Immunosuppression News and Research

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Immunosuppression involves an act that reduces the activation or efficacy of the immune system. Some portions of the immune system itself have immuno-suppressive effects on other parts of the immune system, and immunosuppression may occur as an adverse reaction to treatment of other conditions.

New AGA guideline provides guidance to prevent HBV reactivation

Long-term immunosuppressive therapy can cause the hepatitis B virus (HBV) to become active, even in patients who are not aware that they are infected with the virus. A new guideline from the American Gastroenterological Association provides guidance to physicians and patients who use immunosuppressive agents for the treatment of a variety of disorders, including gastrointestinal, dermatologic, neurologic and rheumatologic, among others.

9 Feb 2015

Infectious diseases expert discusses the myths and facts about measles outbreak

Measles, a highly contagious respiratory infection that causes serious complications in about 3 of 10 people, has been grabbing headlines since last December's outbreak at Disneyland. In January, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported 102 cases of measles in 14 states. One unconfirmed case was just reported in New Jersey. Measured against the approximately 600 cases reported in 2014, this year is on track to set a record for a disease that was declared eradicated in the United States in 2000.

8 Feb 2015

New article discusses role of cytokines in breast cancer development, progression

Emerging data on the role of inflammation and the immune system in the development, growth, and spread of breast tumors have focused increased attention on the role cytokines such as interleukin and transforming growth factor-β play in breast cancer initiation, protection, and metastasis.

14 Jan 2015

Dallas Cowboys timekeeper ready to get back to work after kidney transplant at UT Southwestern

Jim Ely tackles life like Mean Joe Greene tackled running backs. A banker, he also worked weekends as a football referee for 38 years and still, at age 83, works as home-game timekeeper for the Dallas Cowboys.

12 Jan 2015

CHLA scientists grow tissue-engineered small intestine from human cells

A new study by researchers at Children's Hospital Los Angeles has shown that tissue-engineered small intestine grown from human cells replicates key aspects of a functioning human intestine. The tissue-engineered small intestine they developed contains important elements of the mucosal lining and support structures, including the ability to absorb sugars, and even tiny or ultra-structural components like cellular connections.

9 Jan 2015

Findings show effective treatment for type 1 diabetes patients with severe hypoglycemia

Type 1 diabetes (T1D) patients who have developed low blood sugar (hypoglycemia) as a complication of insulin treatments over time are able to regain normal internal recognition of the condition after receiving pancreatic islet cell transplantation, according to a new study led by researchers at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, published online in Diabetes.

18 Dec 2014

Children born prematurely need to be placed in a priority group for seasonal flu vaccination

Children born prematurely are at an increased risk of flu-related complications, despite not being identified as an “at risk” group in UK, USA, or WHO guidelines, and should be a priority group for the seasonal flu vaccination, new research published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine suggests.

8 Dec 2014

Researchers report promising outcomes from clinical trial in patients with dyskeratosis congenita

Researchers at Dana-Farber/Boston Children's Cancer and Blood Disorders Center report promising outcomes from a clinical trial with patients with a rare form of bone marrow failure who received a hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) after pre-treatment with immunosuppressive drugs only. This is the first trial reporting successful transplant in dyskeratosis congenita (DC) patients without the use of any radiation or conventional cytotoxic chemotherapy beforehand.

8 Dec 2014

Scientists investigate Veto Cell technology to treat blood cancers, bone marrow transplants

Overcoming graft rejection is the main obstacle when it comes to stem cell regeneration or organ transplantation.

2 Dec 2014

Insufficient Th1 polarisation blocks RCC vaccine efficacy

A lack of a clinical response to an allogenic gene-modified renal cell cancer vaccine may be due to insufficient type 1 T-helper cell polarisation, show results of a gene expression profiling study.

30 Oct 2014

New specialist outpatient vaccinations clinic for at-risk people to be opened at MedUni Vienna

At the Medical University of Vienna, Austria's first specialist vaccinations clinic for at-risk groups will open on 22nd October 2014 with an "Open Doors Day". This clinic specialises in patients who, as a result of illness or disease, require personalised care in relation to vaccinations.

16 Oct 2014

Fecal microbiota transplantation officially recommended for effective treatment of C. difficile infection

The transplantation of faecal microbiota from a healthy donor has been shown in recent clinical studies to be a safe and highly effective treatment for recurrent Clostridium difficile (C. difficile) infection and is now recommended in European treatment guidelines.

29 Sep 2014

Asterias receives clearance from FDA to initiate Phase 1/2a clinical trial of AST-OPC1

Asterias Biotherapeutics Inc. has received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration to initiate a Phase 1/2a clinical trial of its product, AST-OPC1, in patients with complete cervical spinal cord injury.

27 Aug 2014

Houston Methodist researchers receive $1.6M from NIH to study pathological antibodies

Transplant immunologists at the Houston Methodist Research Institute will receive about $1.6 million over four years from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to study pathological antibodies produced from activated memory B cells during the chronic rejection of organ transplants.

20 Aug 2014

Clinical trial to investigate safety of neural stem cell transplantation in patients with spinal cord injuries

Researchers at the University of California, San Diego School of Medicine have launched a clinical trial to investigate the safety of neural stem cell transplantation in patients with chronic spinal cord injuries.

12 Aug 2014

Induced immunorejection may eliminate tumors post-cell transplantation

Recent studies have shown that transplanting induced pluripotent stem cell-derived neural stem cells (iPS-NSCs) can promote functional recovery after spinal cord injury in rodents and non-human primates. However, a serious drawback to the transplantation of iPS-NSCs is the potential for tumor growth, or tumorogenesis, post-transplantation.

7 Aug 2014

Drug used for treating rheumatoid arthritis can improve health of kidney transplant recipients

UC San Francisco is the lead institution on a new seven-year, $17 million multicenter study funded by the National Institutes of Health to determine if certain immune system cells and/or a drug now used for treating rheumatoid arthritis can be effective in improving and maintaining the long-term health of kidney transplant recipients.

5 Aug 2014

Pneumococcal pneumonia mortality falling

Between 2000 and 2013 there has been an increase in the early prescription of antibiotics and use of combination therapy in patients with pneumococcal pneumonia, researchers report.

28 Jul 2014

Envarsus gets marketing authorization from EC for treatment of kidney and liver transplant patients

Veloxis Pharmaceuticals A/S and Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. today announced that the European Commission (EC) has granted marketing authorization for Envarsus for the prevention of organ rejection in adult kidney and liver transplant patients in the European Union.