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A macrophage is a type of white blood cell that surrounds and kills microorganisms, removes dead cells, and stimulates the action of other immune system cells.

Study shows beneficial anti-fibrotic effects of Pentraxin-2 in idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis

Promedior, Inc., a clinical stage biotechnology company developing novel therapies to treat fibrotic and inflammatory diseases, announced today the publication of collaborative research in the International Journal of Biochemistry and Cell Biology entitled, "TGF-beta driven lung fibrosis is macrophage dependent and blocked by Serum amyloid P."

14 Feb 2011

Study reveals beneficial anti-fibrotic effects of Pentraxin-2 in TGFβ1-induced lung disease

11 Feb 2011

Viral infection of Leishmania leads to increased pathogenicity

A parasite and a virus may be teaming up in a way that increases the parasite's ability to harm humans, scientists at the University of Lausanne in Switzerland and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis report this week in Science.

11 Feb 2011

Researchers identify enzyme that protects against inflammation, joint destruction

A team of researchers at the University of Gothenburg, Sweden, has identified an enzyme that protects against inflammation and joint destruction. Made when the researchers blocked production of the enzyme GGTase-I in transgenic mice, this unexpected discovery could lead to the identification of new mechanisms that control the development of inflammatory disorders, as well as new medicines.

8 Feb 2011

Cholesterol efflux capacity may protect against heart disease: Study

The discovery that high levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol are associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease has fostered intensive research to modify HDL levels for therapeutic gain. However, recent findings have called into question the notion that pharmacologic increases in HDL cholesterol levels are necessarily beneficial to patients.

4 Feb 2011

Immune protein exacerbates skin cancer due to sun exposure: Study

An unexpected immune protein exacerbates cancer due to sun exposure, report researchers in the January 27th issue of Nature. The study suggests that drugs blocking the protein might halt tumor growth in skin cancer patients.

3 Feb 2011

Scientists discover breast cancer cells that dodge immune system, promote tumor growth

Scientists discovered a new way breast cancer cells dodge the immune system and promote tumor growth, providing a fresh treatment target in the fight against the disease. While comparable mechanisms to avoid the immune system have been identified in mice with breast and other cancers, the study tested human breast tumor cells, putting researchers closer to understanding how the disease progresses in real patients.

2 Feb 2011

Plexxikon begins PLX5622 Phase 1 trial in patients with rheumatoid arthritis

Plexxikon today announced that dosing began in the first of two Phase 1 clinical trials with PLX5622, a novel, oral and highly selective Fms inhibitor, targeted for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis.

27 Jan 2011

Interferon-alpha associated with increased risk of atherosclerosis in patients with SLE

Researchers in China have demonstrated interferon-alpha (IFN-α) is associated with increased risk of atherosclerosis in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). For the first time, IFN-α priming was shown to promote lipid uptake and foam cell formation—a crucial step in plaque build-up. This activation of the IFN signaling pathway may be linked to the premature atherosclerosis risk in SLE.

27 Jan 2011

Research findings reveal HIV's hiding spot, new way to stop the virus

HIV adapts in a surprising way to survive and thrive in its hiding spot within the human immune system, scientists have learned. While the finding helps explain why HIV remains such a formidable foe after three decades of research - more than 30 million people worldwide are infected with HIV - it also offers scientists a new, unexpected way to try to stop the virus.

24 Jan 2011

Study validates MultiStem as potential stem cell therapy for spinal cord injury

Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and Athersys, Inc. announced a joint scientific study on spinal cord injury will be published today in the January issue of The Journal of Neuroscience.

20 Jan 2011

Case Western Reserve, Athersys enter partnership for scientific study on spinal cord injury

19 Jan 2011

'Master switch' protein in white blood cells linked to inflammation

Scientists have identified a protein that acts as a "master switch" in certain white blood cells, determining whether they promote or inhibit inflammation. The study, published in the journal Nature Immunology, could help researchers look for new treatments for diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis that involve excessive inflammation.

18 Jan 2011

New way to halt lung inflammation

Acute inflammation of the lung is a poorly recognized human disease that develops in surprising and unexpected ways. The acute lung injury (ALI) or adult respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) is a vital new concern for soldiers, but it can develop in anyone during a systemic infection, after severe trauma, as a result of bone fracture, following severe burns and in many other ways as well-- the initial cause may have nothing apparent to do with the lung itself.

18 Jan 2011

Inflammation “master switch” found: Study

According to the latest medical discovery a protein that acts as a “master switch” has been found to determine whether certain white blood cells will boost or dampen inflammation. This may open new avenues in rheumatoid arthritis research. Rheumatoid arthritis or RA is an inflammatory disease that causes severe progressive crippling of the joints.

17 Jan 2011

Cholesterol efflux capacity is more closely associated with protection against heart disease: Study

The discovery that high levels of high-density lipoprotein cholesterol is associated with reduced risk of cardiovascular disease has fostered intensive research to modify HDL levels for therapeutic gain. However, recent findings have called into question the notion that pharmacologic increases in HDL cholesterol levels are necessarily beneficial to patients.

13 Jan 2011

Omega-3 fatty acid may help protect against traumatic brain injury

Animal experiments suggest that taking the omega-3 fatty acid docosahexanoic acid (DHA) might offer a new way of protecting against traumatic brain injury (TBI), reports the February issue of Neurosurgery, official journal of the Congress of Neurological Surgeons.

10 Jan 2011

HRG protein inhibits tumor growth and metastasis: Study

Most cancer tissues are invaded by inflammatory cells that either stimulate or inhibit the growth of the tumor, depending on what immune cells are involved. Now a Swedish-Belgian research team has shown that a protein that naturally occurs in the body, HRG, inhibits tumor growth and metastasis into secondary organs by activating specific immune cells.

7 Jan 2011

P. gingivalis infection accelerates inflammation and atherosclerosis in the innominate artery

Atherosclerosis is the leading cause of death in the developed world. While a number of risk factors for atherosclerosis have been defined, scientists continue to study other possible risk factors for this disease. Recent epidemiological and experimental studies link infectious agents with the development of inflammatory atherosclerosis. A hallmark of chronic infection with the oral pathogen Porphyromonas gingivalis is the induction of a chronic inflammatory response.

5 Jan 2011

Certain drugs may block tumor host interactions but do not destroy cancer cells

A class of drugs thought to kill cancer cells may in fact block "cross talk" between the cancer cell and normal immune cells, resulting in reduced cancer growth and spread-a discovery that could significantly alter the way cancer drugs are evaluated in the future.

23 Dec 2010