http://medicalxpress.com/ en-us Medical Xpress internet news portal provides the latest news on Health and Medicine. People with diabetes often develop clogged arteries that cause heart disease, and new research at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis suggests that low vitamin D levels are to blame. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-11-vitamin-d-clogged-arteries-diabetics.html Diabetes Tue, 13 Nov 2012 14:59:02 EST news272041131 (Medical Xpress)—Michigan State University researchers have unlocked secrets in bone marrow that could lead to improved treatments for colitis and Crohn's disease. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-09-bone-marrow-secrets-colitis-crohn.html Medical research Mon, 24 Sep 2012 16:37:01 EST news267723389 Researchers at Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University have discovered a new "first response" mechanism that the immune system uses to respond to infection. The findings challenge the current understanding of immunity and could lead to new strategies for boosting effectiveness of all vaccines. The study, conducted in mice, published online today in the journal Immunity. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-08-early-immune-response-vaccines.html Immunology Thu, 30 Aug 2012 13:25:43 EST news265551934 Recent research found that microneedle vaccine patches are more effective at delivering protection against influenza virus in mice than subcutaneous or intramuscular inoculation. A new, detailed analysis of the early immune responses by the Emory and Georgia Tech research team helps explain why the skin is such fertile ground for vaccination with these tiny, virtually painless microneedles. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-03-microneedle-vaccine-patch-boosts-flu.html Immunology Tue, 06 Mar 2012 03:48:56 EST news250228106 While some scientists report engineering a super virulent strain of the H5N1 influenza virus, which could potentially wipe out a significant percentage of the human population, another group of researchers from the United Kingdom now reports a discovery that may one day help mitigate the deadly effects of all flu strains. This report, appearing in the March 2012 print issue of the Journal of Leukocyte Biology, describes findings that may help prevent deaths from severe flu outbreaks, especially from seemingly healthy young people. Specifically, the researchers found that immune cells called, "natural killer T cells," may reduce the overwhelming numbers of another type of immune cell, called "inflammatory monocytes," which when present in large numbers, lead to lung injury at the end stage of severe flu infection. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2012-02-lung-injury-severe-flu.html Diseases, Conditions, Syndromes Wed, 29 Feb 2012 10:52:43 EST news249735151 Laquinimod is an orally available synthetic compound that has been successfully evaluated in phase II/III clinical studies for the treatment of relapsing-remitting multiple sclerosis (RRMS). The mechanism of action of laquinimod has not been fully elucidated, but a study published in the January 2012 issue of The American Journal of Pathology suggests that laquinimod triggers immune cells within the central nervous system to produce and release brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), contributing to the repair or survival of neurons and thus limiting brain damage. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-12-multiple-sclerosis-treatment-immune-cells.html Medical research Tue, 06 Dec 2011 04:50:01 EST news242367553 Alcohol is known to worsen the effects of disease, resulting in longer recovery period after trauma, injury or burns. It is also known to impair the anti-viral immune response, especially in the liver, including response against Hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV. New research published in BioMed Central's open access journal BMC Immunology shows that alcohol modulates the anti-viral and inflammatory functions of monocytes and that prolonged alcohol consumption has a double negative effect of reducing the anti-viral effect of Type 1 interferon (IFN) whilst increasing inflammation via the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNFα. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-09-alcohol-impairs-body-ability-viral.html Health Fri, 30 Sep 2011 05:23:24 EST news236578990 A new study by rheumatologists at Hospital for Special Surgery in New York has shown that a powerful pro-inflammatory protein, tumor necrosis factor (TNF), can also suppress aspects of inflammation. The researchers say the identification of the mechanism of how this occurs could potentially lead to new treatments for diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. The study was published May 22 online in advance of publication in the journal Nature Immunology. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-role-protein-treatments-rheumatoid-arthritis.html Medical research Sun, 22 May 2011 13:00:12 EST news225287266 McGill research team recently published new findings in the New England Journal of Medicine, pointing to a critical role for IRF8 in the development and function of monocytes and dendritic cells and in protecting against mycobacterial infections like TB in humans. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-05-serendipity-lifesaving-discovery.html Medical research Wed, 11 May 2011 10:24:04 EST news224328197 Men and women had starkly different immune system responses to chronic post-traumatic stress disorder, with men showing no response and women showing a strong response, in two studies by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center and the University of California, San Francisco. http://medicalxpress.com/news/2011-04-men-women-immune-differently-ptsd.html Psychology & Psychiatry Tue, 26 Apr 2011 15:23:00 EST news223050140