WHO Suspends Distribution, Purchase Of Pentavalent Vaccine A WHO spokeswoman announced Wednesday that the agency “has suspended the distribution and purchase of the Shan5 vaccine, produced by Sanofi-Aventis’s Indian unit Shantha Biotechnics, pending a quality investigation,” after several reports of white sediment on the walls of the vaccine vials, the Wall Street Journal reports…

Millions of people in both the developing and developed world may benefit from new immune-system research findings from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. The Penn Vet researchers, studying how the immune system operates, have discovered a previously unidentified cell population that may be the body’s double-edged sword, fighting off parasitic infections but also causing the harmful immune responses that can lead to allergies and asthma…

Immune cells ensnare dangerous cells that are on the run with a bungee-like nanotube, according to research published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The study, by researchers from Imperial College London, shows that natural killer (NK) cells use this bungee to destroy cells that could otherwise escape them. NK cells are our first line of defence against dangerous cells, such as tumour cells and cells infected with bacteria and viruses. Researchers are keen to understand how NK cells work because they help the body to fight infection and stop tumours from growing…

CSL Behring announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted marketing approval for HizentraTM, Immune Globulin Subcutaneous (Human), 20% Liquid, for treating patients diagnosed with primary immunodeficiency (PI). A once weekly immunoglobulin (Ig) replacement therapy, Hizentra provides effective protection against infection by maintaining a steady and normal level of immunoglobulin in the body…

The signaling molecule CD95L, known as “death messenger,” causes an inflammatory process in injured tissue after spinal cord injuries and prevents its healing. This discovery was published by scientists of the German Cancer Research Center. In mice, the researchers found out that if they switch off CD95L, the injured spinal cord heals and the animals regain better ability to move. Therefore, substances which block the death messenger might offer a new approach in the treatment of severe inflammatory diseases. A couple of years ago, Dr…

New research has identified four aspects of immune system disturbance which lead to the development of coeliac disease. Nearly 40 different inherited risk factors which predispose to the disease have now been identified. These latest findings could speed the way towards improved diagnostics and treatments for the autoimmune complaint that affects 1 in 100 of the population, and lead to insights into related conditions such as type 1 diabetes…

In a letter to the Chairmen and Ranking Members of House and Senate Committees charged with oversight of the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), the Coalition for Vaccine Safety (CVS) is calling for hearings to investigate HHS, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) and other government agencies for failure to fully address issues of vaccine safety as intended by the Mandate for Safer Vaccines in the 1986 National Childhood Vaccine Injury Compensation Act…

How might policymakers make reasonable decisions when they have limited information? That’s the question Northwestern University’s Charles F. Manski explores in his new paper, “Vaccination With Partial Knowledge of External Effectiveness.” The paper is published online by the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS) at http://www.pnas.org/content/early/2010/02/05/0915009107.full.pdf+html…

The FDA approved Prevnar 13 - a “new version of a blockbuster vaccine that fights pneumonia, meningitis and other infections” - for use in children up to age 5 in the U.S., Reuters reports (Richwine, 2/24). Such infections cause the deaths of an estimated one million children in developing countries and “dozens of deaths” in the U.S. each year, according to health officials, New York Times reports…

Ablynx [Euronext Brussels: ABLX], announced today that it has been awarded a grant worth EUR1.2 million by the Flemish agency for Innovation by Science and Technology (IWT). The grant supports Ablynx in accelerating the development of its Nanobody-based programme, ALX-0061, into clinical development for the treatment of autoimmune and inflammatory diseases. ALX-0061 binds to the IL-6 receptor (IL-6R). It has a high potency and demonstrated a favourable pharmacodynamic (PD), pharmacokinetic (PK) and safety profile in pre-clinical testing compared with the benchmark molecule…