Immunotherapy Weekly back issues from January 2003:
Interleukin gene therapy alleviates several effects of colitis.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - A European study indicates interleukin (IL)-10 gene therapy might alleviate a significant number of effects associated with colitis and Crohn disease. Collaborators at Imperial College School of ...
OHSU researchers make key immune system discover.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A key discovery about the immune system's skill in fighting off harmful disease-causing germs may lead to the ability to boost the immune systems of the elderly and otherwise susceptible, and offer more effective vaccines for the flu or AIDS. ...
Immunogenicity of a plasmid DNA vaccine encoding chimeric idiotype studied.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to recent research from the United States, "B-cell lymphomas express tumor-specific immunoglobulin, the variable regions of which idiotype (Id) can serve as a target for active immunotherapy. Promising results have been obtained in ...
Combined antiangiogenic and immune therapy may hold promise.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- University of Pittsburgh researchers say a strategy that combines antiangiogenic and immune therapies may have potential to fight breast cancer. "The therapeutic efficacy of combined antiangiogenic and immune therapy was tested against ...
Antitumor reactivity of peptide-induced CTLs important for epitope selection.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "The development of immunotherapy for cancer, such as synthetic peptide-based vaccines, relies heavily on the identification of appropriate epitopes capable of eliciting antitumor T-cell responses," note Mayo Clinic immunologists. "We ...
Natural killer cell activity can prevent clinical disease after infection.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Agents that activate natural killer T (NKT) cells may prevent disease development after Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection, researchers in the United States argue. "While it is generally ...
Encasing mattress reduces mite sensitization in young children.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A recent study evaluated "the effectiveness of prevention measures against dust mite sensitization." The preventive measure assessed was mattress encasement. Study subjects were "toddlers and preschoolers with at least one parent with ...
Chest physician raises concerns over asthma drug for children.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A consultant chest physician who has worked on a scientific paper published in the journal Archives of Childhood Disease, said that the study has revealed an "unexpected and alarming frequency of a serious side-effect of a drug used in the ...
Nasal administration of CTB-insulin induces active tolerance in murine model.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "Nasal administration of beta cell-derived auto-antigens has been reported to suppress the development of autoimmune diabetes. We investigated the tolerogenic effects of insulin conjugated to the B subunit of cholera toxin (CTB)," reported ...
Antibody deficiency isn't common causal factor after 40.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to a study from Scotland, "Bronchiectasis is a common complication of primary antibody deficiency but the incidence of antibody deficiency as an underlying cause of bronchiectasis is largely undefined." Pathologists at Grampian ...
New approach helps identify peptide-based immunotherapeutics.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers in Germany are trying "to identify as many candidates as possible for tumor-associated T-cell epitopes in individual patients." According to T. Weinschenk and colleagues, University of Tubingen, "First, we performed ...
Pharmaceutical company shifts focus to dry eye, allergic rhinitis programs.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Inspire Pharmaceuticals, Inc., (ISPH) announced that it will discontinue the development of INS365 Respiratory for chronic bronchitis, based on a recent portfolio review and a continued focus on higher priority programs including dry eye and ...
Bone morphogenic protein technology licensed to Ortho Biotech.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Curis, Inc., (CRIS) announced it has licensed its broad bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) technology portfolio to Ortho Biotech Products, L.P., a member of the Johnson & Johnson family of companies. Two of Ortho Biotech's research ...
Study demonstrates Leukine potential in treatment of Crohn disease.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Results of a pilot study report that daily subcutaneous injection of Leukine (sargramostim/GM-CSF) was well tolerated, significantly reduced Crohn disease symptoms, and might provide a novel approach to the treatment of the disease. As ...
Caught sleeping: Study captures virus dormant in human cells.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Princeton scientists have taken an important step toward understanding a virus that infects and lies dormant in most people, but emerges as a serious illness in transplant patients, some newborns and other people with weakened immune systems. ...
Agreement reached with FDA for KRX-101 subpart-H plan.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Keryx Biopharmaceuticals, Inc., (KERX; KRX) announced that it has designed a Subpart H (accelerated approval) development plan in collaboration with the FDA for KRX-101, Keryx's Fast-Track investigational drug for the treatment of diabetic ...
Crohn disease patients exhibit gut-specific sensitization to food antigens.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Results of a small study demonstrate that Crohn's disease patients exhibit gut-specific sensitization to food antigens. "Food antigens may contribute to gut inflammation in Crohn's disease," noted wrote J. Vandenbogaerde and colleagues, ...
