Immunology News and Research

Latest Immunology News and Research

EAACI launches Food Allergy Campaign

Today the European Academy of Allergy and Clinical Immunology (EAACI) launched its Food Allergy Campaign. The purpose of the campaign is to raise awareness of the sharp increase of anaphylaxis in children, an allergic reaction that is severe and potentially life-threatening. It aims at educating the public to recognise the symptoms and its triggers, and to teach methods of how to react in case of emergency, e.g. by using an adrenaline pen.

18 Jun 2012

Scientists discover master regulator gene needed for development of M cells

Scientists have found a master regulator gene needed for the development of M cells, a mysterious type of intestinal cell involved in initiating immune responses.

18 Jun 2012

Latest allergy research presented at EAACI Congress 2012

Ground-breaking research results about stress during pregnancy and changes in pollen potency across Europe will be presented - among other novel research - at the world's leading congress on allergy and immunology - the EAACI Congress 2012 - that will open tomorrow in Geneva, Switzerland.

16 Jun 2012

Antibody that blocks programmed cell death benefits cancer patients

A national research collaboration of senior researchers, including a researcher from Moffitt Cancer Center, has found that 20 to 25 percent of "heavily pre-treated" patients with a variety of cancers who enrolled in a clinical trial had "objective and durable" responses to a treatment with BMS-936558, an antibody that specifically blocks programmed cell death 1 (PD-1).

14 Jun 2012

Single protein determines persistence of viral infection

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute have shown a single protein can make the difference between an infection clearing out of the body or persisting for life. The results also show where the defects occur in the immune system without the protein and offer the possibility that targeting this signaling pathway could be beneficial for treatment of persistent viral infections in humans.

14 Jun 2012

Researchers identify primary player of the biochemical bugle call

Researchers have identified the primary player of the biochemical bugle call that musters the body's defenders against viral infection.

14 Jun 2012

Alpha-myosin triggers development of autoimmunity after heart attack

After people with type 1 diabetes have a heart attack, their long-term chance of suffering even more heart damage skyrockets. But the reason has long puzzled scientists. Now researchers at Joslin Diabetes Center have identified the misstep that sparks this runaway chronic damage and a promising way to block it.

14 Jun 2012

Advaxis announces publication of preclinical research with ADXS-PSA

Advaxis, Inc., a leader in developing the next generation of immunotherapies for cancer and infectious diseases, announced the publication of preclinical research with ADXS-PSA (ADXS31-142), Advaxis' Lm-LLO immunotherapy targeting the PSA antigen associated with prostate cancer.

14 Jun 2012

Sabin initiates novel human hookworm vaccine Phase 1 clinical trial

Today, the Sabin Vaccine Institute, in partnership with the George Washington University and the Children's National Medical Center, began vaccinating participants for a Phase 1 clinical trial of a novel human hookworm vaccine.

14 Jun 2012

Ten young researchers named Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences

Ten young researchers were named Pew Latin American Fellows in the Biomedical Sciences today by The Pew Charitable Trusts. For these scientists, who have dedicated their careers to finding solutions for some of the world's most troubling health problems, this fellowship will provide support that will further their research, enable them to work with colleagues in the United States, and increase scientific knowledge throughout their home region.

14 Jun 2012

MDA5 molecule plays a critical role in fighting viral infections

Researchers have identified the primary player of the biochemical bugle call that musters the body's defenders against viral infection.

14 Jun 2012

Fluidigm unveils details of new C1 Single-Cell AutoPrep System at ISSCR meeting

Fluidigm today unveiled the details of its new C1 Single-Cell AutoPrep System to attendees at the International Society for Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) meeting in Yokohama, Japan.

13 Jun 2012

HLA B-27 protein appears to confer ability to suppress HIV viral replication

The rare ability of some individuals to control HIV infection with their immune system alone appears to depend - at least partially - on specific qualities of the immune system's killer T cells and not on how many of those cells are produced.

13 Jun 2012

Igenica raises $33M in Series C round of funding

Igenica, Inc., a leading biopharmaceutical company focused on the discovery and development of first-in-class antibodies, today announced that it has raised $33 million in a Series C round of funding.

12 Jun 2012

Normal p53 gene makes breast cancer chemotherapy with doxorubicin less effective

Presence of normal p53, a tumor suppressor gene, instead of a mutated version, makes breast cancer chemotherapy with doxorubicin less effective. The preclinical study led by MD Anderson scientists was published today in the journal Cancer Cell.

12 Jun 2012

DNDi, Astellas partner on new drug discovery research for treatment of NTDs

Astellas Pharma Inc. and the Drugs for Neglected Diseases initiative (DNDi) announced an agreement today to collaborate on drug discovery research for leishmaniasis, Chagas disease, and sleeping sickness - three neglected tropical diseases (NTDs) which together affect nearly 10 million people worldwide.

12 Jun 2012

Subtype of CD4-positive immune cells in the gut may influence HIV infection outcome

The findings of a new study in monkeys may help clarify why some people infected with HIV are better able to control the virus. They also may pinpoint a target for treatment during early HIV infection aimed at increasing the supply of certain immune cells in the gut, which the study shows could be an important factor in limiting HIV growth in cells throughout the body.

11 Jun 2012

Powerful new tools can study glycans’ function

Scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have developed chemical compounds that can make key modifications to common sugar molecules ("glycans"), which are found on the surface of all cells in our body. The new study presents powerful new tools for studying these molecules' function, for example in cell signaling and immunity, and for investigating new treatments for chronic inflammation, autoimmune diseases, cancer metastasis, and related conditions.

11 Jun 2012

New synthetic vaccine effective in killing HPV-derived cancer

Researchers at Moffitt Cancer Center have developed and tested in mice a synthetic vaccine and found it effective in killing human papillomavirus-derived cancer, a virus linked to cervical cancers among others.

10 Jun 2012

Discovery answers why mother's immune system does not reject developing fetus as foreign tissue

Researchers at NYU School of Medicine have made an important discovery that partially answers the long-standing question of why a mother's immune system does not reject a developing fetus as foreign tissue.

8 Jun 2012