Biopeer

A nutrient to prop up metabolism-boosting protein

Researchers from the Harvard School of Public Health, Boston and University of Oslo, Norway have reportedly identified a nutrient – floodgate – that would strengthen the STAMP2 proteins for protecting human fat pockets from acute inflammation. Research evaluating STAMP2 deficiency in mice showed that the deep fat pockets developed inflammatory pathways, leading to metabolic disorders, insulin resistance, and cardiovascular disease. Therefore, the researchers are finding a treatment that would prop-up STAMP2 and control metabolic disorders. “If we could find ways to strengthen STAMP2 or prevent its suppression, the body might retain control,” said Gökhan Hotamisligil of Harvard School of Public Health.

Recent findings published by the researchers at Bose Institute in Kolkata, India, in the journal Nature Immunology reported the identification of protein ESAT-6 in tuberculosis, which weakens body’s immune system to fight harmful bacteria. Scientists tested mice without TLR2 on their macrophages, exposing the macrophages to ESAT-6. Inference from the test showed that ESAT-6 holds on to TLR2 on the surface of macrophages and reduces the capacity of macrophages to destroy viruses and bacteria. “When the macrophages can’t function properly, the white blood cells would not be able to put up as good a fight,” said lead researcher Joyoti Basu.

Dr. Charles Frankish, president of the Canadian Society of Allergy and Clinical Immunology has listed out a range of treatment to deal with hay fever symptoms such as itchy eyes, sneezing and runny noses. The treatment for these seasonal allergies includes the use of antihistamines, over-the-counter eye drops, corticosteroid nasal sprays, and allergy injections. These medications are useful in treating seasonal allergies and they are effective at the primary stage, and it is always advisable to prevent seasonal diseases by taking proper precautions.

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Immunology research reveals startling results

American researchers have made breakthrough discoveries regarding the role of the immune system.

Researchers at The Forsyth Institute, Massachusetts, have established that immune cells have a detrimental role to play when it comes to periodontal disease. Periodontal disease is an infection of the teeth and their supporting structures, which results in tooth loss. Lead investigator Toshihisa Kawai, DDS, PhD, found in the study conducted on human gingival tissue that B cells can contribute to increased periodontal bone loss in conjunction with activated T-cells. The researchers hope that the study will go a long way in determining methods for intervening and arresting bone loss and thus saving people’s teeth in the future.

Meanwhile, a study into transplant tolerance has thrown up surprising results. Researchers from the Dartmouth Medical School have found that mast cells mediate immune system suppression. On transplanting skin on mice, they found that mice that were deficient in mast cells were unable to accept the skin graft. They also found that regulatory T cells produced IL-9, the protein active in mast cell activation and recruitment. The researchers also established that IL-9 was essential for a successful skin transplant. The study findings have made mast cells the new cellular target for better understanding immune suppression.

Researchers from the University of North Carolina have developed an effective way to treat the autoimmune disease pemphigus vulgaris without switching off the immune system. Researchers injected mice with a drug that hampers the activity of the p38 enzyme. The drug prevented the autoantibodies from damaging the skin and caused a loss of adhesion between skin cells. Thus, it halted the disease without adversely affecting the immune system. Researchers believe that the development of such drugs for human use could lead to a potential treatment for pemphigus vulgaris.

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New immunology research findings may guide AIDS prevention efforts

America, Canada, and China have independently contributed findings that may aid the fight against Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

American scientists from Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, have discovered how the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) weakens the immune cells. In collaboration with colleagues from Doris Duke Medical Research Institute, Durban, they studied blood samples from 71 HIV patients who had not yet commenced anti-HIV treatment. They also looked at samples from four HIV-positive individuals taken before and after they had begun antiretroviral therapy. They found that HIV turns off the CD8 cells normally meant to fight against the virus by flipping a molecular switch “off”. That is why, even though these cells were found in high numbers in persons with late stage AIDS, the virus continued to spread.

In a similar study, Canadian scientists have identified a defect in the immune response to HIV and found a way to correct the flaw. They found that HIV makes immune system cells non-functional by compelling the over expression of the Programmed Death-1 (PD-1) protein. By stimulating the protein, the researchers succeeded in preventing the virus from making immune system cells dysfunctional. They hope that the findings will open new prospects for the development of therapeutic strategies for controlling HIV infection.

