http://www.physorg.com/ en-us Physorg.com internet news portal provides the latest news on science including: Physics, Nanotechnology, Life Sciences, Space Science, Earth Science, Environment, Health and Medicine. Scientists at VIB and Ghent University in Flanders, Belgium have found an unexpected ally for the treatment of septic shock, the major cause of death in intensive care units. By inducing the release of nitric oxide (NO) gas in mice with septic shock, researchers Anje Cauwels and Peter Brouckaert discovered that the animal's organs showed much less damage, while their chances of survival increased significantly. That's contrary to all expectations, since it is generally assumed that nitric oxide is responsible for the potentially lethal drop in blood pressure in septic shock. http://www.physorg.com/news180096790.html Medicine & Health Tue, 15 Dec 2009 11:20:03 EST news180096790 Immune proteins called HLA molecules help to activate killer T cell responses against pathogens. But according to a study that will be published online on December 14th in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, one particular group of HLA molecules cripples this activation, perhaps explaining why HIV-infected individuals who express these HLAs progress to AIDS more rapidly than others. http://www.physorg.com/news180010179.html Medicine & Health Mon, 14 Dec 2009 10:54:16 EST news180010179 A pregnant woman's exposure to microbes may protect her child from developing allergies later in life. Researchers in Marburg, Germany find that exposure to environmental bacteria triggers a mild inflammatory response in pregnant mice that renders their offspring resistant to allergies. The study will be published online on December 7, 2009 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news179401240.html Medicine & Health Mon, 07 Dec 2009 10:10:12 EST news179401240 (PhysOrg.com) -- West Nile virus is more deadly in older adults due to defects in T cells, according to a study conducted by researchers from the UA College of Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news179159762.html Medicine & Health Fri, 04 Dec 2009 14:36:51 EST news179159762 Researchers at the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) have uncovered the genetic identity of a cellular receptor for the immune system's first-response antibody, a discovery that sheds new light on infection control and immune disorders. The discovery is such a crucial part of immunology that UAB researchers, in conjunction with Japanese researchers, are asking that the gene linked to this antibody receptor be renamed to better describe its role in early immune responses. http://www.physorg.com/news177941819.html Medicine & Health Fri, 20 Nov 2009 12:43:47 EST news177941819 Sperm, and not just the fluid it bathes in, can transmit HIV to macrophages, T cells, and dendritic cells (DCs), report a team led by Ana Ceballos at the University of Buenos Aires in Argentina. By infecting DCs, which carry the virus and potently pass it to T cells, sperm may play a leading role in spreading HIV. The article appears in the November 23, 2009 issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news175777938.html Medicine & Health Mon, 26 Oct 2009 12:12:45 EST news175777938 Natural killer, or NK cells, are part of our innate immune system. A healthy body produces them to respond early during infection. They are activated and they kill cells infected with a given virus. http://www.physorg.com/news173622784.html Medicine & Health Thu, 01 Oct 2009 13:50:03 EST news173622784 UCLA scientists have identified two chemicals that convince cells to ignore premature signals to stop producing important proteins. Published in the Sept. 28 edition of the Journal of Experimental Medicine, the findings could lead to new medications for genetic diseases, such as cancer and muscular dystrophy, that are sparked by missing proteins. http://www.physorg.com/news173359027.html Medicine & Health Mon, 28 Sep 2009 12:18:03 EST news173359027 Scientists funded by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC) have discovered why older people may be so vulnerable to cancer and infections in the skin. The team from UCL has shown in human volunteers that defective immunity in the skin is caused by an inability to mobilise essential defences that would otherwise recognise threats and clear them before irreparable damage is done. This discovery could be important for preventing, managing or treating many age-related skin health problems. The study will be published in 31 August edition of the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news170659774.html Medicine & Health Fri, 28 Aug 2009 06:40:01 EST news170659774 (PhysOrg.com) -- A specific protein on the surface of a common bacterial pathogen allows the bacteria to leave the bloodstream and enter the brain, initiating the deadly infection known as