The enzyme TBK1 is an important component of the innate immune system that plays a critical role in the defense against viruses. Upon mutation-induced loss of TBK1 function, patients show an increased susceptibility to viral infections.
Exercising too much and not getting enough rest is bad for your health. A new study from Lund University in Sweden shows that the same is true for migratory birds. They need to rest not only to renew their energy levels but also in order to boost their immune system.
Dr. Marcus Bosenberg, an accomplished clinician, teacher, and researcher who studies the factors that regulate anti-cancer immune responses, was recently appointed the Anthony N. Brady Professor of Dermatology, Pathology, and Immunobiology, effective immediately.Bosenberg received his Ph.D. and M.D. at Cornell University Medical College.
A new class of oral drugs can inhibit a wide range of SARS-CoV-2 variants, researchers report, potentially identifying new antiviral agents providing broad activity against the constantly emerging new strains of the COVID-19 virus
Researchers at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered how healthy bacteria can escape the intestine, travel to lymph nodes and cancerous tumors elsewhere in the body, and boost the effectiveness of certain immunotherapy drugs. The findings, published in Science Immunology, shed light on why antibiotics can weaken the effect of immunotherapies and could lead to new cancer treatments.
Scientists from the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute (TBSI) have shed new light on ageing processes in the brain. By linking the increased presence of specialised immune cells to conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease and traumatic brain injury for the first time, they have unearthed a possible new target for therapies aimed at treating age-related neurological diseases.
The link between symptoms of COVID-19 and physical inactivity is increasingly evident. An article recently published in the journal Scientific Reports by researchers at the University of São Paulo (USP) in Brazil describes a study in which COVID-19 survivors with at least one persistent symptom of the disease were 57% more likely to be sedentary, and the presence of five or more post-acute sequelae of infection by SARS-CoV-2 increased the odds of physical inactivity by 138%.
Juvenile dermatomyositis, a rare but often severe and chronic systemic autoimmune disease, includes a large number of patients who are treatment resistant, requiring long term immunosuppressive therapy. A small open-label study published in Arthritis and Rheumatology shows promise using a targeted biologic therapy called abatacept to treat such patients.
A pilot trial by investigators from Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a founding member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, tested the nasal administration of the drug Foralumab, an anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody.
The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Research Highlights showcases the latest breakthroughs in cancer care, research and prevention. These advances are made possible through seamless collaboration between MD Anderson’s world-leading clinicians and scientists, bringing discoveries from the lab to the clinic and back.
For the first time, a research team has identified and analyzed the steps by which immune cells “see” and respond to cancer cells, providing insights into reasons some treatments may be effective for certain patients but not others.
Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a way to treat the area surrounding breast tumors that have spread to bone so that such tumors become vulnerable to attack by the body’s immune system. When the researchers boosted the activity of certain immune cells, called T cells and macrophages, these immune cells worked together to clear metastatic breast tumors that had spread to the bones of mice.
Reducing the methylation of a key messenger RNA can promote migration of macrophages into the brain and ameliorate symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease in a mouse model, according to a new study publishing March 7th in the open access journal PLOS Biology by Rui Zhang of Air Force Medical University in Xian, Shaanxi, China. The results illuminate one pathway for entrance of peripheral immune cells into the brain, and may provide a new target for treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Biotic stress experienced by plants can take the form of attacks by insect herbivores or disease-causing pathogens. In crops grown for food production, this stress provides a substantial risk to crop yields and is currently managed with the widespread use of pesticides, which are damaging for the environment and can pose a risk to human health.
A global team of researchers has created an algorithmic tool that can identify existing drugs in order to combat future pandemics. The work, reported in the Cell Press journal Heliyon, offers the possibility of responding more quickly to public-health crises.
The research team consists of six investigators who will lead three separate project grants and three separate cores, in the hopes of finding new avenues for research and treatments to help patients who suffer from conditions like chronic obstructive pulmonary disorder, pulmonary fibrosis and acute respiratory distress disorder, a common and serious complication of COVID-19.
A clinical trial testing a freeze-dried, temperature-stable experimental tuberculosis (TB) vaccine in healthy adults found that it was safe and stimulated both antibodies and responses from the cellular arm of the immune system.
Lung cancer patients with moderate to severe depression are 2 to 3 times more likely to have inflammation levels that predict poor survival rates, a new study found. The results may help explain why a substantial portion of lung cancer patients fail to respond to new immunotherapy and targeted treatments that have led to significantly longer survival for many people with the disease.
The recent public health emergency declarations in New York and London due to polio infections and detection of the virus in these cities’ wastewater strongly indicate that polio is no longer close to being eradicated. Now, four members of the Global Virus Network (GVN) proposed changes in global polio eradication strategy to get the world back on track to one day eliminating polio’s threat.
The Prostate Cancer Foundation (PCF) has awarded a $1 million grant to a renowned specialist at the University of Chicago Medicine Comprehensive Cancer Center.
