Feature Channels: Immunology

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Jennifer Wargo, M.D., professor of Surgical Oncology and Genomic Medicine at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, has received a 2023 Edith and Peter O’Donnell Award in Medicine from the Texas Academy of Medicine, Engineering, Science and Technology (TAMEST) for her contributions to the understanding of how the gut microbiome influences responses to immunotherapy and other cancer treatments.

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Scientists from the Institut Pasteur, Université Paris Cité, the CNRS and the Collège de France have used paleogenomics to trace 10,000 years of human immune system evolution.

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Gut bacteria can influence brain health, according to a study of mice genetically predisposed to develop Alzheimer’s-like brain damage. The study, by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis, indicates that gut bacteria produce compounds that influence the behavior of immune cells, including ones in the brain that can cause neurodegeneration. The findings suggest a new approach to treating Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.

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Morteza Mahmoudi, an assistant professor in MSU’s Department of Radiology, explains why addressing disagreements with stronger standards will help ensure future nanomedicines are safe, effective and successful.

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LA JOLLA, CA — Researchers at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) have at last uncovered how an enzyme called O-GlcNAc transferase (OGT) keeps cells healthy. Their findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academies of Sciences, reveals a key aspect of cellular biology and may lead to important medical advances.

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A team of researchers led by The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center has developed a novel delivery system for messenger RNA (mRNA) using extracellular vesicles (EVs). The new technique has the potential to overcome many of the delivery hurdles faced by other promising mRNA therapies.

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Findings from a newly published study provide further evidence suggesting that the breast milk of those vaccinated against COVID-19 may help protect babies from the illness

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Using new microscopic methods in combination with machine learning-based image analysis, researchers from Freiburg have discovered new structures on the surface of living B cells that affect the distribution and possibly the function of their antigen receptors.

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New research in JNCCN finds that immunotherapy from immune checkpoint (PD-1) inhibitors prior to surgery was strikingly effective for patients with localized mismatch repair-deficient or microsatellite instability-high (dMMR/MSI-H) colorectal cancer (CRC).

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CAR T cell therapy may enhance the effectiveness of surgery for solid tumors, according to a preclinical study from researchers in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

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The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Research Highlights provides a glimpse into recent basic, translational and clinical cancer research from MD Anderson experts.

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A new analysis by Cedars-Sinai investigators is furthering the scientific community’s understanding of COVID-19 immunity by showing that similar levels of COVID-19 antibodies are reached over an extended period of time in different population groups.

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RUDN neurosurgeons studied the immune response in polytrauma - multiple serious traumatic lesions. The results will help specialists understand the features of the recovery period and adjust the treatment.

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Christian Bréchot, MD, PhD, President of the Global Virus Network (GVN), Associate Vice President for International Partnerships and Innovation at the University of South Florida and Professor of the Division of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine at USF Health Morsani College of Medicine, the GVN Southeast U.S. Regional Headquarters today issued a statement on the surge of SARS-CoV-2.

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Afamitresgene autoleucel (afami-cel; formerly ADP-A2M4), an adoptive T cell receptor (TCR) therapy targeting the MAGE-A4 cancer antigen, achieved clinically significant results for patients with multiple solid tumor types in a Phase I clinical trial led by researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center.

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A Ludwig Cancer Research study has discovered that the immune system’s surveillance of cancer can itself induce metabolic adaptations in the cells of early-stage tumors that simultaneously promote their growth and equip them to suppress lethal immune responses.

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Peter Heeger, MD, Justin Steggerda, MD, Hirsh Trivedi, MD, and Lorenzo Zaffiri, MD, PhD, have all recently joined the Cedars-Sinai Comprehensive Transplant Center.

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Researchers from Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, the state’s leading cancer program and only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Center, together with RWJBarnabas Health, in collaboration with investigators from MD Anderson Cancer Center, discovered a novel triple immunotherapy combination, targeting checkpoints on both T cells and myeloid suppressor cells, that dramatically improved anti-tumor responses by reprogramming the tumor microenvironment in preclinical models of PDAC.