Tumor-sensitized lymphocytes are immunotherapeutic in rat model.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Results of a study in glioma-bearing rats indicate that tumor-sensitized lymphocytes may be an immunotherapeutic approach to glioma. "For adoptively transferred lymphocytes to exert anti-tumor effects in vivo, they must traffic or ...
Short-term induction treatment with IFN doesn't improve long-term outcome.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to a study from Sweden, "the early decline of hepatitis C virus (HCV) RNA levels during therapy may predict the outcome and can be utilized to improve treatment regimens." T. Carlsson and colleagues, Karolinska Hospital, ...
Chronic T cell activation induces immunodeficiency.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- One of the hallmarks of infection with HIV is a reduction in the number of CD4 T cells to dangerously low levels. How this depletion occurs, whether by direct killing of the CD4 T cells or chronic activation of the immune system, was not ...
High-intensity regimen for chronic HCV genotype lb infection not well tolerated.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- High-intensity interferon-alpha therapy was not well tolerated by many patients with hepatitis C virus genotype 1b participating in a recent study. Researchers in Japan "administered interferon-alpha with different regimens according to ...
Human serum albumin-interferon-alpha fusion protein studied.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Human Genome Science Inc. recently presented pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic data on its human serum albumin-interferon-alpha fusion protein, Albuferon. Study authors B.L. Osborn and colleagues noted, "Interferon-alpha (IFN-alpha) is ...
Anti-endothelial cell antibodies may play pathogenic role in vascular disease.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "Kawasaki disease (KD) is a systemic vasculitis with cardiac and noncardiac complications. Anti-endothelial cell antibodies (AECA) are found among many patients with KD," note researchers in Israel. KD primarily occurs in children under ...
Irbesartan is a cost-effective treatment of diabetic kidney disease.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Up to $2.3 billion in total healthcare cost savings could be achieved in just three years if Americans with type 2 diabetes and kidney disease received treatment with irbesartan, according to an economic analysis of the international Irbesartan ...
Interleukin-10 receptor blockade is immunotherapeutic in murine model.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to recent research from the United States, "Interleukin-10 (IL-10) is thought to promote intracellular infection, including human visceral leishmaniasis, by disabling Th1 cell-type responses and/or deactivating parasitized tissue ...
Adjuvant immunotherapy using vaccinia viral lysates found ineffective.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Phase III study results show immunotherapy with vaccinia viral lysates doesn't benefit patients with high-risk melanoma. The "prospective, randomized, multicenter trial [aimed] to determine whether immunotherapy with a vaccine prepared ...
Thalidomide-like compound shows early promise.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- A drug similar to thalidomide has been found to be promising with fewer side effects for treating patients with recurrent multiple myeloma, an incurable form of bone marrow cancer, according to early data from a clinical study led by Dana-Farber ...
Immunologic 'bait and switch' may be key to treating autoimmune diseases.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have demonstrated that it may be possible to improve treatment of autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, and prevent rejection of transplanted organs and tissues. The research ...
Genitope initiates clinical trial to evaluate GTOP-99 following use of Rituxan.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Genitope Corp. announced the initiation of a clinical trial to evaluate the use of GTOP-99, a personalized vaccine-like immunotherapy, following treatment with Rituxan (rituximab) for patients previously treated for follicular non-Hodgkin lymphoma ...
Adenovirus-mediated transfer of viral IL-10 gene has potential to treat uveitis.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Gene therapy to promote systemic and local expression of viral interleukin 10 could have potential against uveitis, researchers say. "Pathological ocular manifestations result from a dysregulation in the balance between proinflammatory ...
T-cell targeting immunotherapy "still a hypothesis".
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Internists at Haukeland University Hospital in Norway recently commented on T-cell targeting immunotherapy for pancreatic cancer. "Until recently," they said, "this therapeutic strategy has been used as a single specific treatment and ...
Immune deficiency in Nijmegen breakage syndrome is variable, progressive.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers characterized and monitored, over 8 years, "defects of immune responses ... in 40 of 50 Polish children with Nijmegen breakage syndrome [NBS] referred to the Children's Memorial Health Institute in Warsaw." "The following ...
Viral IL-10 gene therapy reduces tissue inflammation in P. carinii infection.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "The relationship between tissue inflammation and clearance of the opportunistic pathogen Pneumocystis carinii is poorly understood," noted Louisiana State University researchers in a recent study. "We asked whether the anti-inflammatory ...
