Duvelisib has marked response, survival benefit in difficult-to-treat leukemia and lymphoma

For some patients with difficult-to-treat leukemia and lymphoma, the investigational oral medicine duvelisib may significantly improve disease outcomes, according to phase III trial data published today in the journal Blood. The DUO trial studied the head-to-head comparison of duvelisib versus ofatumumab, an approved standard-of-care chemotherapy for relapsed or treatment-resistant chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) and small lymphocytic lymphoma (SLL). According to […]

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Scientists engineer way to prevent immune response to gene therapy in mice

Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have demonstrated that gene therapy can be effective without causing a dangerous side effect common to all gene therapy: an autoimmune reaction to the normal protein, which the patient’s immune system is encountering for the first time. The researchers showed this in a mouse model that accurately recapitulates Duchenne muscular dystrophy. One in every […]

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Human microbiome influences rotavirus vaccine response

In a proof-of-concept study in healthy adult men, scientists in the Netherlands found that microbiome manipulation with antibiotics influenced the response to oral rotavirus vaccine. Specifically, they found higher levels of viral shedding in those receiving antibiotic treatment prior to vaccination compared with controls receiving no antibiotic treatment prior to vaccination. The study is a human demonstration that altering the […]

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Researchers engineer T cells to recognize tumor-specific expression patterns, enhancing tumor response

The advent and advancement of T cell therapy, especially chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-modified T cells, has demonstrated therapeutic potential in treating previously treatment-resistant tumors. However, few CAR targets are absolutely tumor-specific, resulting in “on-target, off-tumor” toxicities that can be severe. Researchers in the Center for Cell and Gene Therapy at Baylor College of Medicine, Texas Children’s Hospital and Houston Methodist […]

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Study identifies protein’s role in mediating brain’s response to stress

A study led by Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) investigators has identified a critical role for a protein called Kruppel-like factor 9 (Klf9) in the brain’s response to stress, which has implications for protecting against the effects of stress in conditions like major depression and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). In their paper published in Cell Reports, the team describes finding that […]

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Older melanoma patients have better response to immune checkpoint blockade therapy

Patient age correlates with response to immunotherapy in melanoma and depleting regulatory T cells in young patients may have a therapeutic potential to enhance response in younger patients, according to research from The Wistar Institute. Study results were published online in Clinical Cancer Research. Immune checkpoint blockade therapy has been recently approved for treatment of melanoma based on its ability […]

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Ebola in the DRC—how a global and local response has been mobilised

The number of confirmed cases of Ebola in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has increased but health authorities are confident that the outbreak can be contained. At least 17 people have died, according to the country’s health ministry. Nevashan Govender from the National Institute for Communicable Diseases spoke to Health and Medicine Editor Candice Bailey about what’s needed to […]

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