Now, in a surprising new discovery, Harvard Medical School researchers have found that a class of regulatory T cells (Tregs) made in the gut play a role in repairing injured muscles and mending damaged livers.
In an even more unexpected twist, the researchers found that gut microbes fuel the production of Tregs, which act as immune healers that go on patrol around the body and respond to distress signals from distant sites of injury.
A good night’s sleep can solve all sorts of problems – but scientists have now discovered new evidence that sleeping well may make you less vulnerable to infection.
It’s almost that dreaded time of year, when spring and summer allergies can make life miserable for many. Ashley Agan, M.D., Assistant Professor in the Department of Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery at UT Southwestern Medical Center, said steps can be taken to control symptoms and prevent infections.
Together with Multiple Sclerosis (MS) experts, biostatisticians and clinicians from across the globe, a UK HealthCare neurologist has helped compile an essential list of MS medications for patients in resource-poor settings. Jagannadha “Jay” Avasarala, M.D., Ph.D., director of the Comprehensive Care Center for MS and Neuroimmunology at the Kentucky Neuroscience Institute, currently serves as a panel member of the Multiple Sclerosis International Foundation (MSIF) and previously served as chair of the American Academy of Neurology (2020-22).
A team of researchers from institutions across the United States, including Moffitt Cancer Center, launched a phase 2 clinical trial evaluating a new treatment option for this patient population. Their results, published in The New England Journal of Medicine, show that treating resectable stage 3 and 4 melanoma patients with the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab both before and after surgery greatly improves outcomes when compared to pembrolizumab given only after surgery.
Patients with high-risk melanoma who received the immunotherapy drug pembrolizumab both before and after surgery to remove cancerous tissue had a significantly lower risk of their cancer recurring than similar patients who received the drug only after surgery.
Ochsner Health has medical experts on standby to discuss Multiple Sclerosis, 3rd anniversary of COVID, Colorectal Cancers, and International Women’s Day
UT Southwestern biochemist Zhijian “James” Chen, Ph.D., famously identified the cGAS enzyme pathway that alerts the human immune system to disease-causing invaders like viruses. Since then, researchers have found that cGAS signaling is an ancient, conserved defense strategy stretching from bacteria to mammals. A new study from the Chen lab published in Nature reports a novel mechanism bacteria use to enhance the effectiveness of the cGAS-mediated immune response.
The American Academy of Microbiology has elected Florian Krammer, PhD, Mount Sinai Professor in Vaccinology, and Gustavo Palacios, PhD, Professor of Microbiology at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, along with 63 peers to its Class of 2023 fellows. Fellows of the American Academy of Microbiology, an honorary leadership group and a think tank within the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), are elected annually through a highly selective peer-review process based on their records of scientific achievement and original contributions that have advanced microbiology.
Researchers at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have identified variants of a chaperone molecule that optimizes the binding and presentation of foreign antigens across the human population, which could open the door to numerous applications where robust presentation to the immune system is important, including cell therapy and immunization. The findings were published today in Science Advances.
Various long-term effects have been found to occur after infection by the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), and the reality of these lingering symptoms remains unknown.
Hackensack Meridian science institute, commercial space leader to work together beyond our atmosphere for clues to better protect human health
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A new Australian study led by SAHMRI and Flinders University has uncovered fundamental differences in how the AstraZeneca and Pfizer COVID-19 vaccines impact the immune system.
Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York have identified which parts of the immune system go awry and contribute to autoimmune diseases in individuals with Down syndrome.
Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have generated the first induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from bats, gaining valuable insights into the close relationship between bats and viruses.
Immunotherapy after surgery increased bladder cancer patients’ chance of staying cancer-free compared to patients who received a placebo, according to clinical trial results shared in a late-breaking oral presentation at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) 2023 Genitourinary Cancers Symposium in February.
New research from the University of Michigan Rogel Cancer Center reveals that the metabolic pathways that make a specific type of T cell function are different than previously believed. The key to this discovery lies in a new methodology developed by Hanna Hong, graduate student in immunology and first author of this study. The findings appear in Science Immunology.
Largest review and meta-analysis assessing the extent of protection following COVID-19 infection by variant and how durable that protection is against different variants, including 65 studies from 19 countries.
Cancer immunotherapy involves using activated T cells to destroy tumors, but it doesn’t work for all patients. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have discovered that a kind of dendritic cell is crucial for determining the effectiveness of immunotherapy. The discovery could lead to new ways to extend the benefits of immunotherapy to more patients.
UC San Diego researchers report that a late-stage, pre-clinical small molecule inhibitor reverses malignant hyper-editing by a protein that promotes silencing of the immune response, metastasis and therapeutic resistance in 20 different cancer types.
A biomedical researcher at the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, part of Main Line Health, has created a groundbreaking resource for scientists seeking to develop new and better vaccines in the fight against COVID-19.