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A roundup of the latest medical discoveries and faculty news at Cedars-Sinai.

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UC San Diego study reveals critical insights into the complex biology of tissue-specific T cells, paving the way for a new branch of precision therapeutics in immunity, autoimmunity, and cancer.

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Patients with rheumatoid arthritis, lupus, and other rheumatic conditions are more at risk for complications and death from pneumonia, meningitis, and other bacterial infections, yet most have not been vaccinated against infection.

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UT Southwestern immunologists have uncovered a key pathogenic event prompted by obesity that can trigger severe forms of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease and potential liver failure.

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New research findings have revealed an underlying genetic cause for why some children who have had COVID-19 infection develop Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C), a rare but potentially life-threatening disease. The findings, published in Science, are the first potential genetic cause identified for MIS-C, a disease that typically occurs about four weeks after COVID-19 infection and has broad symptoms such as fever, vomiting and inflammation of the heart muscle that can lead to hospitalization. States have reported about 9,000 MIS-C cases, with 71 deaths, according to most recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention numbers.

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Two new yardsticks, Clinical Guidance for the Use of Dupilumab in Eosinophilic Esophagitis: and A Yardstick and Yardstick for Managing Cough. Part 1: in Adults and Adolescent Patients >14 years of age have been published in Annals of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, ACAAI’s scientific journal.

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Jessica Thaxton’s group at the UNC School of Medicine found that T cells exposed to the environment of solid cancers undergo a natural response to stress that shuts off their function, limiting T cell ability to kill tumors.

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Scientists from Trinity College Dublin have made an important breakthrough in understanding how inflammation is regulated.

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Researchers from Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard, using Argonne’s Advanced Photon Source, have characterized the structure of integrins, a type of cell surface receptor involved in the immune response.

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The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center’s Research Highlights provides a glimpse into recent basic, translational and clinical cancer research from MD Anderson experts. Current advances include a cell cycle checkpoint inhibitor with potential therapeutic effects in an ovarian cancer subtype, a telementoring program for French-speaking oncology providers in Africa, insights into the relationship between obesity and immunotherapy side effects, updates to the world’s largest cancer drug discovery knowledgebase, improvements to treatment response by blocking the EGFR pathway, and a novel noninvasive diagnostic test for immunotherapy-related kidney injury.

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First-line immunotherapy and the ketogenic diet are two main recommendations for treatment of NORSE of unknown cause, according to results from an international consensus group. Dr. Maryam Nabavi Nouri interviews first author Dr. Ronny Wickstrom.

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The American Association of Immunologists announces the appointment of Loretta Doan, PhD, as its new Chief Executive Officer.

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The incredibly fast spread of COVID-19 throughout the world brought to light a very important fact: we need better methods to diagnose infectious diseases quickly and efficiently.

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Researchers have uncovered a protein produced by the immune system, suPAR, that causes atherosclerosis. Investigators say it's the first immune target to treat cardiovascular disease, which affects over 1 billion people worldwide. Researchers believe treatment could be developed within five years.

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Sean P. Pitroda, MD, Assistant Professor of Radiation and Cellular Oncology at the University of Chicago, has received a Lung Cancer Discovery Award and been selected to join the American Lung Association Research Team for his work to improve treatment response in patients with metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer (mNSCLC).

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Researchers have characterised prostate cancer cell dynamics at a single-cell resolution across the timespan of the disease – from its beginning to the point of androgen independence, where the tumour no longer responds to hormone deprivation therapy.

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UC San Diego scientists identify a new molecular model and potential therapeutic target for gout, the most common form of inflammatory arthritis.

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LJI Instructor Annie Elong Ngono, Ph.D., has spearheaded important studies into the immune response to deadly pathogens such as dengue virus. Now, this dedication to global health and virology has earned her acceptance to the Global Virus Network's (GVN) highly selective Rising Star Mentorship Program.

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Using models, researchers at UC San Diego School of Medicine, with colleagues elsewhere, describe using RNA-targeting CRISPR/Cas13d technology to develop a new therapeutic strategy that specifically eliminates toxic RNA that causes Huntington’s Disease.