Immune System News and Research

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University of Colorado honors Taligen as Bioscience Company of the Year

Taligen Therapeutics, a biotechnology company developing therapies that regulate the complement system to treat inflammatory and immune diseases, today announced that it has been selected as the Bioscience Company of the Year by the University of Colorado with its 7th Annual Technology Transfer Awards in recognition of its leadership position in developing a pipeline of novel protein therapeutics that modulate the complement system to treat a wide range of inflammatory diseases.

23 Jun 2010

Shift in balance between good and bad bacteria in gut could be a harbinger of colon cancer: Study

The human body contains more bacteria than it does cells. These bacterial communities can have a positive effect on our health, by training our immune systems and helping to metabolize the foods we eat. But they can also set us up to develop digestive disorders, skin diseases, and obesity.

23 Jun 2010

Spanish scientists propose human amniotic membrane as new tool for repairing damaged articular cartilage

Spanish scientists have proposed using human amniotic membrane as a new tool for repairing damaged human articular cartilage, which heals very poorly because of its low capacity for self-repair. Their research, published in the journal Cell and Tissue Banking, shows that the cellular density of the cartilage synthesised could be greater than that of the body's own natural cartilage.

23 Jun 2010

Student receives two-year $46,000 fellowship to research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease

Michelle Oppenheimer of Charlotte, N.C., a Ph.D. student in biochemistry in the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Virginia Tech, has received a two-year $46,000 fellowship from the American Heart Association to advance her research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease, which can lead to swelling and inflammation of the heart.

23 Jun 2010

UAB receives $1.47M NHLBI grant to study red blood cell lesion

Researchers in the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) departments of Pathology, Microbiology and Surgery have received a $1.47 million grant from the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute (NHLBI) to study so-called red blood cell lesion, a term given to the potentially harmful changes in red blood cells that have been stored for longer times after collection.

23 Jun 2010

Researchers identify promising gene therapy for DMD

CureDuchenne, the Orange County non-profit focused on finding a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is one step closer to that goal through the work of Dr. Jeff Chamberlain.

23 Jun 2010

IMUC signs exclusive licensing agreement with Targepeutics for acquisition of IL-13Ra2 receptor

ImmunoCellular Therapeutics, a clinical-stage biotechnology company focused on developing new immune-based products to treat cancer, today announced it has entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with Targepeutics, Inc. for ImmunoCellular's acquisition of Targepeutics' worldwide intellectual property rights surrounding the IL-13 receptor, alpha 2.

23 Jun 2010

Study investigates benefits of filtering blood to create safer approaches to transfusion therapy

Researchers at the University of Rochester Medical Center have discovered yet another reason to filter the foreign white cells from donor blood: The resulting blood product is associated with dramatically fewer cardiopulmonary complications for patients who received a transfusion.

23 Jun 2010

FDA grants Tolera's TOL101 orphan drug designation for treatment of T1DM

Tolera Therapeutics, Inc., was granted orphan drug status by the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for TOL101 (anti-TCR murine monoclonal antibody, type IgM), for treatment of recent onset immune-mediated Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1DM). Designation is granted for treatment of patients sixteen years of age and younger with immune-mediated T1DM and preserved pancreatic beta-cell function, commonly referred to as juvenile diabetes.

23 Jun 2010

Diabetes control in COPD patients could improve outcomes, length of hospital stays and risk of death

A new study in the journal Respirology reveals that patients with diabetes who are hospitalized with acute exacerbations of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) experience longer time in the hospital and are also at an increased risk of death, compared to those without diabetes.

22 Jun 2010

Biovest targets mantle cell lymphoma as next indication for BiovaxID

Biovest International, Inc. (Other OTC:BVTI) today announced at the Active Immunotherapeutics Forum in Barcelona, Spain, that the Company is targeting mantle cell lymphoma, in addition to follicular lymphoma, as a next indication for its personalized cancer vaccine, BiovaxID. At the conference, the Company reviewed positive data from an open label Phase II mantle cell lymphoma clinical trial and reported plans to meet with the FDA later this year to discuss a pathway to seek regulatory approval for this hematological indication for which there is no current consensus standard-of-care.

22 Jun 2010

SynCon DNA vaccine shows advantages in magnitude and breadth of immune responses in non-human primates

Inovio Pharmaceuticals, Inc., a leader in the development of therapeutic and preventive vaccines against cancers and infectious diseases, announced today that the peer-reviewed journal Molecular Therapy has published a paper entitled "Comparative Analysis of Immune Responses Induced by Vaccination With SIV Antigens by Recombinant Ad5 Vector or Plasmid DNA in Rhesus Macaques." The paper, co-authored by researchers from Merck, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, and Inovio Pharmaceuticals, notes that significant advances in the design, formulation, and delivery of DNA plasmid-based vaccines have dramatically increased their ability to induce antigen-specific immune responses.