CDP 870 phase III milestone payment received from Pharmacia.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Celltech Group plc (CLL) announced that it has received a $10 million milestone payment from Pharmacia Corporation (PHA), relating to the initiation of phase III clinical development with CDP 870 in rheumatoid arthritis during October 2002. ...
Dexamethasone shows promise as coadjuvant agent.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers in Brazil say dexamethasone has potential as a "convenient and promising coadjuvant agent" for treatment of schistosomiasis. A.D. Pyrrho and colleagues "evaluated the effects of dexamethasone on several parameters which ...
Researchers study link between asthma, allergic rhinitis.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Aventis (AVE) released new information on the most comprehensive research program to date to study prescription seasonal allergy antihistamine Allegra (fexofenadine HCl). Aventis is working to expand its range of new formulations and ...
Support for the "hygiene hypothesis": More siblings mean less hay fever.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Are you an only child? Got seasonal allergies? Maybe you should blame your parents. "The prevalence of allergic rhinitis is increasing. Many authors have noted the prevalence of hay fever is less in children from large families and ...
Coriell Institute ships first unit for transplantation.
Jan 01, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 1 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- The Coriell Institute for Medical Research's New Jersey Cord Blood Bank (NJCBB) has been approved as a National Marrow Donor Program member and it has recently shipped its first umbilical cord blood unit for transplantation. As a member ...
Systemic gene therapy shows anti-inflammatory potential.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - The pain and debilitating effects of arthritis may some day be relieved with gene therapy. Research performed at Long Island Jewish Medical Center indicates tissue inhibitor of metalloproteinase ...
Leptin levels linked to antiretroviral-induced immune recovery.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Michael Greer, senior medical writer - Leptin levels may be linked to immune recovery after antiretroviral therapy in pediatric HIV patients, researchers in Italy report. "Because leptin, the adipocyte-derived hormone, affects ...
Effective tumor targeting visualized by redirected CD8+ natural killer T cells.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "HER2 is an attractive immunotherapeutic target for neoplastic disease because this cell surface molecule is overexpressed on a large fraction of malignant tumor cells," write Stanford University, California, researchers. "To directly ...
Combined effects of immunosuppressive drugs with anti-CD40L mAb studied.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Recent study data suggest "immunosuppressive pharmacologic agents enhance anti-CD40L [monoclonal antibody]-facilitated alloengraftment and tolerance induction under nonmyeloalblative conditioning," say University of Minnesota cancer researchers. ...
Recombinant E. coli vaccine promotes MHC class I-dependent antigen presentation.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cancer researchers in England "have examined the potential of recombinant Escherichia coli expressing listeriolysin 0 (LL0) to deliver tumor antigens to dendritic cells (DCs) for cancer immunotherapy." "Using OVA [ovalbumin] as a model ...
DNA vaccine elicits humoral and cellular immune responses in lymphoma patients.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Maria G. Essig, MS, ELS, senior medical writer - A vaccine containing DNA encoding tumor immunoglobulin from patients with follicular B-cell lymphoma was shown to be safe and immunogenic in phase I/II clinical trials. "B-cell ...
Activation of antigen-presenting cells rebukes viral replication in liver.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- by Sonia Nichols, senior medical writer - Externally activated immune system cells can make a difference in the fight against chronic hepatitis B. Medical investigators at Scripps Clinic and Research Institute of La Jolla, California say ...
Phase IIa clinical trials initiated for PCL-016 in mild-to-moderate acne.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Novactyl, Inc., announced that it has started enrolling patients in its first phase IIa clinical trial for PCL-016 for the treatment of mild to moderate acne. This study will further investigate the safety of PCL-016 and provide initial ...
Pharmacia Diagnostics obtains exclusive rights for recombinant allergens.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Heska Corp. announced that it has entered into an agreement with Pharmacia Diagnostics, in which Pharmacia Diagnostics has acquired a worldwide exclusive license to develop and commercialize Heska's recombinant allergen intellectual property for ...
Cytokines appear to act in a positive autocrine loop in human lung mast cells.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to recent research from England, "The generation of cytokines, particularly TNF [tumor necrosis factor]-alpha, by mast cells is crucial for the initiation of the allergic response. A key transcription factor involved in the synthesis of ...
Fungal extract causes allergic asthma-like responses in a BALB/c mouse model.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Researchers with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency report that in a murine model, an antigen preparation of the fungus Stachybotrys chartarum causes asthma-like responses. "Environmental exposure to Stachybotrys chartarum has been ...
