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SUNDAY, NOVEMBER 8, 2009
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NEWS ABOUT: immune system

immune system stories: 28 news summaries

1 - 20 of 28 Stories | 1 2 Next >>

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Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Linked to Virus

Obscure virus found in two-thirds of sufferers

Oct 9, 09 6:45 AM CDT
(Newser) - A research team believes it has finally uncovered the cause of chronic fatigue syndrome. The mysterious syndrome—labeled "yuppie flu" in the '80s and considered by some doctors to be a purely psychiatric problem—appears to be caused by an obscure retrovirus, the scientists say. Some 67% of sufferers... More »

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immune system • virus • chronic fatigue syndrome

Breakthrough Raises Hope for HIV Vaccine

Antibodies could help scientists combat elusive virus' defenses

Sep 3, 09 3:55 PM CDT
(Newser) - Researchers have found two antibodies that neutralize the AIDS virus more successfully than any identified in the past, resurrecting hopes that it may be possible to develop an effective vaccine, Time reports. The new antibodies are effective against a broad range of HIV variants, neutralizing the virus’ most effective defense:... More »

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HIV • vaccine • immune system • mutation • antibodies • virus • AIDS vaccine • National Institute on Allergy and Infectious Disease • Anthony Fauci

Image Rehab: Appendix Is Good for Something After All

Long-neglected organ is far from useless, researchers say

Aug 24, 09 3:08 PM CDT
(Newser) - The human appendix has been assumed to be useless since Charles Darwin first suggested it was a vestigial organ—an evolutionary remnant from the time when our predecessors ate leaves and other now-indigestible foods. But new research suggests the organ had a much more vital function, LiveScience reports. It stored... More »

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immune system • Charles Darwin • sanitation • immunity • diarrhea • clean water • appendix

 As Probiotics Expand, 
 Confusion Sets In 

Many questions linger about 'friendly' bacteria

Jun 18, 09 5:43 PM CDT
(Newser) - Probiotics are branching out of the dairy aisle and into all types of food—from pizza to cereal—as marketers try to sell the health benefits. Seems like good news. The so-called friendly bacteria is supposed to help with digestion and boost the immune system, among other things. The problem... More »

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food • health • immune system • digestion • health food • probiotics

(Newser) - After decades of false starts, doctors are tapping the immune system to help stave off cancer, USA Today reports. Using proteins from patients' tumors, American researchers have created a vaccine that can put off lymphoma relapses by 14 months. In one study, a cocktail of the vaccine and two other... More »

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cancer • cancer vaccine • lymphoma • study • immune system • tumors

 Swine Flu Hits Hardest  
 Among Young Adults 

Excessive immune reaction may be at fault in Mexican deaths

Apr 27, 09 8:05 AM CDT
(Newser) - The swine flu sweeping through Mexico is wreaking havoc among young adults in particular, reports the Washington Post, with the entire death toll as of yesterday comprised of those between 25 and 50. Some believe the trouble for young adults is an overpowering immune reaction that ravages throat and lung... More »

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Mexico • disease • bacteria • immune system • young adult • virus • swine flu

 Lose Sleep, Catch a Cold 

Little sleep makes us vulnerable to colds

Jan 13, 09 4:06 AM CST
(Newser) - Mom was right: get a good night's sleep. Researchers have discovered a direct link between lack of sleep and vulnerability to disease, Reuters reports. Study volunteers who slept less than seven hours a night for just two weeks were three times more likely to come down with cold symptoms after... More »

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immune system • sleep deprivation • common cold • Carnegie Mellon University • cytokines • histamines

Leukemia Drugs Cure Mouse Diabetes

Common cancer treatment sent disease into rapid remission

Nov 18, 08 5:37 AM CST
(Newser) - Two common leukemia drugs prevented or halted mouse diabetes in a new study, Reuters reports. The drugs prevented mice predisposed to Type 1 diabetes from developing the disease, and sent 80% of mice who already had it into remission within weeks. Scientists say the mice maintained normal blood sugar levels... More »

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diabetes • immune system • leukemia • blood sugar • type 1 diabetes • lab mice

  Less Sleep Linked to Cancer 

Less than 7 hours a night tied to 47% hike in cancer risk

Nov 18, 08 2:07 AM CST
(Newser) - Sleep and exercise may play an important role in cancer risk, according to a new US study. Researchers confirmed earlier studies that exercise appears to protect against cancer—but discovered that physically active women who slept less than seven hours a night had a 47% higher risk of developing cancer.... More »

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cancer • sleep • Centers for Disease Control and Prevention • immune system • exercise • National Institutes of Health • American Association for Cancer Research.

