Antibody News and Research

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An antibody is a blood protein that is produced in response to and counteracts an antigen. Antibodies are produced in response to disease and help the body fight against the particular disease. In this way, antibodies help the body develop an immunity to disease.

Discovery of antibody that neutralizes two viruses classified as henipaviruses

In laboratory experiments, scientists at the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and their colleagues supported by the NIH National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease (NIAID), have discovered an antibody that neutralizes two viruses classified as henipaviruses.

18 Feb 2008

Location location location, even for genes

Moving an active gene from the interior of the nucleus to its periphery can inactivate that gene report scientists from the University of Chicago Medical Center in an article to be published early online Feb.13, 2008, in the journal Nature.

14 Feb 2008

Some cases of autism may be traced to the immune system of mothers during pregnancy

New research from the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute and Center for Children's Environmental Health has found that antibodies in the blood of mothers of children with autism bind to fetal brain cells, potentially interrupting healthy brain development.

12 Feb 2008

Prenatal exposure to maternal antibodies linked to autistic behaviors in offspring

New research from the UC Davis M.I.N.D. Institute shows that an interaction between fetal brain cells and maternal antibodies could be linked with the repetitive behavior - also called stereotypies - that is characteristic of autism.

12 Feb 2008

Gene therapy protocol at UCSD activates immune system in patients with leukemia

A research team at the Moores Cancer Center at University of California, San Diego (UCSD) reports that patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who were treated with a gene therapy protocol began making antibodies that reacted against their own leukemia cells.

12 Feb 2008

Scientists create fluorescent proteins for live cell imaging, biosensor design

Scientists at Carnegie Mellon University's Molecular Biosensor and Imaging Center have developed new "fluorogen activating proteins" (FAPs) that will become a key component of novel molecular biosensor technology being created at Carnegie Mellon.

7 Feb 2008

Molecules developed at UB boost vaccine potency

Two novel proteins studied by a University at Buffalo professor of microbiology and immunology appear to have the potential to enhance the production of antibodies against a multitude of infectious agents.

5 Feb 2008

New vaccine for malaria under trial

Trials are underway, funded by the Wellcome Trust, for a new vaccine to combat the most deadly form of malaria.

5 Feb 2008

Novel drug romiplostim significantly improves treatment of dangerous blood disorder

Two clinical trials of the novel drug romiplostim (Nplate) show that it significantly improved platelet levels in patients with chronic immune thrombocytopenic purpura (ITP), a hematologic disorder that can cause uncontrolled bleeding.

5 Feb 2008

New discoveries on what does and doesn't affect immune system

Scientists know that a number of factors can affect the body's immune system: poor diet, certain steroids, chronic stress. Now researchers at Michigan State University have discovered that an appetite-controlling hormone also affects the immune system, while natural versions of certain steroids do not.

4 Feb 2008

Researchers uncover key interaction in cholesterol regulation

Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have determined the specific way in which a destructive protein binds to and interferes with a molecule that removes low-density lipoproteins (LDL), the so-called "bad" cholesterol, from the blood.

4 Feb 2008

A possible H5N1 vaccine

A vaccine against the most common and deadliest strain of avian flu, H5N1, has been engineered and tested by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh's Center for Vaccine Research and Novavax Inc.

4 Feb 2008

Study looks at safe dosages of the isotope astatine-211 for brain tumors

In a study to determine safe dosages of the isotope astatine-211 for patients with recurring brain tumors, researchers were pleasantly surprised to find that not only was the isotope's potency sufficient to kill residual cancer cells without damaging sensitive healthy brain cells, but the patients experienced longer survival rates.

4 Feb 2008

Breakdown of kidney's self-cleaning ability makes them more vulnerable to dysfunction and disease

The kidney actively cleans its most selective filter to keep it from clogging with blood proteins, scientists from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis reveal in a new study.

30 Jan 2008

New nanomedicine research for prostate cancer

The Prostate Cancer Foundation, largely through the generosity of David H. Koch, has given $5 million to four institutions, including Weill Cornell Medical College, to support novel research in prostate cancer. The gift is one of the largest-ever individual donations for prostate cancer research.

29 Jan 2008