Immune System News and Research

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Immune response more complicated than thought

Researchers have found that the orientation and concentration of antibodies could determine the control of bacterial infection.

28 Dec 2012

Uncharacterized TLR plays key role in Toxoplasma gondii response

A previously uncharacterized toll-like receptor appears to play a crucial role in the innate immune response to Toxoplasma gondii infection and may promote host resistance, potentially leading to anti-parasite vaccines, say US researchers.

28 Dec 2012

Protein in human blood platelets points to a new weapon against malaria

One of the world's most devastating diseases is malaria, responsible for at least a million deaths annually, despite global efforts to combat it. Researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, working with collaborators from Drexel University, The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, and Johns Hopkins University, have identified a protein in human blood platelets that points to a powerful new weapon against the disease. Their work was published in this months' issue of Cell Host and Microbe.

28 Dec 2012

Immune-promoting drugs may control recurrent disease

Nearly half of the 700,000 cancer patients who undergo surgical removal of a primary tumor each year suffer a recurrence of their disease at some point, and many of those patients will eventually die from their disease.

28 Dec 2012

Genome sequencing may help identify new targets to treat Pneumocystis pneumonia

Scientists have sequenced the genome of the fungus Pneumocystis jirovecii, an advancement that could help identify new targets for drugs to treat and prevent Pneumocystis pneumonia, a common and often deadly infection in immunocompromised patients.

26 Dec 2012

Cellular metabolism of immune cells protect against viral infections and tumours

New research demonstrates that the cellular metabolism of certain immune cells is closely linked to their function, which includes protecting against viral infections and the development of tumours.

25 Dec 2012

Blood transfusion may increase risk of death in heart attack patients with anemia

When heart attack patients present in the emergency department with some degree of anemia, or anemic patients have a heart attack, physicians have a tendency, but not much guidance, about whether to provide a blood transfusion.

25 Dec 2012

Cause of recurrent infections in MECP2 duplication syndrome identified

US study results show that the genetic abnormality underlying the pediatric condition methyl-CpG binding protein 2 duplication syndrome also causes immune dysfunction.

24 Dec 2012

Protein complex plays critical role in development of Alzheimer's disease

The Bonn site of the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the University of Bonn are leading contributors.

21 Dec 2012

PEPFAR scale-up linked to strengthening of health systems, study says

Noting "PEPFAR has been criticized for its vertical or 'stove-piping' structure, with resources targeting a specific disease rather than working to strengthen the underlying health system," a study published in the Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes "aimed to evaluate whether PEPFAR activities were associated with system-wide improvements in both proximal and distal indicators of health systems strengthening."

21 Dec 2012

Molecule imitating a virus may trigger inappropriate immune response

Why would our immune system turn against our own cells? This is the question that the combined Inserm/CNRS/ Pierre and Marie Curie University/Association Institut de Myologie have strived to answer in their "Therapies for diseases of striated muscle", concentrating in particular on the auto-immune disease known as myasthenia gravis.

21 Dec 2012

Scientists sequence complete genome of leeches

Leeches, despite the yuck factor, have captured the hearts of two University of California, Berkeley, scientists who are part of a team that this week is publishing the leech's complete genome sequence.

21 Dec 2012

House passes bio-threat vaccines, Medicare coverage bills

The House passed several health measures Wednesday including bills on developing vaccines to thwart bio-threats and on Medicare coverage for immune deficiency care.

21 Dec 2012

Researchers create first ever atlas of immune cells in the human body

By analyzing tissues harvested from organ donors, Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC) researchers have created the first ever "atlas" of immune cells in the human body.

21 Dec 2012

UAB research succeeds in testing a vaccine against leishmaniasis

A research coordinated by the UAB has succeeded in testing a vaccine against leishmaniasis. The vaccine was tested with the best animal model existing, the golden hamster, and can be produced at low costs by using insect larvae.

21 Dec 2012

Study examines role of race and ethnicity in stem cell donation

New research examining the role of race and ethnicity in an individual's decision to become a donor for hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) identifies several factors associated with varied participation rates in national donor registries across racial/ethnic groups. Results of this first-of-its-kind study are published online today in Blood, the Journal of the American Society of Hematology (ASH).

21 Dec 2012

Researchers develop game-changing diagnostic and prognostic genetic tests for prostate cancer

Researchers at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson (KCC) have developed potentially game-changing diagnostic and prognostic genetic tests shown to better predict prostate cancer survival outcomes and distinguish clinically-relevant cancers.

21 Dec 2012

Study examines five varieties of cells after transplantation in the CNS

When different types of cells are transplanted with the intent of having them aid in repairing central nervous system (CNS) trauma, what is the fate and function of those cells? A Belgian research team carried out research aimed at answering this question by determining how five varieties of cells - neural stem cells, mouse embryonic fibroblasts, dendritic cells, bone marrow mononuclear cells (BMMNCs) and splenocytes - functioned and survived after transplantation in the CNS.

21 Dec 2012

Ebselen effectively inhibits thioredoxin reductase system in H. pylori, M. tuberculosis

A drug currently being used to treat ischemic strokes may prove to be a significant advance in the treatment of tuberculosis and ulcers. In a new research report appearing online in The FASEB Journal, a compound called ebselen effectively inhibits the thioredoxin reductase system in a wide variety of bacteria, including Helicobacter pylori which causes gastric ulcers and Mycobacterium tuberculosis which causes tuberculosis.

21 Dec 2012

Study finds new signaling pathway involved in development of chronic inflammation of brain cells

The number of Alzheimer's patients will continue to dramatically increase in the next several decades. Various teams of researchers worldwide are feverishly investigating precisely how the illness develops. A

20 Dec 2012