Antibiotic agent AP158 active against medically important biofilms.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Antex Pharma, Inc., a whollyowned subsidiary of Antex Biologics, Inc., (ANX), announced its lead antibiotic compound, AP158, destroyed biofilms in recently completed studies. Biofilms, an increasing concern in many infectious diseases ...
Arthritis gene therapy program yields promising preclinical data.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Targeted Genetics Corp. (TGEN) announced the publication of data from its preclinical program in arthritis. Data show that adeno-associated virus (AAV) vector delivery of DNA encoding a tumor necrosis factor: immunoglobulin (IgG1) Fc ...
Enbrel offered to additional 40,000 arthritis patients.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Amgen (AMGN) and Wyeth Pharmaceuticals, a division of Wyeth (WYE), announced that supply of the biologic, Enbrel (etanercept), has been offered to more than 40,000 patients on the Enbrel prospective patient list. These patients and their ...
Results announced from phase III study of Enbrel dosed once weekly.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Amgen (AMGN) announced that a clinical study assessing 50 mg of Enbrel (etanercept) administered once weekly demonstrated similar efficacy, tolerability, and pharmacokinetics to that of 25 mg of Enbrel administered twice weekly. "We are ...
Ambient level of NO[subscript]2 augments the inflammatory response to inhaled allergen.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Recent study findings "suggest that ambient NO[subscript]2 can enhance allergic inflammatory reaction in the airways without causing symptoms or pulmonary dysfunction." "Air pollution constitutes an important factor for asthma ...
Vaccine generates strong immune response in women with advanced disease.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Dendreon Corp. (DNDN) has announced that results of a phase I study indicate that APC8024, the company's investigational therapeutic vaccine for breast, ovarian and colon cancer appears to be safe and stimulates immunity, and is showing signs of ...
Coactive strategy boosts IL-18 antitumor effect.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to recent research from Japan, "Interleukin-18 is a potent cytokine expressed early in the immune response following cleavage in activated composes. We have investigated the in vivo antitumor effects of intratumoral (i.t.) administration ...
Phage-display selection technique for specific human scFv antibody described.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- "Overexpression of the cell-surface glycosphingolipid G(M3) is associated with a number of different cancers, including those of the skin, colon, breast, and lung. Antibodies against the G(M3) epitope have potential application as therapeutic ...
Two antigens may be targets in desmoplastic small round cell tumor.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Cancer researchers have identified two tumor antigens - the disialogan-glioside G(D2) and a novel antigen using antibody 8H9 - as possible immunotherapy targets against desmoplastic small round cell tumor. "Desmoplastic small round cell ...
IND application filed for lung and colorectal cancer vaccine candidate.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Epimmune, Inc., (EPMN) announced that it has filed an investigational new drug application, or IND, with the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA), for a multiepitope vaccine for the treatment of lung and colorectal cancer. ...
Tumor cell lysate-pulsed DC effective for T-cell lymphoma immunotherapy.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to a study from the United States, "TCR Id protein conjugated to keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH) (TCR Id:KLH) and injected with a chemical adjuvant (QS-21) induces a protective, Id-specific immune response against the murine T-cell ...
AIF-1 expression correlates with cardiac rejection, CAV development.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- According to a study from the United States, "Standard morphological features of endomyocardial biopsy specimens do not necessarily correlate with the efficacy of immunotherapy or development of cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV)." ...
Anthrogenesis Corp. announces license agreement.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- PharmaStem Therapeutics, Inc., and Anthrogenesis Corp. announced that they have entered into an agreement under which Anthrogenesis has obtained a license to PharmaStem's patent portfolio. PharmaStem is the successor to Biocyte Corp., ...
Prevalence of atopic disorders calculated in patients with rheumatoid disease.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Rheumatologists in Germany conducted a study "to test the hypothesis that Th2 polarized atopic disorders may be decreased in Th1 polarized rheumatoid arthritis (RA) but increased in ankylosing spondylitis (AS), which is characterized by an impaired ...
Oligonucleotide-based topical immunotherapy against HSV-2 has promise.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- Vaccinologists at the University of Texas say immunostimulatory sequence-containing oligonucleotides may have application as treatment for genital herpes. "Synthetic oligonucleotides containing CpG motifs in specific sequence contexts ...
No more medical roulette: Publisher says internet will change in 2003.
Jan 08, 2003 ... 2003 JAN 8 - (NewsRx.com & NewsRx.net) -- NewsRx is celebrating its twentieth year as a publisher by adding 20 new weeklies. The company's CEO is predicting major changes in the publishing industry and Internet in 2003. The Atlanta-based media company began in 1984, and ...