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Immunology
Junk food in pregnancy linked to higher allergy risk for babies – French review
Researchers have warned that billions of nanoparticles found in additives in junk food reach infants in the womb, probably changing their gut microbiome and...
BCG vaccine protects elderly against respiratory infections
The BCG vaccine, originally developed for tuberculosis, has been shown in a European double-blind randomised clinical study to cut respiratory infections among the elderly...
Sucking baby's dummy clean lowers child's allergic response
Research presented at the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (ACAAI) Annual Scientific Meeting suggests a link between parental sucking clean their baby's...
Why men may recover from flu more quickly than females
Men may recover more quickly from influenza infections because they produce more of a key lung-healing protein, a study from scientists at Johns Hopkins...
Only half of patients use life-saving epinephrine injectors
The most effective, life-saving treatment for a severe allergic reaction (anaphylaxis) is epinephrine. Yet a study shows in an emergency, 52% of adults with...
Cell differences in patients with Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Using a mathematical classification model, Spanish researchers were able to correctly diagnose 70% of chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) patients and healthy controls using the...
World's chief anti-vaxxer 'still spreading his baleful messages'
Andrew Wakefield’s discredited 20-year campaign to link the MMR vaccine to autism has been sustained by a simple scientific fact: it is impossible to...
The vaccine dilemma: Weighing benefits for many against risks for a few
Vaccines protect huge numbers of people, generally children, from serious diseases, but in rare cases, certain vaccines can tragically cause harm. How do scientists...
SA takes first step towards producing its own vaccines again
The Biovac Institute (Biovac) has been awarded a manufacturing licence by a South African regulator, taking it one step closer to realising the government’s...
Pertussis resurgence: Incomplete coverage and vaccination 'hesitancy'
The resurgence of whooping cough in the US is a predictable consequence of incomplete coverage, especially among schoolchildren with a highly effective vaccine, research...
Exposure to pets during infancy lowers asthma risk
Children exposed to high indoor levels of pet or pest allergens during infancy have a lower risk of developing asthma by 7 years of...
Lifesaving epinephrine mostly not administered timeously
An American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology study showed that even kids who were prescribed an epinephrine auto injector mostly didn't receive the life-saving...
Pet exposure may reduce allergies and obesity in children
Babies from families with pets – 70% of which were dogs – showed higher levels of two types of microbes associated with lower risks...
New US guidelines support infant exposure to peanuts
In a significant reversal, US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases guidelines call for parents to give their children foods containing peanuts early...
Mtb diagnosis faster with new technology
The time needed to genetically sequence the bacteria causing mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) from patient samples has been reduced from weeks to days using a new technique.
Three-way link found in infant antibiotic use
A study led by researchers at the University of Minnesota has found a three-way link among antibiotic use in infants, changes in the gut bacteria, and disease later in life.
Seasonal gene changes affect immunity
Immune systems vary with the seasons, according to a University of Cambridge study, which may be why certain conditions such as heart disease and rheumatoid arthritis are aggravated in winter whilst people tend to be healthier in the summer.
Measles suppression of immune system
A Princeton University study found children may live in the immunological shadow of measles for as long three years, leaving them highly susceptible to other diseases.
Tx shows 'significant recovery' in psoriasis
Many patients suffering from psoriasis showed significant recovery after just a single dose of an experimental treatment with a human antibody, a small trial found.
‘Feel the burn’ mechanism a culprit in CFS
The mechanism that causes high-performance athletes to 'feel the burn' is what makes people with chronic fatigue syndrome (CFS) feel exhausted by the most common daily activities, University of Florida Health research found.
Binge drinking compromises immune system
Aside from increasing the risk of traumatic injuries, binge drinking in young, healthy adults significantly disrupts the immune system, according to a US study.
Trial halted to allow patients to switch to successful cancer drug
A late stage trial testing Bristol-Myers Squibb cancer immunotherapy nivolumab in advanced melanoma patients was halted early, after it was determined that the drug...
UK scientists make breakthrough in fighting ‘super bugs’
A weakness in the defences of ‘superbug’ bacteria has been uncovered by British scientists, raising the prospect of new treatments to tackle infections that...
Anti-cancer vaccine fight taken to another level
Scientists have found a way to target elusive cells that suppress immune response, depleting them with peptides that spare other important cells and shrink...
Discovery will boost fight against antibiotic resistance
Researchers at the University of British Columbia have identified a small molecule that prevents bacteria from forming into biofilms, a frequent cause of infections....
Asthma itself could raise risk of osteoporosis
Using corticosteroids for a long period of time to treat asthma is known to increase the risk of osteoporosis, but The Huffington Post reports,...
‘Great deal of misinformation’ around gluten and wheat allergies
People who believe they are sensitive to gluten have often not been adequately tested to rule out celiac disease. Reuters Health quotes Jessica Biesiekierski,...
Immune cells used to shrink cancer
Researchers at the National Cancer Institute have sequenced the genome from a 43-year-old woman with an advanced and deadly type of cancer that had...
Eczema found potentially to prevent skin cancer formation
Eczema is one of the most common skin conditions, affecting up to 30% of people in the US. But, Medical News Today reports, having...
Genome analysis to boost standard drug screening
New pharmaceuticals to fight auto-immune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis and psoriasis, may be identified more effectively by adding genome analysis to...
Team rebuilds thymus gland in mice
British scientists have, for the first time, used regenerative medicine to fully restore an organ in a living animal, a discovery they say may...