Reacti

Langerhans cells regulate immune reactions in the skin

Researchers at Yale School of Medicine have demonstrated that Langerhans cells in the skin, which had been thought to alert the immune system to pathogens, instead dampen the skin's reaction to infection and inflammation. Dendritic...

Serious adverse reactions to smallpox vaccine appear to be limited

There was a low rate of life-threatening adverse reactions to the smallpox vaccine administered to potential first responders to a bioterrorism incident, possibly attributable to rigorous vaccine safety screening and educational programs, according to a study in the December 7 issue of JAMA. Routine childhood immunization against smallpox in the United States ceased in 1971, according to b...

'Nano-keys' bind cell receptors and trigger allergic reactions

The tumblers of life continue to click as Cornell University researchers have fabricated a set of "nano-keys" on the molecular scale to interact with receptors on cell membranes and trigger larger-scale responses within cells -- such as the release of histamines in an allergic response. How cell membranes control cellular function has long been studied but with ambiguous results. However,...

Gut reaction: Researchers define the colon's genome

For the first time, scientists have defined the collective genome of the human gut, or colon. Up to 100 trillion microbes, representing more than 1,000 species, make up a motley "microbiome" that allows humans to digest much of what we eat, including some vitamins, sugars, and fiber. , scientists at The Institute for Genomic Resear...

Pilot study successful in taming allergic reactions to food

Children who were allergic to eggs were able to essentially overcome their allergy by gradually consuming increased quantities of eggs over time, researchers at Duke University Medical Center and the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences have found in a small pilot study. “Participants who took a daily dose of egg product over the two-year study period were able to build up their bo...

Reactivated gene shrinks tumors

Many cancers arise due to defects in genes that normally suppress tumor growth. Now, for the first time, MIT researchers have shown that re-activating one of those genes in mice can cause tumors to shrink or disappear. "If we can find drugs that restore p53 function in huma...

Anti-wrinkle compound causes pathological reaction in skin cells

Researchers from Université Laval’s Faculty of Medicine have discovered that a compound commonly used in many antiwrinkle products causes a pathological reaction in skin cells. Guillaume Morissette, Lucie Germain, and François Marceau present their conclusions about the mode of action of this substance—called DMAE—in the latest edition of the British Journal of Dermatology. DMAE (2-dimethy...

Traumas like Sept. 11 make brains more reactive to fear

According to a new brain study, even people who seemed resilient but were close to the World Trade Center when the twin towers toppled on Sept. 11, 2001, have brains that are more reactive to emotional stimuli than those who were more than 200 miles away. That is the finding of a new Cornell study that excluded people who did not have such mental disorders as post-traumatic stress disorder...