meningitis. The new finding, which may guide development of improved vaccines to protect those most vulnerable, including young infants and the elderly, is now available online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news169826150.html Medicine & Health Tue, 18 Aug 2009 14:56:25 EST news169826150 The cytokine IL-9 promotes a multiple sclerosis-like disease in mice, according to a new study by Nowak et al. published online on July 13th in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. In a related Commentary, Richard Locksley discusses the molecular and genetic regulation of cytokine production by CD4+ T helper (Th) cells and the plasticity among different Th subsets. The Commentary will be published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine on Monday, July 27th. http://www.physorg.com/news167907415.html Medicine & Health Mon, 27 Jul 2009 11:00:02 EST news167907415 Twenty-five per cent of Crohn's disease patients have a mutation in what is called the NOD2 gene, but it is not precisely known how this mutation influences the disease. The latest study by Dr. Marcel Behr, of the Research Institute of the MUHC and McGill University, has provided new insight into how this might occur. The study will be published on July 9th in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news166354905.html Medicine & Health Thu, 09 Jul 2009 10:42:15 EST news166354905 Thank parasites for making some of our immune proteins into the inflammatory defenders they are today, according to a population genetics study that will appear in the June 8 issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine (online May 25). The study, conducted by a team of researchers in Italy, also suggests that you might blame parasites for sculpting some of those genes into risk factors for intestinal disorders. http://www.physorg.com/news162464032.html Medicine & Health Mon, 25 May 2009 10:03:33 EST news162464032 On the heels of dismaying reports that a promising antitumor drug could, in theory, shorten patients' long-term survival, comes a promising study by a Japanese team of researchers that suggests a potentially better option. The study appears in the May 11 issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine (online April 27). http://www.physorg.com/news160129043.html Medicine & Health Tue, 28 Apr 2009 09:17:43 EST news160129043 University of British Columbia researchers have discovered a "molecular key" that could help increase the success of blood stem cell transplants, a procedure currently used to treat diseases such as leukemia, Hodgkin's lymphoma and aplastic anemia. http://www.physorg.com/news159630432.html Medicine & Health Wed, 22 Apr 2009 14:47:31 EST news159630432 Mutations that help HIV hide from the immune system undermine the virus's ability to replicate, show an international team of researchers in the April 13 issue of the Journal of Experimental Medicine. The study was published online on March 23. http://www.physorg.com/news158831276.html Medicine & Health Mon, 13 Apr 2009 08:48:22 EST news158831276 Australian scientists have made a discovery that may one day remove the need for a lifetime of toxic immunosuppressive drugs after organ transplants. http://www.physorg.com/news158329558.html Medicine & Health Tue, 07 Apr 2009 13:26:25 EST news158329558 (PhysOrg.com) -- In 1973, Ralph M. Steinman launched a new scientific discipline when he published his discovery of the dendritic cell, an odd-shaped player in the immune system. Since then, dendritic cells have proved to be critical sentinels on the lookout for foreign invaders, involved in early immune responses such as graft rejection, resistance to tumors and autoimmune diseases. Now it appears they need to be considered in research on arterial and heart function, too, according to new experiments to be published February 16 in The Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news154111447.html Medicine & Health Tue, 17 Feb 2009 16:44:42 EST news154111447 Researchers provide insight into how Toxoplasma gondii, a common parasite of people and other animals, triggers an immune response in its host. The report will appear online on January 19th in The Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news151581995.html Medicine & Health Mon, 19 Jan 2009 10:06:35 EST news151581995 A study from a team of researchers led by Dr. Andrew P. Makrigiannis, Director of the Molecular Immunology Research Unit at the IRCM, has identified a new mechanism regulating interferon production. This discovery, co-authored by scientists from the International Medical Center of Japan (Tokyo), the National Cancer Institute at Frederick (Maryland) and the McGill Centre for the Study of Host Resistance, was published on December 22, 2008 in the Journal of Experimental Medicine. http://www.physorg.com/news150996491.html Medicine & Health Mon, 12 Jan 2009 15:28:11 EST news150996491