 Assassin Cells Slay Hidden HIV 

Human trials set next year

Nov 10, 08 4:02 AM CST
(Newser) - A promising new treatment for AIDS may be in the works, with the discovery that genetically engineered immune cells can detect and destroy HIV even when the virus tries to hide by mutating. The so-called “assassin” cells, created from the T-cells of an HIV patient, have worked their magic... More »

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medical breakthrough • AIDS • HIV • immune system • scientific research • genetic engineering • CD4 T-cells

Study: Drug Reverses MS Brain Damage

Doctors hail 'major breakthrough' in treatment

Oct 23, 08 7:19 AM CDT
(Newser) - Doctors are hailing what appears to be a huge breakthrough in the treatment of multiple sclerosis, the BBC reports. A drug used to treat leukemia reversed some of the brain damage caused by MS, researchers found, leaving sufferers less disabled at the end of the 3-year study than they had... More »

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immune system • leukemia • brain damage • multiple sclerosis • experimental drugs • scientific study

Genetic Hiccup Causes Obesity In Mice: Study

Evolutionary relic in humans could be fixed by drug or gene therapy

Oct 2, 08 5:07 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists have discovered an immune system pathway in the brain that they think is the root cause of diseases related to obesity, Reuters reports. When mice were overfed, the hypothalamus secreted a compound that suppressed the conversion of food into energy, and led to inflammation associated with heart disease and... More »

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obesity • diabetes • chemicals and obesity • heart disease • gene therapy • immune system • scientific study • genetic engineering • hypothalamus

 Women on Pill
 Choose the
 'Wrong' Man

Oral contraceptives twists choice based on smell

Aug 13, 08 3:55 AM CDT
(Newser) - The pill skews women's choice of partners because the contraceptive disrupts the sense of smell, according to new research. Women usually seek partners who have an odor that indicates dissimilar genes. That's important because a gene mix tends to produce healthier offspring. But research shows women using the pill tend... More »

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divorce • sex • immune system • genes • birth control pill • miscarriage • Major Histocompatibility Complex

 How Did Bernie Mac
Slip Away?

Lung disease, immune-suppressing meds were factors

Aug 10, 08 8:10 AM CDT
(Newser) - Suffering from a rare lung disease, Bernie Mac was on medication to suppress his immune system—and that that made him vulnerable to the pneumonia that ended his life, his sister-in-law told People. He was hospitalized 8 days earlier than reported with a fever and trouble breathing, and “was... More »

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immune system • death • illness • pneumonia • Bernie Mac

 Mac's Illness
 Spotlights
 Sarcoidosis 

Immune disorder could be behind comedian's hospitalization

Aug 5, 08 2:56 PM CDT
(Newser) - Bernie Mac is in the hospital, and although his publicists deny it, the pneumonia for which the comedian's being treated may have something to do with sarcoidosis, the Chicago Tribune reports. The rare immune system disorder has been in remission since 2005. More »

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disease • immune system • sarcoidosis • lung disease • pollen • Bernie Mac • lymph nodes

 Tobacco May Help Cure Cancer 

Plant's robust immune system makes it a viable vaccine factory

Jul 22, 08 5:39 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists are trying to use the tobacco plant to produce a cancer vaccine, Newsweek reports. Ironic though it may be, the plant could someday offer fast and cheap production of antibodies personalized for individual’s tumor cells. In the first study of its kind, scientists found that the plant-based vaccine... More »

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cancer • tobacco • vaccine • cancer research • immune system • tumor

Melanoma Cured by Cloning Patient's Own Immune Cells

Immune system boost wipes out tumors

Jun 19, 08 6:11 AM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists eliminated a man's late-stage melanoma by giving the body's own defenses a massive boost, Scientific American reports. They removed infection-fighting white blood cells from the patient's body, cloned them in the lab until they numbered in the billions, and injected them back into the patient. He was tumor-free 2... More »

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cancer • chemotherapy • cancer research • immune system • tumor • immunotherapy

Pregnancy Stress Ups Kid's Asthma Risk

Babies' immune systems respond to pressures on moms

May 19, 08 4:12 PM CDT
(Newser) - Stress an expectant mother experiences can increase her child’s predisposition to allergies and asthma, Reuters reports. Mothers-to-be with high stress levels gave birth to babies with high levels of an immune compound involved in the allergenic response, Harvard researchers found—even when their environmental exposure to allergens was low. More »

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pregnancy • mothers • stress • immune system • infant • Harvard • infants • allergic reaction

 For Infections, Try Gator-cillin 

Scientists probe reptile's impressive immune system

Apr 7, 08 3:28 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists are trying to harness the power of alligator blood to fight disease, bacterial infections, and even HIV, Cox News reports. Proteins in the reptiles' blood have antibiotic properties thanks to the animals' long evolution and frequent exposure to bacteria; their exceptionally effective immune systems can fight off invaders without... More »

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HIV • antibiotics • medical research • immune system • alligator • pharmaceutical • MRSA • yeast infection • reptiles

Scientists Build Immune System in Test Tube

Breakthrough could
make it easier, and safer, to test vaccines

Mar 28, 08 3:09 PM CDT
(Newser) - Scientists have discovered a way to produce tiny artificial human immune systems, Time reports, a breakthrough that could transform vaccine research. The process—called Modular Immune In Vitro Construct—will allow researchers to test budding medicines as never before and possibly make faster progress against AIDS and other killers.... More »

MORE ABOUT:
medicine • medical breakthrough • vaccine • immune system • HIV/AIDS • clinical trials

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