Immunology News and Research

Latest Immunology News and Research

Gene mutations tied to immune comeback during therapy for HIV-1

A new study by U.S. scientists provides compelling evidence that two genes are linchpins in defining the course of immune restoration in HIV-positive individuals undergoing virus-suppressing therapy.

31 Mar 2008

Mysterious fevers of unknown origin: Could surgery be a cure?

A child spikes a high fever, sometimes as high as 104 or 105 degrees, and sometimes causing seizures.

31 Mar 2008

A new form of inherited risk of cancer found

Like the subtext of a novel, the human genome sequence harbors more information than appears just in its "letters" of A, C, T and G. Since DNA is a data-packed molecule passed from generation to generation, comparing genome sequences among individuals also holds clues to ancestry.

26 Mar 2008

Scientists discover how salmonella becomes lethal for AIDS patients

Nearly half of all HIV-positive African adults who become infected with Salmonella die from what otherwise would be a seven-day bout of diarrhea.

25 Mar 2008

Asthma medicines often not prescribed as guidelines recommend

More than a decade after national guidelines were issued for asthma treatment, some patients still don't receive prescriptions for the inhalers that experts say offer the safest and most effective long-term control of the disease, a new study suggests.

20 Mar 2008

New understanding of rare immune disorder called Job's syndrome

Scientists have made another major breakthrough--the second in the past year--in understanding a rare immune disorder called Job's syndrome.

18 Mar 2008

New technique detects early stages of colon cancer without a biopsy

Doctors may one day be able to detect early stages of colon cancer without a biopsy, using a new technique developed by researchers at the Stanford University School of Medicine.

18 Mar 2008

Childhood allergies interfere with sleep

New research suggests that while allergies can make children unwell during the daytime they often also interfere with their sleep.

17 Mar 2008

Discovery of new mechanism involved in inflammatory diseases

Investigators at Hospital for Special Surgery have identified a new mechanism involved in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis.

17 Mar 2008

Advair reduces asthma-related hospitalization and emergency department visits

Advair Diskus (fluticasone propionate and salmeterol inhalation powder) was associated with fewer asthma-related hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits in pediatric patients when compared to the use of inhaled corticosteroids (ICS) alone, and use of Advair by pediatric and adult patients through the summer was associated with fewer hospitalizations and ED visits in the fall.

17 Mar 2008

New chemical can kill latent tuberculosis bacteria

Success in the laboratory suggests that a new compound can point the way to preventing active tuberculosis in people infected with the latent form of the bacterium, says a team led by researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College in New York City.

17 Mar 2008

How diabetes drives atherosclerosis

Researchers have discovered how diabetes, by driving inflammation and slowing blood flow, dramatically accelerates atherosclerosis, according to research to be published in the March 14 edition of the journal Circulation Research. Experts once believed that atherosclerosis, or hardening of the arteries, developed when too much cholesterol clogged arteries with fatty deposits called plaques.

14 Mar 2008

Finding in mice could help prevent common complications of kidney damage

Kidney damage often sets off a slew of complications in patients, spreading organ failure like wildfire throughout their bodies.

14 Mar 2008

Researchers find cause of severe allergic reaction to cetuximab

Clinicians have been perplexed by the fact that some patients given the drug cetuximab - an immune-based therapy commonly used to treat persons diagnosed with head and neck cancer, or colon cancer - have a severe and rapid adverse reaction to the drug.

13 Mar 2008

Thermo Fisher Scientific creates breakthrough gene-silencing tool

Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. has developed a breakthrough gene-silencing tool that greatly simplifies RNA- interference (RNAi) technology and eliminates barriers associated with previous cellular delivery methods.

From Thermo Fisher Scientific Inc. 12 Mar 2008

Allergy testing is essential in the effective management of patients with allergic conditions

When combined with a detailed medical history, it can identify the causes of allergy symptoms and provide the basis for avoidance, environmental control and immunotherapy.

11 Mar 2008

London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine receives new Gates funding to fight disease

The London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) has been awarded grant funding totalling $46.4 million from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) and $12.7 million from other partners, to help find new and effective ways of treating and preventing malaria, tuberculosis (TB) and HIV/AIDS.

10 Mar 2008