22 Jun 2010

Michigan State University researchers analyze histiocytic sarcomas

Michigan State University veterinarians are taking part in a two-year, $5.3 million project to analyze five cancers in dogs, research that could offer new insight into canine cancer genes and their potential impact on the human form of the disease.

22 Jun 2010

NHLBI funds nine research grants to determine safety and efficacy of red blood cell transfusions

The National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, is funding nine research grants to determine if the safety and efficacy of red blood cell transfusions vary depending on how long the cells have been stored. One of the grants supports the first large, multi-center, randomized clinical trial to compare outcomes in heart surgery patients who receive transfusions of red blood cells that have been stored for shorter or longer amounts of time.

22 Jun 2010

FDA approves ARCHITECT HIV Ag/Ab Combo assay to aid in diagnosis of HIV-1/HIV-2 infection

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today approved the first assay to detect both antigen and antibodies to Human Immunodeficiency Virus. This assay is approved for use as an aid in the diagnosis of HIV-1/HIV-2 infection in adults including pregnant women. It is also the first assay for use as an aid in the diagnosis of HIV-1/HIV-2 infection in children as young as two years old.

22 Jun 2010

Experimental cure for Type 1 diabetes

Researchers have developed an experimental cure for Type 1 diabetes, a disease that affects about one in every 400 to 600 children and adolescents. They will present their results in a mouse model of Type 1 diabetes on Sunday at The Endocrine Society's 92nd Annual Meeting in San Diego.

21 Jun 2010

Phase IIb EMBLEM study results of epratuzumab in patients with SLE presented at EULAR 2010

Immunomedics Inc. today announced that clinical trial results from the Phase IIb EMBLEM study of epratuzumab, a monoclonal antibody targeting CD22, in patients with moderate-severe systemic lupus erythematosus were presented at the 2010 annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism in Rome, Italy.

21 Jun 2010

Early-life exposure to PCBs diminishes immune response to diphtheria and tetanus vaccinations: Study

Children exposed to polychlorinated biphenyls early in life later had a diminished immune response to diphtheria and tetanus vaccinations, according to a study published online June 20 ahead of print in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health Perspectives. This result suggests that PCB exposure during the first years of life, a critical period in immune system development, could undermine the effectiveness of childhood vaccinations and possibly impair immune system responses to infection.

21 Jun 2010

Too much tea raises the risk of rheumatoid arthritis: Study

Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) a severely debilitating inflammatory disease of the joints is on the rise worldwide. It leads to severe pain, stiffness, swelling and loss of movement of joints like knees, wrist and even fingers. RA affects women more than men. RA occurs in people who develop a rogue immune system that attacks the tissue that lines the joint cavities called the synovium leading to degeneration of the joints and the symptoms of the disease. In 1995 36.4 per 100,000 women were diagnosed with RA whereas in 2005 the number rose to 54 per 100,000 women.

20 Jun 2010

Incidence of blood based deficiencies is strong predictor of poor outcome in pSS patients: Study

For healthcare professionals diagnosing primary Sj-gren's Syndrome (pSS, an autoimmune disorder in which immune cells attack and destroy moisture-producing glands), the incidence of blood based deficiencies is the strongest predictor of a poor outcome in patients according to the results of a study presented today at EULAR 2010, the Annual Congress of the European League Against Rheumatism in Rome, Italy.

19 Jun 2010

Immune System News and Research

University of Colorado honors Taligen as Bioscience Company of the Year

Shift in balance between good and bad bacteria in gut could be a harbinger of colon cancer: Study

Spanish scientists propose human amniotic membrane as new tool for repairing damaged articular cartilage

Student receives two-year $46,000 fellowship to research on a parasite that causes Chagas' disease

UAB receives $1.47M NHLBI grant to study red blood cell lesion

Researchers identify promising gene therapy for DMD

IMUC signs exclusive licensing agreement with Targepeutics for acquisition of IL-13Ra2 receptor

Study investigates benefits of filtering blood to create safer approaches to transfusion therapy

FDA grants Tolera's TOL101 orphan drug designation for treatment of T1DM

Diabetes control in COPD patients could improve outcomes, length of hospital stays and risk of death

Biovest targets mantle cell lymphoma as next indication for BiovaxID

SynCon DNA vaccine shows advantages in magnitude and breadth of immune responses in non-human primates

Michigan State University researchers analyze histiocytic sarcomas

NHLBI funds nine research grants to determine safety and efficacy of red blood cell transfusions

FDA approves ARCHITECT HIV Ag/Ab Combo assay to aid in diagnosis of HIV-1/HIV-2 infection

Experimental cure for Type 1 diabetes

Phase IIb EMBLEM study results of epratuzumab in patients with SLE presented at EULAR 2010

Early-life exposure to PCBs diminishes immune response to diphtheria and tetanus vaccinations: Study

Too much tea raises the risk of rheumatoid arthritis: Study

Incidence of blood based deficiencies is strong predictor of poor outcome in pSS patients: Study

Immunology eBook

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

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