Immunotherapy Weekly articles from March 2002

Immunotherapy Weekly archives from March 2002

Researchers identify a key 'brake' of the immune response.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Sometimes physicians want to be able to turn off the immune response, such as during bone marrow or organ transplants to prevent the host from rejecting the donor tissue. On the other hand, doctors...

Modified T cells could deliver transgenes to tissues following transplantation.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - One way to improve gene transfection while avoiding inflammatory response when treating transplanted organs with gene therapy could be to use genetically...

Potential vaccine boosts hope for pollen relief.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- University of Melbourne scientists have developed a potential vaccine for hay fever and other pollen related allergies. The breakthrough could provide a lifeline to the 25% of the world's...

'Flap' on protein suggests new therapies.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers at National Jewish Medical and Research Center who are studying a protein implicated in the development of lupus and rheumatoid arthritis have discovered a unique "flap" that is crucial to...

Protein found that turns off systemic inflammation in mice.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- In experiments with genetically engineered mice, Johns Hopkins researchers have found an "off switch" for systemic inflammation, the body's overall response to injury and infection. The findings may...

Complete immune recovery likely after cord blood grafts.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers in the United States and France say that patients who receive stem cells taken from umbilical cord blood can achieve complete immune recovery. ...

Multiantigen vaccine with recombinant gp160 effective in newly infected patients.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Researchers say that a multiantigen HIV vaccine, administered with recombinant gp160, can improve antiviral immune responses in acutely infected patients. ...

Levalbuterol more effective than albuterol for children.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A new, large-scale study shows that levalbuterol, a purified form of the widely used asthma medication albuterol, is effective for children in much smaller doses with fewer side effects than the...

Collaboration to develop pharmaceuticals to fight biowarfare infections.(Biophage Pharma Inc. and Biopolymer Engineering Inc. to develop treatments for anthrax and other biological agents)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Biophage Pharma, Inc., (CDNX: BUG) and Biopolymer Engineering, Inc., announced an agreement to research and commercialize pharmaceutical applications of Biopolymer's immune modulators in the prevention...

Investment should aid monoclonal antibody production.(SemBioSys Genetics Inc. receives investment from AVAC)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- SemBioSys Genetics, Inc., a Calgary, Canada-based biotechnology company, announced that it will receive a repayable CAN$2.4 million investment from AVAC. The funds will be used by SemBioSys to fully...

Merck's affiliate opens office in U.S.(Merck KGAA affiliate, Biovation Ltd., opens office in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Merck KGaA announced that its affiliate Biovation, Ltd., of Aberdeen, U.K., has expanded its operations by opening a U.S. office in Research Triangle Park, North Carolina. Biovation's contact...

GlaxoSmithKline starts human clinical trial of HIV vaccine.(GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- GlaxoSmithKline Biologicals (GSK Biologicals) has started the first trial in humans of its recombinant, adjuvanted candidate HIV vaccine - NefTat and gp 120 formulated with the proprietary adjuvant...

Notice for core epitope technology received.(by Epimmune Inc.)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Epimmune, Inc., (EPMN) announced that it has received a Notice of Allowance from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office covering core technology for the identification and enhancement or elimination of...

Tumor suppressor genes can block leukemic cell proliferation.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Forcing leukemic cells to express tumor suppressor genes impairs their ability to proliferate, researchers in China report. "The tumor suppressor genes p53...

Autologous stem cell grafts alter Th1/Th2 balance.(in non-Hodgkin lymphoma)
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Autologous stem cell transplantation alters the makeup of helper T-cell populations in non-Hodgkin lymphoma (NHL) patients, according to researchers in Japan....

Bone marrow T cells do not induce graft-versus-host reaction.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - T lymphocytes from bone marrow may be beneficial when administered as part of hematopoietic stem cell grafts, researchers in the United States report. Dr....

Removing T-cell receptor[superscript]+ cells from graft improves outcome.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Hematopoietic stem cell grafts depleted of T-cell receptor[superscript]+ cells are less likely to cause complications, researchers in the United States report....

Surgical team uses standard stem cell procedure in unique way for kidney recipient.
March 6, 2002... 2002 MAR 6 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A grateful sister got more than her brother's kidney; she also got millions of cells from his immune system in a procedure that transplant surgeons at the University of Pittsburgh's Thomas E. Starzl...

