Babies with DiGeorge syndrome saved by immune supression, thymus transplant
...usly transformed into rogue T cells. These T cells attack both the body's own tissues and foreign tissue, so thymus transplants would be rejected. Building on 12 years of experience in treating DiGeorge syndrome, Louise Markert, M.D., associate professor of pediatrics at Duke University Medical Center, and ...Climate change could doom Alaska's tundra
...ause massive epidemics of plant disease and insect attack in some cases causing large forest die-offs that could then lead to more fires, adding complexity to the picture. The average annual temperatures in much of Alaska could increase by more than 13 degrees above a 1920-2000 average by the last ...'Smart gene therapy' protects against damage from heart attack
...revent the organ damage commonly suffered by heart attack victims, suggests a new animal study by researcher...- risk patients months before they develop a heart attack to provide them with long-term protection from ischemic injury. The minute this gene is switched on ...Study: Mothers turn fearless when peptide level drops
.... "Maybe it's this decrease that allows mothers to attack during a situation that normally would evoke a fea...er normal conditions, female rodents will fiercely attack the males, says Gammie, noting that the males sometimes eat pups and that "the best defense for the ...Ants protect plants better when jacked up on nectar
...s were equally good at recruiting their kindred to attack caterpillars, the species differed in their effectiveness at killing. Ant species that had shown greater preferences for meat in the previous experiment were also better protectors. Even so, all four species did kill some caterpillars, so host...Study finds anti-HIV protein evolved millions of years before the emergence of AIDS
SEATTLE A protein that the body uses to attack the AIDS virus is actually a stealthy defense mechanism that evolved 32 million years before the emergence of HIV, according to new findings from Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center. The research, by Harmit Malik, Ph.D., and colleagues in Fred Hut...Newly designed nanoparticle quantum dots simultaneously target and image prostate tumors in mice
...ck polymer coating protected the quantum dots from attack by enzymes and other biomolecules. The active method of tumor targeting using the monoclonal antibody was much faster and more efficient than was the passive method without the antibody. "Although other research groups have used quantum dots to eith...Researchers develop better understanding of immune response to viral infection
...t activate natural killer (NK) cells that directly attack and kill MCMV-infected cells. IPCs and DCs lacking TLR9 or MyD88, an associated signaling molecule, failed to have this response. Unexpectedly, when IPC cells were experimentally depleted, resulting in a dramatic decrease in interferon levels, othe......ing blood flow and recruiting specialized cells to attack and destroy the invading organisms. In some diseases, however, the immune system misfires and attacks the body, inflaming nerve, liver, muscle and other cells. Because of its central role in initiating inflammation, NF-kB is being intensely...LSU vet school professor uses gene therapy to destroy cancerous tumors
...ted. The goal of the muscle-injection method is to attack smaller tumors and prevent their recurrence. In addition to these methods, Li is researching a form of electrochemogene therapy. While younger, stronger immune systems may benefit from the electroporation immunogene therapy by itself, older, weaker...Patients' cells from tumors, the immune system merged for customized cancer therapy
...lls capable of generating the type of T Cells that attack and kill cancer cells. In the past, immunologists have attempted to define cancer specific markers and develop vaccinations with those molecules, but most tumors don't have well-defined antigens that can be isolated or have proved useful for vaccina...Protective mechanism exploited by tumors may provide new cancer treatment
...that must be removed before the immune system will attack the tumor. "If you take off the brakes (for example with an IDO inhibitor drug), you may make people sick. We need to be very careful that we do not do something that causes harm to patients. So that is our next task: to test it in animal models to s...Vioxx in high doses causes hypertension
... high-dose Vioxx users: an increased risk of heart attack and congestive heart failure, a rise in blood pressure and a greater incidence of edema, or swelling, in the arms and legs, which can put extra strain on the heart. Griffin said that high doses of Vioxx might be particularly hard on the kidney, resul...Lack of immune system protein prevents lupus-like condition in mice
...roducing antibodies that are closely customized to attack targets they shouldn't be attacking," he explains. "So SAP may be a contributor to these conditions as well."...... population. However, plants permanently cope with attack from thousands of insect and microbe species, and ...hemical signaling within the plant after herbivore attack and in doing so have highlighted the value of genetically modifying plants for the study of complex ...Protein controls acid in cells by direct detection of volume changes, study finds
...ut acid accumulated in cardiac cells after a heart attack activates in direct response to changes in a cell's volume, according to a new study by researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center at Dallas. Their findings show that the protein NHE1, which is found in the membranes of nearly all cells and is es...Herpes tool allows researchers to customize Alzheimer's vaccine
... immune resources necessary for a well-coordinated attack to protect the body, minimizing the side effects that would be caused by unnecessary and potentially lethal "personnel" from the immune system's array of forces. The team is conducting several more studies designed to contribute toward a custom vacc...Biologists ID defense mechanism of leading fungal pathogen
...anism that the yeast Candida albicans uses against attack by the human immune system. This chink in the armor of Candida, the most common human fungal pathogen, could be exploited with new drugs for both lethal and non-lethal Candida outbreaks, including vaginal yeast infections and thrush. In the study, re...Joslin researchers identify key molecule in Type 1 diabetes progression
...ch the body's immune system mistakenly launches an attack on the insulin-producing beta cells of the pancrea...ulin to survive, and are at greater risk for heart attack and stroke, as well as diabetes-related diseases of the eyes, kidneys, and nerves. Currently, type ...Targeted therapy for lung cancer patients shows promise in extending lives
...eted therapy is based on the idea that a drug will attack its target without damaging other tissue. This combination therapy is better at focusing on abnormal signals that drive cancer cells, while sparing more of the body's healthier cells. By blocking essential pathways within tumor cells, the therapy wor...