PCSK9 inhibition is a new therapeutic strategy for atherosclerosis which is known to lower LDL cholesterol. Research from Karolinska Institutet, presented at the ESC Congress last year and now published in the Journal of Internal Medicine, shows that PCSK9 inhibitors could ameliorate cardiovascular disease by immune mechanisms that are independent of LDL lowering. Atherosclerosis is a...
Category: <span>Immunology</span>
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How live vaccines enhance the body’s immune response
Researchers from Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin’s university hospital, have discovered a new mechanism by which live vaccines induce immunity. Molecules produced exclusively by live microorganisms are recognized by specialized receptors of the immune system, subsequently triggering a protective immune response. The new findings may help improve the safety and efficacy of vaccines. Results from...
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Genetic material once considered junk actually could hold key to cancer drug response
A hairpin loop from a pre-mRNA. Highlighted are the nucleobases (green) and the ribose-phosphate backbone (blue). Note that this is a single strand of RNA that folds back upon itself. Material left out of common processes for sequencing genetic material in cancer tumors may actually carry important information about why only some people respond to immunotherapy,...
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Tolerating yourself: A novel pathway to regulate B cell activity and prevent autoimmunity
The immune system is responsible for protecting the host from foreign pathogens; however, there are many diseases — known as autoimmune diseases — that result from the immune system attacking the host. The immune system has several strategies to prevent this, known as tolerance, and researchers at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) have...
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Efficient genetic modification of immune cells
A new method enables genes in living T-cells in mice to be modified quickly and efficiently. It makes use of plasmids, a tried-and-tested method of genetic engineering. Researchers from the Department of Biomedicine at the University of Basel and University Hospital Basel reported these findings in the Journal of Immunology. Molecular biological methods such as CRISPR-Cas9...
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Newly created compound boosts anti-cancer immunity
Scientists might have found a way to activate the body’s “natural killer T cells” in the fight against cancer. The findings might lead to more effective treatments that stop cancer from spreading. Sometimes, our T cells (shown here attacking a cancer cell) can do with a little help. The new study — now published in the...
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Immunotherapy—cancer’s new frontier
Dr. Daruka Mahadevan (left) and Eric Weterings examine cancer cells in a petri dish. Mahadevan is director of the UA Cancer Center Early Phase Clinical Trials Program. Your immune system never sleeps. Every moment of the day, immune cells monitor your body for disease, calling for backup when they detect a threat. It’s a...
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Potential of manipulating gut microbiome to boost efficacy of cancer Immunotherapies
PHILADELPHIA -The composition of bacteria in the gastrointestinal tract may hold clues to help predict which cancer patients are most apt to benefit from the personalized cellular therapies that have shown unprecedented promise in the fight against hard-to-treat cancers, according to new research from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania. Reporting...
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‘Molecular scissors’ could be key to cutting off diseases including HIV infection Newly discovered pathway could be drug target, researchers say
COLUMBUS, Ohio – One way to fight diseases including HIV infection and autoimmune disorders could involve changing how a naturally occurring enzyme called SAMHD1 works to influence the immune system, new research suggests. The study, led by researchers from The Ohio State University, details how the enzyme influences proteins that stimulate the immune response. SAMHD1...
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Colon signaling pathway key to inflammatory bowel disease
Upon inflammation, monocytes are recruited into the inflamed colon, where they become colitogenic macrophages expressing TNF-? and iNOS. Regarding the mechanisms, we found that IFN-γ acts on the recruited monocytes and phosphorylated STAT1 …more The intestine encounters more foreign substances and potential toxins than other parts of the body, so it is not surprising that a...