Antibodies News and Research

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Tiny, vibrating paddle oscillator senses the mass of a virus

By using a device only six-millionths of a meter long, researchers at Cornell University have been able to detect the presence of as few as a half-dozen viruses -- and they believe the device is sensitive enough to notice just one.

5 Nov 2004

VaxGen gets $877.5 million to supply 75 million doses of anthrax vaccine

VaxGen announced today that the U.S. government has awarded the company an $877.5 million contract to supply 75 million doses of anthrax vaccine for civilian defense.

4 Nov 2004

Researchers identify biomarkers that could lead to more accurate diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus

University of Pittsburgh researchers have identified biomarkers that could result in earlier and more accurate diagnosis of systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE), a devastating disease that affects as many as 1.5 million Americans, and occurs 10 to 15 times more frequently in women.

4 Nov 2004

Study of infection prevention therapy for premature babies

Whether donated human antibodies can protect premature babies from a common and potentially dangerous bacterial infection is under study at the Medical College of Georgia Children’s Medical Center.

4 Nov 2004

Gene regulated by need to process proteins linked to enlargement of protein processing factory

Part of a cellular mechanism that regulates the folding of new proteins into their proper shapes also includes a genetic response that enlarges the factory where both protein folding and packaging of proteins occurs.

2 Nov 2004

$73 million to tackle infectious diseases such as West Nile virus and influenza

The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), has awarded 14 contracts totaling more than $73 million to fund the Large-Scale Antibody and T Cell Epitope Discovery Program, an initiative aimed at quickly identifying the regions of selected infectious agents that elicit immune reactions.

1 Nov 2004

Pegasys with ribavirin combo may best for reducing hepatitis C viral levels

Interim study results indicate a certain drug combination treatment may suppress the hepatitis C virus more quickly than another.

1 Nov 2004

Scientists have found that a protein present in normal body tissues can prevent tumour growth

A team led by Dr Dave Bates, British Heart Foundation Lecturer, and Dr Steve Harper, Senior Research Fellow in the Microvascular Research Laboratories, in the Department of Physiology at Bristol University, have discovered that a type of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) found in normal tissue, including blood, can prevent cancers from growing.

1 Nov 2004

Routine screening of blood samples would reduce the risk of disease transmission among transplant recipients

Results of a study in this week’s issue of THE LANCET suggest that routine screening of blood samples to detect viral RNA among organ and tissue donors who do not have obvious signs of clinical disease would reduce the risk of disease transmission among transplant recipients.

29 Oct 2004

Trojan horse technique offers potential new therapeutic approach to Alzheimer's disease

A potential new therapeutic approach to Alzheimer's disease protects brain cells in culture by drastically reducing the neurotoxic amyloid protein aggregates that are critical to the development of the disease.

29 Oct 2004

Babies who are breastfed have a lower risk of developing childhood leukemia

The paper, to be published November in the journal Public Health Reports, found that breastfeeding was linked to lower risks of both acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL), the most common of the childhood cancers, and acute myeloblastic leukemia (AML).

28 Oct 2004

Umbilical cord blood may hold clue to childhood allergy and asthma

High levels of antibodies to allergens in a baby's umbilical cord blood might be more important in the development of childhood allergies and asthma than exposure to allergens, or lack of them, after birth, suggests research in Thorax.

28 Oct 2004

Study suggests safer immunization approach to Alzheimer's

Researchers at the University of Illinois at Chicago have had preliminary success with a method of immunization intended to dissolve the plaques in brain tissue that are associated with Alzheimer's disease.

28 Oct 2004

Easy-to-make vaccine tackles a range of illnesses

Australian researchers have created a totally synthetic vaccine that is effective against viruses, harmful bacteria and tumours and could lead to a powerful new arsenal of vaccines for humans and animals.

26 Oct 2004

Genetic double-agents unmasked

Babraham Institute and Cancer Research UK scientists have discovered that certain enzymes with a key activity in the immune system may be important in stem-cell development, but may also work against us by contributing to the occurrence of cancer.

26 Oct 2004

Scientists are testing the effectiveness of a new type of flu vaccine

The experimental vaccine instead relies on a cell line drawn from insects known as silk moths, which are better known for their role as pests attacking crops such as corn, cotton, barley and alfalfa.

25 Oct 2004

New oral vaccine treatment is effective in reducing Alzheimer's disease pathology

Alzheimer's disease is characterized by progressive loss of cognitive function due to amyloid-beta (Aß) deposits in the central nervous system. If these deposits could be stopped or slowed, Alzheimer's disease might become more manageable.

25 Oct 2004

Breakthrough discovery in treating narrowed arteries

A breakthrough discovery by Heart and Stroke Foundation researcher Dr. Michael Kutryk that harnesses the body’s own natural defenses to fight narrowing of the arteries has been recognized as “a glimpse into the future” and “potentially one of the biggest advances in cardiology to date”.

25 Oct 2004

Lag-3 gene dampens immune responses by controlling regulatory T-cell function

The discovery that the Lag-3 gene acts as a brake to prevent immune system responses from running out of control solves a mystery that has puzzled researchers since the gene was discovered 14 years ago.

22 Oct 2004

Genetic research offers insight into Sjögren's syndrome and the general developmental machinery of the immune system

By knocking out a single gene in mice, immunologists at Duke University Medical Center have mimicked a little-understood autoimmune disorder in humans.

21 Oct 2004