Recommended reading from around the Web

Immune System Acts as Bellwether for Diseases

Immune System Acts as Bellwether for Diseases

by Ralph Steinman, M.D.

Immunology in the News | October 2008

Two exciting strands of research promote the use of the immune system in medical prognosis.

Drug Makers Ignoring Key Gender Differences

by Anne McIlroy

The Globe and Mail | September 17, 2008
Registration or subscription may be required.

Pharmaceutical companies are failing to account for important differences between the immune systems of men and women when developing new drugs.

Immune System Biomarkers May Predict Early Lung Cancer

HealthDay News | September 15, 2008

Immune system biomarkers can detect the presence of lung cancer a year before any noticeable symptoms, according to researchers. This discovery is the latest to use the immune system for disease prognosis.

FDA OKs Rare Neurological Disease Treatments

United Press International | September 15, 2008

Chronic inflammatory demyelinating polyneuropathy is a rare disorder characterized by weakening in the arms and legs and reduced sensory function. The FDA has now approved an immune globulin product to help treat the disorder.

How TB Drugs Dupe the Immune System

Agence France-Presse | September 14, 2008

Tuberculosis tricks the immune system by promoting a form of cell death in specific immune cells in the lungs, according to new research that hint at new targets for future therapies.