Reduced sensitivity to shortness of breath may lead to life-threatening attacks.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Dyspnea, or subjective shortness of breath, is usually a sign for asthmatics that they are experiencing an asthma attack. In a new study published in Chest, the peer-reviewed journal of the...

Persistent, mild depression in older adults may lower immunity.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- It is estimated that 15-57% of older adults experience some form of chronic depression for a period of time later in their lives, according to recent research, and this may compromise their ability to...

Patients with celiac disease can safely eat moderate amounts of oats.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- People with the painful gut disorder celiac disease are advised to stick to a gluten-free diet, with no wheat or rye. Oats are usually discouraged as well, because the protein they contain is similar...

Review looks at progression factors after hepatitis C exposure.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A host of factors can determine prognosis after a person becomes infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). A large-scale population study of individuals in...

American College of Rheumatology releases update to guidelines.(for the management of rheumatoid arthritis)
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Updated guidelines for the management of rheumatoid arthritis have been published in the February 2002 issue of Arthritis & Rheumatism, an official journal of the American College of Rheumatology...

Overstimulation of glands may play a major role in obesity.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Terry Hartnett, senior medical writer - Chronic overstimulation of the adrenal and pituitary glands may trigger uncontrollable appetite and obesity, say researchers in Italy. Obese patients may...

FDA approves Xopenex for pediatric use.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Sepracor, Inc., has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved Xopenex-brand levalbuterol HCl inhalation solution for the treatment or prevention of bronchospasm in...

Genome Therapeutics announces two milestones in Asthma Genomics Alliance.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Genome Therapeutics Corp. (GENE) announced that it has reached two milestones in its genomics-based alliance with Schering-Plough Corp. (SGP) to develop asthma-related products. These milestones...

Barr challenges Allegra's patents.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Barr Laboratories, Inc., (BRL) announced that it has been sued by Aventis Pharmaceuticals, which initiates Barr's challenge of the patents protecting Aventis' Allegra-D (fexofenadine hydrochloride 60...

Company reports increased revenues in first quarter 2002.(Avanir Pharmaceuticals)
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Avanir Pharmaceuticals (AVN) reported a 21% increase in revenues during the first quarter of fiscal year 2002, which represents the 3 months ended December 31, 2001. Revenues increased to $6.1...

Immunex collaborates with New Zealand biotech company.(Genesis Research and Development Corp. Ltd.)
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Genesis Research and Development Corp. Ltd. (GEN) and Immunex Corp. (IMNX) have entered into a three-year agreement governing joint research and development on selected proprietary molecules. The...

FDA gives go-ahead to initiate phase II brain cancer trial.(DCVax-Brain from Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc.)
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Northwest Biotherapeutics, Inc., (NWBT) is ready to enter the next phase of clinical investigations for its second dendritic cell-based immunotherapy, DCVax-Brain. The company's investigational...

Hip replacement surgery viable option for younger patients, thanks to new prostheses.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Orthopedic surgeons are rethinking traditional wisdom about who is and who isn't a good candidate for total hip replacement surgery (THR), a procedure that replaces the bones of the hip with an...

Young children in developing countries particularly susceptible.(lower respiratory tract infection caused by respiratory syncytial virus)
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Terry Hartnett, senior medical writer - Immunizing infants and toddlers in developing countries against recurrent lower respiratory infection could have positive short- and long-term effects,...

Gene therapy shows promise in animal model.(rheumatoid arthritis )
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Northwestern University researchers have reported the first successful use of interleukin-13 (IL-13) cytokine gene therapy to treat and prevent rheumatoid arthritis in an animal model. Arthritis...

Melbourne animal trial identifies new human receptor involved in inflammation development.
March 13, 2002... 2002 MAR 13 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at Melbourne's Austin Research Institute have identified a new human receptor that is involved in the early development of inflammation. A drug has been shown to be effective in targeting...

Adoptive immunotherapy effective in animals.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Reinfusion of HIV-naive immune cells after infection may enable long-term disease control, researchers report. Dr. Francois Villinger and colleagues at...

Plasminogen receptor inhibitor yields relief in experimental arthritis.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A team in France believes that by using genetic antagonists to inhibit plasmin activation, the severity of arthritic disease could be lessened. "Plasmin...

