trial suggests HIV patients should start therapy sooner rather than later

Findings from a large-scale clinical trial have shown that people with HIV should start antiretroviral therapy as soon as they have been diagnosed, irrespective of what their CD4+ count is...

28 May 2015

Earlier antiretroviral treatment benefits HIV-infected individuals

A major international randomized clinical trial has found that HIV-infected individuals have a considerably lower risk of developing AIDS or other serious illnesses if they start taking antiretroviral drugs sooner, when their CD4+ T-cell count--a key measure of immune system health--is higher, instead of waiting until the CD4+ cell count drops to lower levels. Together with data from previous studies showing that antiretroviral treatment reduced the risk of HIV transmission to uninfected sexual partners, these findings support offering treatment to everyone with HIV.

28 May 2015

Research: Some immune cells convert into cells that trigger disease

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Dental Medicine have unraveled one of the mysteries of how a small group of immune cells work: That some inflammation-fighting immune cells may actually convert into cells that trigger disease.

22 May 2015

Researchers find that blocking MCAM molecule could slow progression of multiple sclerosis

A drug that could halt the progression of multiple sclerosis may soon be developed thanks to a discovery by a team at the CHUM Research Centre and the University of Montreal. The researchers have identified a molecule called MCAM, and they have shown that blocking this molecule could delay the onset of the disease and significantly slow its progression.

21 May 2015

Specific bacterial community in female genital tract induces inflammation, increases HIV risk

A team led by researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard has found that the most common bacterial community in the genital tract among healthy South Africa women not only is significantly different from that of women in developed countries but also leads to elevated levels of inflammatory proteins.

20 May 2015

Pre-pregnancy maternal weight has significant impact on baby's immune system

Almost 60 percent of women of childbearing age in the United States are overweight or obese. Obesity is a major public health issue, and has been linked to health problems like heart disease, cancer and hypertension. It can complicate pregnancy by increasing the mother's risk of having gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, preterm birth or a baby with birth defects. Maternal obesity is also linked to several adverse health outcomes for the infant that can persist into adulthood, such as type-2 diabetes, heart disease and mortality.

19 May 2015

ART eligibility shorter for male HIV patients in rural South Africa

Male HIV patients in rural South Africa reach the low immunity levels required to become eligible for antiretroviral treatment in less than half the time it takes for immunity levels to drop to similar levels in women, according to new research from the University of Southampton.

14 May 2015

Chickenpox virus can cause strokes in patients with compromised immune systems

Patients infected with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) can, in rare cases, experience bleeding on the brain that causes a type of stroke called intracerebral hemorrhage.

5 May 2015

Pre-POINT trial raises hope for Type 1 diabetes prevention

Giving oral insulin to children at genetic high risk of diabetes stimulates a regulatory immune response without inducing hypoglycaemia, show the findings of the Pre-POINT study.

1 May 2015

Sangamo BioSciences to present data on ZFP Therapeutic platform at ASGCT meeting

Sangamo BioSciences, Inc. announced that data from clinical, preclinical and research-stage programs focused on the development of ZFP Therapeutics will be presented at the 18th Annual Meeting of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy

29 Apr 2015

Portions of female reproductive tract likely to be infected by HIV, shows study

A Dartmouth study led by Charles Wira, PhD, with first author Marta Rodriguez-Garcia, MD, PhD, found that some portions of the female reproductive tract (FRT) are more likely to be infected by HIV, particularly the ectocervix compared to the endometrium.

10 Apr 2015

Researchers identify phenomenon that explains effects of oxidative stress on immune cells

You're up in the mountains, the snow is blindingly white, and the sun is blazing down from the sky: ideal skiing conditions - but any skiers carrying the herpes virus might also have to reckon with the onset of cold sores after their day out.

10 Apr 2015

Effective therapy enables immune system recovery in majority of children

Most children with HIV who have low levels of a key immune cell eventually recover levels of this cell after they begin treatment, according to a new study conducted by researchers at UCLA and other institutions in the U.S. and Brazil.

30 Mar 2015

Study reveals functional heterogeneity of CD4 T cells in immune systems

Utilizing a novel transgenic mouse model, Edward Usherwood, PhD of Dartmouth's Norris Cotton Cancer Center and collaborators found that CD4 T cells divide into two different populations that each has a different job. One type performs antiviral functions, and the other survives life in the host.

23 Mar 2015

Scientists develop promising new HIV vaccine agent

In a study that involved researchers from over a dozen institutions, the anti-HIV agent protected monkeys from every strain of HIV-1, HIV-2 and SIV (simian immunodeficiency virus) for at least 34 weeks.

19 Feb 2015

New molecule shows promise in controlling HIV without using daily antiretroviral drugs

Scientists have created a new molecule that shows promise for controlling HIV without daily antiretroviral drugs. The molecule foils a wider range of HIV strains in the laboratory than any known broadly neutralizing HIV antibody and is more powerful than some of the most potent of these antibodies.

19 Feb 2015