T Cell News and Research

Latest T Cell News and Research

Discovery of new pathway used by disease-causing bacteria to evade host immune system and survive

A new study reveals an important and newly discovered pathway used by disease-causing bacteria to evade the host immune system and survive and grow within the very cells meant to destroy them. This discovery may lead to new treatments and vaccines for tuberculosis (TB) and certain other chronic bacterial and parasitic infections.

2 Nov 2008

Double-barreled immune cell approach for neuroblastoma

Adding an artificial tumor-specific receptor to immune system cells called T-lymphocytes that target a particular virus extended and improved the cells' ability to fight a form of childhood cancer called neuroblastoma, said researchers form Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children's Hospital in a report that appears online in the journal Nature Medicine.

2 Nov 2008

Scientists develop genome-wide platform to study how specialized proteins regulate RNA in living, intact cells

DNA, it has turned out, isn't all it was cracked up to be. In recent years we learned that the molecule of life, the discovery of the 20th century, did not -- could not -- by itself explain the huge differences in complexity between a human and a worm.

2 Nov 2008

Alternative splicing in genes more prevalent than previously believed

Scientists have long known that it's possible for one gene to produce slightly different forms of the same protein by skipping or including certain sequences from the messenger RNA.

2 Nov 2008

Substance tackles skin cancer with two-pronged attack

By playing it safe and using a two-pronged attack, a novel designer molecule fights malignant melanoma. It was created and tested by an international team of researchers led by the University of Bonn.

2 Nov 2008

Important steps towards the development of a human vaccine against malaria

Every day 2,000 children die from malaria in Africa alone. The infection is transmitted from human to human by biting mosquitoes and remains one of the world's most devastating diseases. Despite many years of effort a vaccine is still not available but is urgently needed, if we are to make an impact on this enormous problem.

31 Oct 2008

Research points to new treatment options for infantile hemangioma

A team of researchers led by Harvard School of Dental Medicine (HSDM) Dean for Research Bjorn Olsen has discovered a mechanism for the rapid growth seen in infantile hemangioma, the most common childhood tumor.

31 Oct 2008

Gleevec holds potential as first drug to successfully treat neurofibromatosis

Researchers at the Indiana University School of Medicine report that the anti-cancer drug Gleevec holds out promise to become the first effective treatment for neurofibromatosis, a genetic disease that has resisted treatments until now.

30 Oct 2008

Discovery of mechanism and possible drug treatment for growth of nerve tumors in neurofibromatosis

Researchers studying neurofibromatosis type 1 - a rare disease in which tumors grow within nerves - have found that the tumors are triggered by crosstalk between cells in the nerves and cells in the blood.

30 Oct 2008

By imaging live cells, researchers show how hepatitis C replicates

The hepatitis C virus is a prolific replicator, able to produce up to a trillion particles per day in an infected person by hijacking liver cells in which to build up its viral replication machinery.

30 Oct 2008

Stem cell therapies for heart disease - one step closer

New research from the University of Bristol brings stem cell therapies for heart disease one step closer. The findings reveal that our bodies' ability to respond to an internal 'mayday' signal may hold the key to success for long-awaited regenerative medicine.

30 Oct 2008

Cancer requires support from immune system to develop, researchers report

Tumors that grow around nerves in a rare genetic disease need cooperation from cells from the immune system in order to grow, reports a team of scientists, including researchers from UT Southwestern Medical Center.

30 Oct 2008

Starpharma's VivaGelR patent approved in Japan

Starpharma Holdings Limited today announced that one of its key patents relating to the use of dendrimers to protect against sexually transmitted infections has been approved in Japan.

29 Oct 2008

Grapes may aid a bunch of heart risk factors

Could eating grapes help fight high blood pressure related to a salty diet? And could grapes calm other factors that are also related to heart diseases such as heart failure? A new University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center study suggests so.

29 Oct 2008

Professor reveals the 'Jennifer Aniston neuron'

According to a top scientist parts of the brain are wired up to be devoted to celebrities.

29 Oct 2008

Researchers discover new way to attack some forms of leukemia

Each year, some 29,000 adults and 2,000 children are diagnosed with leukemia, a form of cancer that is caused by the abnormal production of white blood cells in the bone marrow. Current treatments rely primarily on killing the cancer cells, which also destroys normal cells. But what if a way could be found to reprogram cancerous cells back into normal cells? A team of Syracuse University researchers believes it may have found a way to do just that.

28 Oct 2008

Researchers discover how Sonic hedgehog gene controls brain development

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine researchers have discovered how the expression of the Sonic hedgehog gene is regulated during brain development and how mutations that alter this process cause brain malformations. The results appear online this month in Nature Genetics.

28 Oct 2008

Systems biology and glycomics used to study human inflammatory diseases

An innovative systems biology approach to understanding the carbohydrate structures in cells is leading to new ways to understand how inflammatory illnesses and cardiovascular disease develop in humans. The work was described in two recent publications by University at Buffalo chemical engineers.

28 Oct 2008

Gene against bacterial attack unravelled

Dutch researcher Joost Wiersinga from AMC Medical Centre in Amsterdam has unravelled a genetic defence mechanism against the lethal bacteria Burkholderia pseudomallei. The research is the next step towards a vaccine against this bacterium suitable for bioweapons.

28 Oct 2008

Review of health benefits of grape polyphenols

A growing body of research data suggests that consuming foods rich in polyphenols from grapes - including red wine - helps reduce the risk of heart disease, according to a review article in the November issue of Nutrition Research.

28 Oct 2008