Duke University Medical Center researchers may have solved the mystery of why lymph nodes swell when the body fights infection. Their findings may redefine how the immune system functions, they said.

Their research, published in the December 2003 issue of Nature Immunology, centered on the role of mast cells. Mast cells are immune cells that are typically found just under the skin and in the lining of the intestine and lungs and were previously associated primarily with the induction of al

Air pollution is associated with an increased risk of dying from SARS, according to a report published this week in Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source. The study shows that patients with SARS are more than twice as likely to die from the disease if they come from areas of high pollution. 5,327 cases of SARS have been diagnosed in mainland China since November 2002 and so far 349 patients have died from their disease. SARS death rates vary between regions of China, with high

UCLA-led study finds SARS death rate doubles in cities with poor air quality

A new study led by researchers at the UCLA School of Public Health associates air pollution with an increased risk of dying from Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS.

Published this week in the peer-reviewed journal Environmental Health: A Global Access Science Source, the study shows that patients with SARS are more than twice as likely to die from the disease if they come from areas of high

Combining radiation with an agent that blocks VEGF, a protein that promotes the development of blood vessels and the growth of cancerous tumors – a process known as angiogenesis – may be more effective against brain tumors than either treatment alone, researchers at Jefferson Medical College have found.

Scientists led by Phyllis Wachsberger, Ph.D., assistant professor of radiation oncology at Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, and Adam Dicker, M.D., as

Findings may help tailor treatment decisions for most common form of brain tumor

The most common form of primary brain tumor – glioma, affecting about 25,000 Americans each year – poses a dilemma for doctors and patients trying to make decisions about treatment. Many of these tumors will be particularly vicious, killing patients within months of diagnosis even in the face of the most vigorous therapy. Still others are less aggressive, but these can be difficult to distinguish under th

One of the National Institutes of Health has begun a concerted effort to determine the extent and causes of stillbirth- the death of a fetus at 20 or more weeks of pregnancy. Each year, more than 26,000 American women are reported to experience a stillbirth. To date, it has been difficult to collect information on stillbirths because the criteria for reporting them vary from state to state, and the issuance of fetal death certificates is not required. The National Institute of Child

The first human trial of a vaccine designed to prevent Ebola infection opened today. Scientists from the Vaccine Research Center (VRC) at the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), one of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), designed the vaccine, which was administered to a volunteer at the NIH Clinical Center in Bethesda. The vaccine does not contain any infectious material from the Ebola virus.

Just three years ago, VRC Director Gary Nabel, M.D., Ph.D., togeth

Critical innovations and new knowledge are now emerging from the laboratories of universities, medical centers and pharmaceutical companies worldwide, offering the prospect of a new generation of drugs capable of destroying cancer cells with pinpoint accuracy, without damaging adjacent normal cells.

Each year, the American Association for Cancer Research (AACR), jointly with the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC), brin

Women with ductal carcinoma in situ, a non-invasive form of breast cancer, are more likely to experience a recurrence after treatment if their DCIS is of a high nuclear grade or is detected by palpation during a breast examination, according to a study in the November 19 issue of the Journal of the National Cancer Institute.

DCIS accounts for about 20% of all newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer in the United States and is initially treated surgically, either by mastectomy (removal of the

Children’s Memorial Hospital is the only Chicago site for a study to determine whether early treatment of eczema using one of a new class of anti-inflammatory drugs will prevent subsequent development of asthma and other allergic diseases. Prevalence of eczema, or atopic dermatitis, has tripled in the last few decades, in parallel with asthma. Investigators at Children’s Memorial are part of a national clinical trial involving 1,100 children, from 3 to 18 months old, to test pimecrolimus (E

Research could lead to new diagnostic tests; safer treatments for blood clots in deep leg veins

For a medical disorder affecting more than 250,000 Americans each year, researchers don’t know much more today about what causes blood clots in veins than they did over 100 years ago. But deep vein thromboses or DVTs are a serious health problem, especially in the elderly. When blood clots form in deep leg veins, they can permanently damage the venous system or even be fatal, if a bloo

People with a genetic mutation that makes them more resistant to the AIDS virus probably have smallpox to thank, according to two population geneticists at the University of California, Berkeley.

About 10 percent of Europeans have a mutation that disables a protein the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV-1) uses to slip into immune system cells. HIV-1 has a harder time infecting people who have a mutation in one of the two genes that code for this receptor protein, and if these people become

Key AstraZeneca data presented at the AACR-NCI-EORTC meeting

New research presented today at an official AACR-NCI-EORTC* press conference highlights the potential of a new approach to fighting cancer — inhibition of Aurora kinases. The study, carried out by AstraZeneca, represents part of a body of innovative research and discovery work undertaken by the company as part of a broad based development program of novel cancer therapies. Key research presented this week also includes resu

Ground-breaking techniques which will be used to find tiny planets orbiting stars outside our Solar System are already being developed to help scientists detect cells in the early stages of cancer.

The enormous amount of light emitted by a star makes it extremely difficult to spot a planet in orbit around it. By using a technique that combines signals from two or more telescopes, ESA astronomers are able to create an artificial solar eclipse, ‘neutralising’ the effects of the bright starli

Scientists have known for many years that auditory cues such as song can influence hormone release and the growth of gonads in songbirds, but how the brain picks out specific sounds, interprets them correctly and translates them into hormonal and behavioral signals has remained a mystery. New evidence suggests a third form of a key reproduction hormone could be a link between song and enhanced procreation in songbirds.

It’s a long-held tenet of avian biology that songbirds have just tw

A Rutgers-led team has produced the first ever measurement of the “heat of life” – the energies involved in DNA replication and synthesis. The researchers’ findings have opened the door to a better understanding of the origins of replication errors that can result in genetic mutations and serious illness. This is crucial knowledge for the development of medical diagnostics and treatments of genetic disorders.

“Our measurements represent the first direct determination of the energies an