Immune cells called macrophages are supposed to serve and protect, but cancer has found ways to put them to sleep. Now researchers at the Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania say they’ve identified how to fuel macrophages with the energy needed to attack and eat cancer cells. It is well established that macrophages...
Tag: <span>Immune system</span>
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Immune system vs. gut bacteria: How vitamin A ‘keeps the peace’
New findings about the role of vitamin A in mediating the relationship between gut bacteria and the immune system may prove “critical” for devising new therapies for autoimmune conditions, such as Crohn’s disease, ulcerative colitis, and other inflammatory diseases that affect the intestine. Carrots, butter, and cheese are some of the richest sources of vitamin A. The gut bacteria are known to play a crucial role...
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Researchers reveal new mechanism to ‘activate’ the immune system against cancer
A new mechanism for activating the immune system against cancer cells allows immune cells to detect and destroy cancer cells better than before, according to a study published this week in the journal Nature. Image: Prof. Erez Levanon, Mina and Everard Goodman Faculty of Life Sciences. Credit: Bar-Ilan University The study was led by Prof....
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Chronic fatigue syndrome: New evidence of immune role
Researchers recently investigated the immune system’s role in chronic fatigue system in unprecedented depth. The findings might help design future treatments. Chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS), or myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME), is a mysterious condition. The main symptom of CFS is extreme and often unrelenting fatigue. Others include muscle and joint pain, sleep issues, and flu-like symptoms. Researchers do...
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Study implicates hyperactive immune system in aging brain disorders
In a study of fruit flies, NIH scientists suggested that the body’s immune system may play a critical role in the damage caused by aging brain disorders. The results are based on experiments in which the researchers altered the activity of Cdk5, a gene that preclinical studies have suggested is important for early brain development...
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The immune system’s fountain of youth
Helping the immune system clear away old cells in aging mice helped restore youthful characteristics WEIZMANN INSTITUTE OF SCIENCE If only we could keep our bodies young, healthy and energetic, even as we attain the wisdom of our years. New research at the Weizmann Institute of Science suggests this dream could be at least partly...
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Another Medical cold case cracked by the MUHC’s ‘Dr. House’
A team from the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre (RI-MUHC) led by Dr. Donald Vinh, the RI’s so-called “Dr. House” because of his research into rare diseases, has discovered a new human disease and the gene responsible for it, paving the way for the proper diagnosis of patients globally and the development...
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FDA approves drug to treat rare immune disease
Gamifant is the first drug to be approved specifically for HLH. The drug’s efficacy was demonstrated in a clinical trial of 27 pediatric patients with suspected or confirmed primary HLH. Patients had refractory, recurrent, or progressive disease while being treated with conventional HLH therapy or were intolerant of conventional HLH therapy. Patients were a mean...
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Protein central to immune system function new target for treating pulmonary hypertension
A protein with a role in sensing cell damage and viral infections is a new target for the treatment of pulmonary hypertension, or increased blood pressure in the lungs, according to research led by Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Sheffield in the United Kingdom. The disease can lead to heart failure because the heart must...
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The dual and unknown function of the immune system
CNIC researchers have discovered that the immune system is important not only in the defense against disease but also for the day-to-day function of a healthy organism CENTRO NACIONAL DE INVESTIGACIONES CARDIOVASCULARES IMAGE: FROM LEFT TO RIGHT: ANDRÉS HIDALGO, MARIA SÁNCHEZ, ANDREA RUBIO, FRANCISCO MAYO, IVÁN BALLESTEROS, ALEJANDRA AROCA, GEORGIANA CRAINICIUC, SANDRA MARTÍN, JUAN QUINTANA, JOSÉ MARÍA ADROVER, ITZIAR COSSÍO, AND...