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Research

With immune checkpoint therapy (ICT) having reshaped the treatment of many cancers, the next frontier is to identify and develop novel combination therapies to improve efficacy. Previously, we and others identified beneficial immunological effects of the vitamin A derivative tretinoin on anti-tumour immunity.

Research

Food allergy affects up to 10% of Australian infants. It was hypothesized that if parents follow the Australasian Society of Clinical Immunology and Allergy guidelines, Australian food allergy rates may stabilize or decline.

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Incomplete maturation of immune regulatory functions at birth is antecedent to the heightened risk for severe respiratory infections during infancy. Our forerunner animal model studies demonstrated that maternal treatment with the microbial-derived immune training agent OM-85 during pregnancy promotes accelerated postnatal maturation of mechanisms that regulate inflammatory processes in the offspring airways.

Research

To reduce peanut allergy prevalence, infant feeding guidelines now recommend introducing peanuts in an age-appropriate form (such as peanut butter) as part of complementary feeding. However, due to a lack of randomized trial evidence, most infant feeding and food allergy prevention guidelines do not include tree nuts. The aims of this trial were to determine safety and feasibility of dosage consumption recommendations for infant cashew nut spread introduction.

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We recently reported that offspring of mice treated during pregnancy with the microbial-derived immunomodulator OM-85 manifest striking resistance to allergic airways inflammation, and localized the potential treatment target to fetal conventional dendritic cell (cDC) progenitors. Here, we profile maternal OM-85 treatment-associated transcriptomic signatures in fetal bone marrow, and identify a series of immunometabolic pathways which provide essential metabolites for accelerated myelopoiesis.

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Clinical studies supported by immunological data indicate early life intervention strategies to be promising in reducing the growing global burden of food allergies. The events that predispose to food allergy, including the induction of allergen-specific immune responses, appear to be initiated early in development.

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The role of oestrogen in experimental atopic asthma, and guide future research on sex-related variations in atopic asthma susceptibility/intensity

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The immunological changes underpinning acquisition of remission (also called sustained unresponsiveness) following food immunotherapy remain poorly defined. Limited access to effective therapies and biosamples from treatment responders has prevented progress. Probiotic peanut oral immunotherapy is highly effective at inducing remission, providing an opportunity to investigate immune changes.

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Neonatal dendritic cells generated form CD34+ cord blood progenitors have a higher inflammatory potential when exposed to viral than bacterial related stimuli

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We systematically reviewed the literature on the genetic basis of food allergy, identifying areas for further investigation

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Information is accumulating which implicates airway inflammation resulting from respiratory viral infections, acting against a background of atopy.

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Maternal supplementation with 900 mg of ω-3 LCPUFA did not change the progression of IgE-mediated allergic disease symptoms or sensitization

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One explanation for the high burden of allergic and autoimmune diseases in industrialized countries is inappropriate immune development under modern...

Research

Elevated egg-specific Th2 cytokine responses were established prior to egg ingestion at 4months and were not significantly altered by introduction of egg

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Patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) have a decreased ability to clear cell remnants and multiple deficiencies in the ability to degrade cellular...

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Antioxidant intakes in pregnancy may influence fetal immune programming and the risk of allergic disease.

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The complement system plays a major role in the autoimmune disease, systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). This review highlights the many roles of complement for

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This project investigates how cells of the immune system respond to substances to cause allergies to help develop new treatments.

News & Events

A dose of the whooping cough vaccine might reduce cases of childhood food allergies according to latest research by the Wesfarmers Centre of Vaccines and Infectious Diseases based at The Kids Research Institute Australia.

Research

Prevalence of allergic diseases in infants, whose parents and siblings do not have allergy, is approximately 10% and reaches 20-30% in those with an allergic...