Immune Response News and Research

RSS

Scientists discover gene associated with high risk of severe childhood asthma.

An international scientific team has discovered a gene associated with a high risk of severe childhood asthma. The specific gene variant may be an actual cause of this form of asthma, a leading cause of hospitalization in young children.

17 Nov 2013

Human Treg responses allow sustained recombinant adeno-associated virus-mediated transgene expression

Successful gene therapy is based on the effective delivery and maintained expression of healthy copies of a gene into tissues of individuals with a disease-associated genetic mutation.

16 Nov 2013

Scientists receive $2.2M grant to improve treatments for immune disorders, inflammatory diseases

Scientists from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute have been awarded more than $2.2 million from the Australian Research Council (ARC) to improve treatments for immune disorders and inflammatory diseases.

16 Nov 2013

Scientists identify genetic signature of respiratory syncytial virus

Scientists have identified the genetic signature of respiratory syncytial virus, the leading cause of infant hospitalizations around the world. The work is a key step toward a better understanding of the immune response to RSV, which will aid the development of a vaccine and a tool that could allow physicians to determine the severity of the infection when symptoms first develop. The study, from a team at The Research Institute at Nationwide Children's Hospital, was published this week in PLOS Medicine.

15 Nov 2013

Annexin A5 protein may have therapeutic potential for treatment of sepsis

Sepsis is the leading cause of in-hospital death and there is no specific treatment for it. Now, research led by Dr. Qingping Feng of Western University (London, Canada) suggests a protein called recombinant human annexin A5 may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of this disease. The paper is published in advance, online in Critical Care Medicine.

15 Nov 2013

Severe sepsis mortality rates decrease over the past 20 years

A recent study from Boston University School of Medicine and Boston Medical Center shows a significant decrease in severe sepsis mortality rates over the past 20 years. Looking at data from patients with severe sepsis enrolled in clinical trials, researchers found that in-hospital mortality rates decreased from 47 percent between 1991 and 1995 to 29 percent between 2006 and 2009, a time period when no new pharmacological treatments were developed for severe sepsis.

14 Nov 2013

Researchers receive $7.5 million NIH grant to develop novel therapies for Alzheimer's disease

Researchers at Mayo Clinic in Florida, the University of Florida in Gainesville, and the Institute for Systems Biology in Seattle have received a $7.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to take a new and more expanded approach to identifying drug targets to treat and possibly prevent Alzheimer's disease.

12 Nov 2013

Study provides new evidence underlining the significance of bitter taste perception

It's no coincidence that the expression "to leave a bitter taste in one's mouth" has a double meaning; people often have strong negative reactions to bitter substances, which, though found in healthful foods like vegetables, can also signify toxicity. For this reason, the ability to sense bitterness likely played an important role in human evolution.

12 Nov 2013

Australian scientists unravel mystery behind immune system memory

While the principle of immune memory has been known for decades, the exact molecular mechanisms underpinning it have remained a mystery. Australian scientists have now unraveled part of that mystery, identifying the role of a gene called STAT3, which acts as a kind of roundabout, directing chemical messenger molecules to various destinations.

12 Nov 2013

Gene mutations responsible for persistent AD in African American children

Two specific genetic variations in people of African descent are responsible for persistent atopic dermatitis (AD), an itchy, inflammatory form of the skin disorder eczema. A new report by researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania found that loss-of-function mutations to Filaggrin-2 (FLG2), a gene that creates a protein responsible for retaining moisture and protecting the skin from environmental irritants, were associated with atopic dermatitis in African American children.

12 Nov 2013

Researchers discovers key genetic culprit responsible for growth, metastasis of colon cancer

Chronic inflammation has long been known as a key risk factor for cancer---particularly colon cancer---but the exact mechanisms of how inflammation heightens the immune response, and ultimately influences the initiation and progression of cancer have remained elusive.

12 Nov 2013

Georgia University scientists identify cause of muscle weakness disease myasthenia gravis

An antibody to a protein critical to enabling the brain to talk to muscles has been identified as a cause of myasthenia gravis, researchers report.

