Commonly used antidepressants may also affect human immune system
...pidly secrete serotonin, which activates serotonin receptors on certain types of T-cells. "In addition to the physical contact, it surprised us to find that these immune cells also have machinery to take up serotonin and to secrete it in an excitatory manner," Ahern said. "The point behind this transmission is...JCI table of contents: January 19, 2006
... pathogens release antigens that bind to Toll-like receptors (TLR ligands) on the surface of various cells of the immune system. This event stimulates specialized immune cells to release secreted proteins that activate other immune cells, such as T cells, to join the fight to destroy invading bacteria or fungi...Common bacteria pirate natural mechanism to get inside cells
...hese pathogens gain entry the same way millions of receptors on the cell's surface routinely do after they get ...ademy of Sciences. By moving off the cell surface, receptors gain some respite from their activating signals, Dr. Daaka says. Receptors can either stay inside th...Infant transplant patients resist infections that kill adult AIDS patients
... All healthy people have cells (lymphocytes) with receptors on their surfaces enabling them to recognize many different microorganisms. The diversity of lymphocytes is enormous. Each person has an estimated 1 billion different T cells capable of fighting various infections and another 1 billion of a different...Scientists discover genetic profile of an often-misdiagnosed chronic allergic disease of children
...strated that, in a mouse model of EE, mice lacking receptors for eotaxin were protected against developing EE. These results, when taken with those of the human studies, suggest that a drug to block eotaxin-3 might have therapeutic value. Finally, by sequencing the eotaxin-3 genes of all the people in their st...HIV subtype predicts likelihood of early death from AIDS
...subtype A because D has the ability to bind to key receptors on immune cells, allowing subtype D to kill more quickly. Additional blood analysis showed that with subtype A, the virus bound only to one kind of receptor, CCR5, to infect the cell. But 25 percent of subtype D virus bound to both CCR5 and another...Mayo Clinic researchers challenge sepsis theory
...at sepsis begins with a change in certain cellular receptors that then provoke widespread inflammation, even in..."Our work is the first to show that this change in receptors in the body is the first true step in the sepsis syndrome, rather than the introduction of a poison,...Macrophage signaling may affect hormone resistance in prostate tumors
...y be potential drug targets in the future. Steroid receptors (the proteins that bind and mediate the effects of...ers, according to the study. This site makes these receptors uniquely responsive to inflammatory signals, because the protein that binds there, called TAB2, is t...Neuronal receptor response may help explain Alzheimer's memory loss
...emistry, the research team specifically found that receptors on the outside of brain nerve cells (neurons) that...rotein. While the researchers don't know why these receptors are linked together, they say inefficient or higher-than-average levels of APOE in the brain could p...Basic research leads to a novel cancer therapy
...en particular growth factors are bound to specific receptors on the surface of a cell, this can cause the cell ...similar to blood vessels. Worldwide, research into receptors has focused on a special class of proteins, called tyrosine kinases. They are responsible for causin...Team discovers possible 'universal strategy' to combat addiction
...le called a peptide, tailored to fit the serotonin receptors and block PTEN. When rats were treated with this PTEN-blocker, it shut down the drug reward process including the process that induces craving and withdrawal. The study, funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research and the Natural Sciences a...UCSF research pinpoints brain molecule's role in developing addiction
...f rats that orexin acutely enhances the ability of receptors at dopamine neuron synapses known as NMDA receptors to promote the release of dopamine. They showed that orexin creates a long-lasting potential for st...Ginkgo biloba extract: More than just for memory?
...orms, including plants, insects, and animals, have receptors like these that help regulate growth." So they looked at whether cancer cells -- with their need to proliferate -- produce more of these cholesterol-bearing receptors, and found that some highly invasive cancers do, indeed, over-express PBR. "Acceler...Marijuana compound may help stop diabetic retinopathy
... Georgia. "We are studying the role of cannabinoid receptors in our body and trying to modulate them so we can ...side the retina first start to go bad. Cannabinoid receptors are found throughout the body and endogenous cannabinoids are produced to act on them. "Their functi...UCI researchers identify first compound to block progression of Alzheimer's disease
...riers for messages between brain cells and bind to receptors on the cells' surfaces. Acetylcholine generally binds to specific receptors in the brain, including the M1 receptor, a potentially novel therapeutic target for Alzheimer's dise...Johns Hopkins scientists exploit novel route to reverse enlarged hearts in obese mice
...y, Hare and colleagues first examined whether CNTF receptors were present and functional in the heart muscles b...cle cells with a chemical that would highlight the receptors when viewed under a high-powered microscope. These tests showed that CNTF receptors were located on...Strength of cocaine cravings linked to brain response
...dical Research. The researchers looked at dopamine receptors molecules on cell surfaces that are activated whe...lecules bind to them. They focused on two types of receptors called D1 and D2. Molecules that activate D1 are believed to decrease the craving response, while D...Pregnancy research leads to progress on premature delivery
...iscovered that certain proteins known as toll-like receptors (TLRs), located in the amniotic membranes of pregn...ong Guo, discovered the existence of the toll-like receptors and their role in fueling an inflammatory response after they had isolated amniotic cells from women...Reduced insulin in the brain triggers Alzheimer's degeneration
...s a result of the treatment, insulin and its IGF-I receptors were significantly reduced in the brain, triggering a cascade of neurodegeneration. Both insulin and IGF-I activate complex signaling pathways downstream, prompting energy metabolism and growth required for learning and memory, and inhibition of oxid......or modulator (SERM), raloxifene binds to oestrogen receptors as a mixed oestrogen and anti-oestrogen effect. It...ing, so the development of lapatinib to block both receptors via their tyrosine kinase portions is giving rise to optimism. It is a small molecule, like gefitini...