Cytokines

What are Cytokines?

The term "cytokine" is derived from a combination of two Greek words - "cyto" meaning cell and "kinos" meaning movement. Cytokines are cell signalling molecules that aid cell to cell communication in immune responses and stimulate the movement of cells towards sites of inflammation, infection and trauma.

Cytokine Effects

Cytokine Nomenclature

Cytokine Classification

Cytokine Receptors

Inflammatory Cytokines and Depression

Latest Cytokines News and Research

Novel formulation allows use of toxin from rattlesnake venom to control neuropathic pain

Crotoxin, extracted from the venom of the South American rattlesnake Crotalus durissus terrificus, has been studied for almost a century for its analgesic, anti-inflammatory and antitumor activities and as an even more powerful muscle paralyzer than botulinum toxin.

16 Feb 2020

Study gives clues on how to stop HIV reemergence

A new study released today in the Journal of Virology gives insights into how the HIV-1 virus, which often persists in the body despite antiretroviral treatment, reemerges when treatment stops. More importantly, the study also gives clues on how to stop this reemergence from occurring.

12 Feb 2020

Researchers engineer probiotics to safely deliver immunotherapies to tumors

Researchers at Columbia Engineering have engineered probiotics to safely deliver immunotherapies within tumors.

12 Feb 2020

Georgia State researcher receives $1.67 million federal grant to study gut immunity

Dr. Tim Denning, professor and associate director of the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University, has received a four-year, $1.67 million federal grant to study how an immunological pathway influences inflammatory signaling in the intestine that can lead to chronic human diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease.

9 Feb 2020

New plant-based drug shown to help patients with head and neck cancers

In a UCLA-led phase I clinical trial, a new plant-based drug called APG-157 showed signs of helping patients fight oral and oropharyngeal cancers. These cancers are located in the head and the neck.

5 Feb 2020

Age-linked cognitive decline could be slowed by immune activation

A new study published in February 2020 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine (JEM), reports that activating a specific type of immune cell found in the brain could delay reduced cognition often found in older people, and even prevent neurologic degeneration of age.

5 Feb 2020

Making it all work: brain-dependent immune activation in embryos

How does the immune system develop its functionality? This has been an ongoing area of research for biologists. Now, a new study published in the journal NPJ Regenerative Medicine in February 2020 shows that in very early fetal life the brain must signal directions to the developing immune system to help it defend the body from infectious agents. This signaling markedly improves the capability of the embryo to survive when faced with bacterial infection.

4 Feb 2020

Flickering light triggers the brain to release signaling chemicals that may help fight Alzheimer's

For over a century, Alzheimer's disease has confounded all attempts to treat it. But in recent years, perplexing experiments using flickering light have shown promise.

4 Feb 2020

HIV antibody therapy improves immune function

A new study published in the journal Nature Medicine in February 2020 reports that the administration of neutralizing antibodies against HIV improve the recipient’s specific T cell responses against the virus.

3 Feb 2020

FDA gives clearance to IND application for Calibr's 'switchable' CAR-T cell therapy

Calibr, the drug discovery and development division of Scripps Research, today announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has given clearance to the Investigational New Drug (IND) application for Calibr's "switchable" CAR-T cell therapy, which is being evaluated for the treatment of certain cancers, including relapsed/refractory B-cell malignancies such as non-Hodgkin lymphoma and chronic lymphocytic leukemia.

3 Feb 2020

Choice of anesthetic for breast tumor resection may influence cancer outcomes

A study led has added to the evidence that the type of anesthetic administered to cancer patients during tumor surgical resection may affect cancer outcomes.

31 Jan 2020

Shape-shifting cells rush to repair the defect after bone injury

Conventional thinking is that bone regeneration is left to a small number of mighty cells called skeletal stem cells, which reside within larger groups of bone marrow stromal cells.

29 Jan 2020

BCG vaccine formulations vary widely in their characteristics, study shows

Each year, more than 100 million newborns around the world receive vaccinations against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, or TB, which infects about one-quarter of the world's population.

28 Jan 2020

Human organ chips for better drug development

The process of developing new drugs is both difficult and costly. It is estimated that of all the drug candidates which start out on their testing journey, less than 14% actually make it to the clinical scene and receive approval by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

27 Jan 2020

Improving drug testing with comprehensive 'Organ Chip' platform

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approves only 13.8% of all tested drugs, and these numbers are even lower in "orphan" diseases that affect relatively few people.

27 Jan 2020

Researchers identify new protein that shows promise for treating atherosclerosis

Foxtail millet is an annual grass grown widely as a cereal crop in parts of India, China and Southeast Asia. Milling the grain removes the hard outer layer, or bran, from the rest of the seed.

22 Jan 2020

Surgical complications are much more likely in smokers

A new study shows that smoking tobacco puts you at a greatly increased risk for complications after surgery. This includes heart and lung damage, poor wound healing and a higher chance of complications. However, quitting smoking, even as late as 4 weeks before the surgery, improves the chances of having a good post-operative result and fewer complications.

21 Jan 2020