12 Nov 2013

Discovery could rev up body's immune response to infection, autoimmune diseases

UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers report that disrupting the light-dark cycle of mice increased their susceptibility to inflammatory disease, indicating that the production of a key immune cell is controlled by the body's circadian clock.

8 Nov 2013

Clinical testing expanded for vaccine against latent TB

Statens Serum Institut and Aeras today announced the initiation of a Phase I/IIa clinical trial for a candidate tuberculosis vaccine designed to protect people, especially those latently infected with TB, from developing active TB disease.

8 Nov 2013

GHIT Fund makes new investments in potential treatments for malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease

The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund, a new public health partnership that is bringing Japanese know-how and investment to the global fight against infectious diseases, announced today grants of US$5.7 million to six global partnerships working on innovative drugs and vaccines against malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease.

8 Nov 2013

Lowa researchers create bio patch that regenerates missing or damaged bone

Researchers at the University of Iowa have created a bio patch to regenerate missing or damaged bone by putting DNA into a nano-sized particle that delivers bone-producing instructions directly into cells.

8 Nov 2013

Study reveals that lower dose of BPA contributes to large range of health problems in humans

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a known endocrine disruptor that hijacks the normal responses of hormones. Yet, traditional toxicology studies indicate that only very high doses of this chemical affect exposed animals-doses as high as 50 mg/kg/day.

8 Nov 2013

GHIT Fund grants US$5.7 million to six global partnerships working on vaccines against malaria

The Global Health Innovative Technology Fund (GHIT Fund), a new public health partnership that is bringing Japanese know-how and investment to the global fight against infectious diseases, announced today grants of US$5.7 million to six global partnerships working on innovative drugs and vaccines against malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease.

8 Nov 2013

New treatment option for patients with most difficult-to-treat forms of hepatitis C

A novel single-pill combination drug could present a new treatment option for patients with the most difficult-to-treat forms of hepatitis C, according to the results of a Phase 2 trial, published in The Lancet.

6 Nov 2013

Research: Chronic stress changes gene activity in immune cells before reaching bloodstream

New research shows that chronic stress changes gene activity in immune cells before they reach the bloodstream. With these changes, the cells are primed to fight an infection or trauma that doesn't actually exist, leading to an overabundance of the inflammation that is linked to many health problems.

6 Nov 2013

Immune Response News and Research

Scientists discover gene associated with high risk of severe childhood asthma.

Human Treg responses allow sustained recombinant adeno-associated virus-mediated transgene expression

Scientists receive $2.2M grant to improve treatments for immune disorders, inflammatory diseases

Scientists identify genetic signature of respiratory syncytial virus

Annexin A5 protein may have therapeutic potential for treatment of sepsis

Severe sepsis mortality rates decrease over the past 20 years

Researchers receive $7.5 million NIH grant to develop novel therapies for Alzheimer's disease

Study provides new evidence underlining the significance of bitter taste perception

Australian scientists unravel mystery behind immune system memory

Gene mutations responsible for persistent AD in African American children

Researchers discovers key genetic culprit responsible for growth, metastasis of colon cancer

Georgia University scientists identify cause of muscle weakness disease myasthenia gravis

Discovery could rev up body's immune response to infection, autoimmune diseases

Clinical testing expanded for vaccine against latent TB

GHIT Fund makes new investments in potential treatments for malaria, tuberculosis and Chagas disease

Lowa researchers create bio patch that regenerates missing or damaged bone

Study reveals that lower dose of BPA contributes to large range of health problems in humans

GHIT Fund grants US$5.7 million to six global partnerships working on vaccines against malaria

New treatment option for patients with most difficult-to-treat forms of hepatitis C

Research: Chronic stress changes gene activity in immune cells before reaching bloodstream

Achieving and maintaining ISO/IEC 27001 and BS 10012 certifications

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

Latest News