by Iqbal Pittalwala, University of California – Riverside Credit: CC0 Public DomainAfter COVID vaccination, it usually takes weeks for our bodies to develop protective antibody responses. Imagine, however, a vaccine that speeds up the production of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2, the virus that spreads COVID-19. A research team led by Rong Hai, an associate professor of microbiology...
by Kerstin Wild, Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy Wound healing and target killing are both effector mechanisms of CD8 T cells. (A) Combined proliferation and killing assay in the presence of influenza-specific CD8 T cells and varying amounts of pulsed peptides on MRC-5 and HaCaT cells seeded in a 30:70 ratio. Left, representative image with labels...
by Elana Gotkine Two doses of recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) are effective against herpes zoster (HZ), with the vaccine effectiveness (VE) of two doses waning a little over four years of follow-up, according to a study published online on Jan. 9 in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Ousseny Zerbo, Ph.D., from Kaiser Permanente Northern California...
by University of Arizona Generation of an HLA-I/II and MICA/B-deficient hESC line (A) Representation of the Cas9 editing strategy. Wild-type H1 hESCs were transfected with a Cas9 construct and up to three gRNAs at a time. gRNAs were for β2M, TAP1, CD74, CIITA, MICA, and MICB. Individual colonies were picked and sequenced to identify ones with...
by The Scripps Research Institute Chemoproteomic discovery of SLC15A4 inhibitors. Credit: Nature Chemical Biology (2024). DOI: 10.1038/s41589-023-01527-8Scientists from Scripps Research have developed a small molecule that blocks the activity of a protein linked to autoimmune diseases, including systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and Crohn’s disease. This protein, known as SLC15A4, has been considered largely “undruggable,” as most...
by American Society for Microbiology Credit: CC0 Public DomainSevere gum disease has been linked to the progression of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD, but an understanding of how the connection plays out in the immune system remains unclear. This week in mSystems, a new study identifies immune system cells that play a critical role in...
Two doses of the recombinant zoster vaccine (RZV) are effective against herpes zoster (HZ) for 4 years after vaccination, according to a new study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine. Findings from the prospective cohort study showed that people who received two doses of the vaccine, regardless of when they received their second dose,...
by Osaka University Credit: Cell Genomics (2024). DOI: 10.1016/j.xgen.2023.100473Much like ripples on the water can betray powerful currents below the surface, small changes in our bodies can sometimes be an indicator of a serious condition. Now, researchers from Japan say that cells in the blood may provide telltale signs of important immune dysfunction. In a study...
By Michael Irving Scientists have supercharged immunotherapy by engineering CAR T cells that can produce their own “medicine” to keep them fighting in the hostile environment around tumors Depositphotos A new form of immunotherapy helps immune cells “armor” themselves against exhaustion by releasing their own medicine to keep them going in the fight against cancer. In...
by University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston Credit: CC0 Public DomainThe body’s immune response to Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) may play a role in causing damage in people with multiple sclerosis, according to a new study led by University of Texas Health Houston. EBV infection has long been associated with multiple sclerosis, but how the...
