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Melbourne researchers have identified an immune protein that has the potential to stop or reverse the development of type 1 diabetes in its early stages, before insulin-producing cells have been destroyed. The discovery has wider repercussions, as the protein is responsible for protecting the body against excessive immune responses, and could be used to treat, or even prevent, other immune disorders such as multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Professor Len Harrison, Dr Esther Bandala-Sanchez and Dr Yuxia Zhang led the research team from the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute's Molecular Medicine division that identified the immune protein CD52 as responsible...

Enlarge Image Don't pass the salt. The food flavoring prompts generic T cells like these to specialize into TH17 cells that stimulate autoimmune diseases, new findings suggest. Credit: N. Yosef et al., Nature 495 (6 March) © 2013 Nature Publishing Group For decades, doctors have been admonishing us to cut back on salt to reduce the odds of a heart attack or stroke. Now, there may be a new reason to avoid the seasoning: Studies on rodents and cultured cells, reported today, reveal that dietary salt might promote autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis and inflammatory bowel disease. The...

Drugs that slow progression of multiple sclerosis (MS) offer health gains to some at very high prices, a new study shows. The study seems likely to reignite the national debate about how best to rein in runaway health care costs. It found that adding an injectable disease-modifying drug to the treatment of MS patients roughly doubles the cost of care, while only providing small population-level improvements in survival and quality of life. Doctors who were not involved in the study were alarmed by its findings. "We know, unequivocally, that these drugs slow the progression of the disease and slow the...

Differences in the sequence of a single gene may be partly responsible for causing around 2% of relatively common autoimmune disorders including diabetes and arthritis. The gene codes for an enzyme called sialic acid acetylesterase (SIAE) that regulates the immune system's B cells — the cells responsible for producing antibodies against foreign invaders. In 24 of 923 people with conditions such as Crohn's disease, type 1 diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic lupus erythematosus and multiple sclerosis, the gene was present in a variant form. For the past five years, genome-wide screens of large groups of patients have searched for commonly occurring...

Latent autoimmune diabetes in adults, or LADA, refers to a form of type 1 diabetes that occurs not in childhood ot young adulthood-as is customary-but rather in individuals age 30 or older...

Calling the Shots The realities of the Anthrax Vaccination Immunization Program By Kathryn Goodson 03/25/05 “Before I go into detail about my adverse reactions to the Anthrax vaccination, I’d like to point out that when I was vaccinated, I was not informed of any potential adverse side effects or of the Vaccine Adverse Events Reporting System (VAERS). There were no hand outs, product inserts, literature, or health questionnaires to read or fill out. I just had to report to immunization, turn in my shot records, and receive the shot. When I voiced my concerns about receiving this vaccine, I was...