New test may be more effective for diagnosis of allergic airway inflammation.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to an editorial in the first issue for February 2002 of the American Thoracic Society's peer-reviewed journal, adenosine 5'-monophosphate (AMP) may provide a more discriminating...

Science backs cod liver oil.(for the treatment of joint pain caused by osteoarthritis)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scientists at Cardiff University (Wales, U.K.) have confirmed what thousands of people with arthritis have believed for years. Cod liver oil really is effective in treating joint pain and can slow,...

Localized grafts can induce skin graft tolerance.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Localized infusions of donated bone marrow stem cells can efficiently induce tolerance to skin grafts from the same donor, according to a researcher in the...

Steroids extend organ survival in post-transplantation autoimmune hepatitis.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Steroid therapy is the best treatment choice for extending graft survival in patients diagnosed with de novo autoimmune hepatitis after liver transplantation....

Higher perceived stress in caregivers leads to more wheezing in infants.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Higher perceived stress in caregivers (mostly mothers) of 2- to 3-month-old infants who had a genetic predisposition to asthma and allergy was associated with increased risk of wheezing during the...

Schering-Plough recalls Claritin-D.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Schering-Plough Corp. is recalling batches of its best-selling allergy drug Claritin from stores and wholesalers because a decongestant ingredient does not dissolve fast enough, but says patients with...

CEO calls 2001 'defining year,' announces fourth-quarter and year-end financial results.(Scios Inc.)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Scios, Inc., (SCIO) has announced its fourth-quarter and year-end financial results for 2001, and the CEO is pleased. "2001 was a defining year in the company's history marked by a series of...

Caraco Pharma Q4 sales rise 463%.(Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories Ltd.)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, Ltd., (CARA) posted significantly higher sales for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2001, along with lower net losses for both periods, CEO Narendra N....

Company reports fourth quarter and year end 2001 financial results.(AtheroGenics Inc.)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- AtheroGenics, Inc., (AGIX) reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and year ending December 31, 2001, which included a substantial increase in research and development spending,...

Pig-to-human organ transplants on the horizon.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Though many scientific and ethical questions remain, transplanting genetically modified hearts and other organs from pigs to people could be possible in five to seven years, scientists say. ...

Early detection and treatment key in iron overload, concomitant conditions complicate outcome.(of hereditary hemochromatosis)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Carol K. Kohn, senior medical writer - Early detection and adequate treatment can enhance survival in hereditary hemochromatosis, iron overload, say researchers in Denmark. "Adequate phlebotomy...

Researchers discover rapid-response, interferon-producing cells.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Nearly 50 years ago, researchers discovered that when cells in laboratory cultures are infected by a virus, they secrete a substance that protects other cells from infection. In 1957 Alick Issaks...

Movie ignores real transplant issue.("John Q")
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to data from the United Network for Organ Sharing, the demand for transplant surgeries in the United States has nearly quadrupled since 1990. Although the new movie "John Q" would have us...

Schering-Plough recalls specific lots of Claritin-D 12-hour tablets.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Schering-Plough Corp. (SGP) announced a voluntary recall directed to wholesale accounts and retail pharmacies of specific lots of Clariton-D 12 Hour (5 mg loratadine/120 mg pseudoephedrine sulfate,...

New biologics offer effective, long-term management for psoriasis.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Lynn Yoffee, senior medical writer - Three new biologic drugs on the immediate horizon will likely have a profound effect in the treatment of 7 million Americans who suffer from psoriasis, a...

Some promising psoriasis treatments may offer long-term relief - sans side effects - but no cure, yet.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Lynn Yoffee, senior medical writer - Although a cure for the debilitating skin disease remains elusive, researchers offered up a group of moderate to encouraging studies on psoriasis treatments at...

When rheumatological symptoms remain a puzzle, hepatitis C may be the cause.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A medical team in Italy says that when the cause of rheumatological symptoms is unknown, hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection should be considered. The...

Arthritis Foundation report identifies major warnings for LA's Latinos.
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Arthritis Foundation released results from a first-of-its-kind $700,000 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention grant appropriated to the organization in 1999. The dollars were used for a...

Tolerance after initial use blunts effects.(steroids)(Brief Article)
March 27, 2002... 1902 MAR 27 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A "severe" tolerance to steroids that occurs soon after their initial use blunts the effects of the drugs, according to researchers who have been at the forefront of quantifying and predicting the...