immune response

Biomarkers can help guide immune-suppressing treatment after organ transplantation

Posted by

0

Recently discovered biomarkers may provide valuable new approaches to monitoring immunosuppressive drug therapy in organ transplant recipients–with the potential for individualized therapy to reduce organ rejection and minimize side effects, according to a special article in the April issue of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring, official journal of the International Association of Therapeutic Drug Monitoring and Clinical Toxicology. The journal is published by Wolters Kluwer.

“Biomarkers should help to tailor immunosuppressive therapy to the needs of the individual patient,” according to the review by an international Expert Committee. The initial “Barcelona Consensus Statement” includes a preliminary set of recommended tests for use in biomarker-based immunosuppressive drug management after organ transplantation. The lead author is Mercè Brunet, PhD, of Hospital Clinico de Barcelona.

 

Link to article

Scientists ‘find cancer’s Achilles heel’

Posted by

0

Scientists believe they have discovered a way to “steer” the immune system to kill cancers.

Researchers at University College, London have developed a way of finding unique markings within a tumour – its “Achilles heel” – allowing the body to target the disease.

But the personalised method, reported in Science journal, would be expensive and has not yet been tried in patients.

Experts said the idea made sense but could be more complicated in reality.

However, the researchers, whose work was funded by Cancer Research UK, believe their discovery could form the backbone of new treatments and hope to test it in patients within two years.

They believe by analysing the DNA, they’ll be able to develop bespoke treatment.

People have tried to steer the immune system to kill tumours before, but cancer vaccines have largely flopped.

 

Link to full article on BBC

Molecular Fingerprint Predicts Flu Shot Response

Posted by

0

A gene-expression signature correlates with a person’s likelihood of experiencing adverse events after receiving a seasonal flu vaccine, scientists show.

 

Getting a seasonal flu shot can leave healthy adults with the common side effects of feeling achy or feverish. Now, researchers have identified a gene-expression pattern in circulating immune cells that could help predict which individuals are more likely to suffer these adverse effects following vaccination. This molecular signature was also correlated with a person’s chances of having autoreactive antibodies, according to the results published today (January 4) in Nature Immunology.

“Man flu,” a disparaging term for one’s exaggeration of flu-like symptoms, “is partly a joke and it’s partly real. Our study shows that there are very good reasons for people feeling unwell after a vaccination,” said study coauthor Adrian Hayday of King’s College London. “The gene signature in the peripheral blood . . . is not a smoking gun at this point, but it’s a strong association and quite compelling.”

 

Link to article