Meanwhile, China has conducted preliminary tests of its first AIDS vaccine. In the first phase of the trial, 49 healthy men and women, between the ages of 18 and 50, were divided into eight groups. They were tested 5 to 10 times during the 180 days of the trial. The positive immune response towards the virus increased with an increase in the dosage. Decision on whether further tests should be carried out will depend on the analysis of the test results.

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New cellular finding provides hope for HIV infected

Research conducted at the Ohio State University, US, has made a path-breaking discovery that may change the way HIV/AIDS is treated. Scientists have identified a previously unknown mechanism that cells use to fight off HIV. It has been found that  two proteins, XPB and XPD that help in repairing the DNA of injured cells in the body also act as a destroyer of the DNA of HIV virus. The proteins inhibit the growth of the cDNA of the virus that is major force behind the growth and spread of the virus in the body.

Currently, HIV/AIDS is treated through a host of drugs in a ‘combination treatment’, with drugs that target the virus directly, blocking its ability to reproduce. Considered to be one of the fastest mutating viruses the medical world has faced, it also has the tendency to develop resistance to drugs being used or to mutate to develop a new strain that is resistant to the effects of an antiretroviral drug being administered. Researchers believe that drugs targeting the cellular components would yield better results, as they would make it difficult for the virus to develop resistance.

HIV/AIDS is a major killer worldwide, but it is infected people in the sub-Saharan and Asian continent who constitute more than half of the infected population. In these countries, curing the disease is a distant dream due to the high cost of drugs and low per capita income. As the constantly mutating virus is always one step ahead of scientists, the focus is on preparing a vaccine to prevent the spread of the HIV virus to the non-affected population of the world.

Japanese researchers discover edible vaccine that may lead to safer and cheaper allergy treatments

Researchers at the University of Tokyo and National Institute of Agrobiological Sciences have discovered that an edible vaccine produced in genetically modified rice prevented the immune response that triggers allergies in mice.

By inserting genetic material from the allergy-related proteins found in Japanese cedar pollen (a common allergen in Japan) into the rice genome, the scientists cultivated rice that contained the pollen proteins. Mice that were allergic to the pollen were fed the rice-based vaccine daily for four weeks and then exposed to the allergen. They had fewer allergic responses compared to the control group.

Plant-based vaccines have several potential advantages over traditional whole-allergen injected vaccines: easier to administer; a lower risk of anaphylactic reactions; cheaper to produce; can be stored at room temperature for longer periods; and are painless.

This isn't the first edible vaccine. Earlier this year, a potato carrying a hepatitis B vaccine was eaten by a group of human volunteers. Scientists are pursuing this line of research as engineering plants to produce therapeutic proteins will mean vaccines can be mass-produced and administered easier and less expensive than current methods.

 

Hope for the end of herpes?

Herpes simplex virus (HSV) infections take many forms in humans.  Chickenpox as children (usually), shingles, genital herpes, and cold sores.  Pretty much all the same virus.  All with the same problem, once you have it, you have it, forever.  HSV lingers in the nervous system waiting for an opportunity to emerge out of dormancy and cause painful sores, lesions, or blisters (shingles).  Current anti-viral medication suppress and control to a degree HSV, but don't eliminate it from the body or help the body fight it better.  Hope, it appears, may be on the way—Biology News Net- Microbiology - 'Achilles' heel' of herpes virus possibly found.  Researchers at the University of Michigan have found that the mechanism that HSV latches onto cells' B5 receptor.  They gene had been identified in the Human Genome Project, but not understood, now it has.  In the short-term, this doesn't change the situation much, but in the long-term this discovery and the protein/enzyme connectors could lead to effective treatments or even a cure for HSV infection.

 

Not only is this good news for people who suffer from genital herpes, cold sores, and shingles, but could be life-saving for the millions of adults who contract chickenpox late in life.  Chickenpox infection is adults is a very serious situation and perhaps a treatment built on this discovery could prevent significant suffering.

 

Technorati Tags : Herpes, genital+herpes, cold+sores, shingles, chickenpox, HSV, herpes+simplex+virus

Tristram Hussey, M.S.  is a professional blogger and blog consultant, the Chief Blogging Officer for Qumana Software, and Managing Director of Qumana Services.  He holds a B.A. in Anthropology and a M.S. in Quaternary Studies.  He can be reached at tris AT qumana DOT com or tris AT trishussey DOT com.

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