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More Known About Proteins That Cause Autoimmune Diseases
Posted 17 Jan 2012 by Drugs.com
TUESDAY, Jan. 17 – A new study says more than 32 million people in the United States have autoantibodies, which are proteins produced in the immune system that attack the body's tissues. Autoantibodies can cause autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis, lupus and type 1 diabetes, researchers say. Researchers examined blood serum samples taken from almost 4,800 people who participated in the 1994-2004 U.S. National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. The research team was looking for the most common type of autoantibody, called antinuclear antibodies (ANA). The overall prevalence of antinuclear antibodies was about 14 percent and was slightly higher in blacks than in whites. Frequency generally increased with age and was higher in women than in men, with the female-to-male ratio peaking at 40 to 49 years and then declining with age. "The peak of autoimmunity in females ... Read more
Related support groups: Rheumatoid Arthritis, Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, Diabetes, Type 1, Autoimmune Disorders, Lupus Erythematosus
Immune System Research Sees Many Similarities Among People
Posted 1 Sep 2010 by Drugs.com
WEDNESDAY, Sept. 1 – Human immune systems are much more alike than previously believed, a finding that may lead to new ways to detect, diagnose and treat cancer and autoimmune diseases, say U.S. researchers. The team at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center in Seattle created a new way to sequence millions of immune system T-cell receptors from a single sample. T-cell receptors are a critical part of the adaptive immune system, which is responsible for protection against new pathogens. When the researchers used this technique to compare immune systems in different people, they were surprised to discover many similarities. "We found that any two people may share tens of thousands of the exact same T-cell receptor. This is contrary to previous dogma that each person has a distinct set of T-cell receptors with little or no overlap between people," study corresponding author Harlan ... Read more
Related support groups: Cancer, Autoimmune Disorders
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