Feature Channels: Immunology

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Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute and University College London have found that some antibodies, created by the immune system during infection with common cold coronaviruses, can also target SARS-CoV-2 and may confer a degree of protection against the new viral strain.

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Ludwig Cancer Research scientists have developed a method to significantly improve the preclinical evaluation of chimeric antigen-receptor (CAR) T cell therapies, in which the immune system’s T cells are extracted from a patient, engineered to target a specific tumor-associated molecule and then grown and reinfused for cancer treatment.

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New research shows that adults with systemic lupus erythematosus, who receive trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX) are at high risk for adverse reactions to the drug, particularly if they are also positive for anti-Smith (anti-Sm) antibodies. Details of the study was presented at ACR Convergence, the American College of Rheumatology’s annual meeting.

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SARS-CoV-2 is one of many coronaviruses. All share the characteristic of having the largest single-stranded RNA genome in nature.

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In a new Science Advances study, Shresta and her colleagues at LJI report that the immune system's T cells have the power to prevent Zika infection in mice. This finding suggests that effective Zika vaccines need to activate T cells to work alongside antibodies.

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One of the pressing questions about COVID-19 remains: How long does immunity last? One key indicator of immunity is the presence of virus-specific antibodies.

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In a new study by Yale Cancer Center, scientists have identified the short endosomal protein interferon-inducible transmembrane protein 3 or IFITM3 as a central amplifier to supercharge activation of immune cells.

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Early results from a University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS)-led COVID-19 antibody study show that 3.5% of Arkansans have been infected with the novel coronavirus.

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In a study recently published in the top journal "Allergy", a team of MedUni Vienna scientists led by immunologist Winfried F. Pickl and allergologist Rudolf Valenta (both from the Center for Pathophysiology, Infectiology and Immunology) showed that there are seven "forms of disease" in COVID-19 with mild disease course and that the disease leaves behind significant changes in the immune system, even after 10 weeks.

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DALLAS – Nov. 2, 2020 – An autoimmune side effect of immune checkpoint inhibitor (ICI) drugs could signal improved control of kidney cancer, according to a new study by researchers in UT Southwestern’s Kidney Cancer Program (KCP).

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New study of older adults (aged 70 or over) in Stockholm, Sweden, suggests older people living in care homes had higher COVID-19 mortality risk than those living in single houses or apartment buildings.

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A groundbreaking new type of cancer immunotherapy developed at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai trains the innate immune system to help it eliminate tumor cells through the use of nanobiologics, tiny materials bioengineered from natural molecules that are paired with a therapeutic component, according to a study published in Cell in October.

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The vast majority of individuals infected with mild-to-moderate COVID 19 mount a robust antibody response that is relatively stable for at least five months, according to research conducted at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai and published October 28, in the journal Science.

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Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine have been jointly awarded a major grant from the National Cancer Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health, to set up a center for research on the human serological immune response to SARS-CoV-2, the coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

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One of the proteins on the virus – located on the characteristic COVID spike – has a component called the receptor-binding domain, or RBD, which is its “Achilles heel.” That is, he said, antibodies against this part of the virus have the potential to the neutralize the virus.

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Research led by a team from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center details a promising new strategy for overcoming resistance to immunotherapy by zeroing in on dendritic cells and enhancing their function as “accessory cells” supporting other immune cells.

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Death rates from people with severe COVID-19 in hospital have dropped to around a half of the rate at the peak of the pandemic, new research has revealed.

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Notre Dame researchers showed that one type of cell important for immunity, called a myeloid cell, can suppress the immune response — which has the effect of allowing breast cancer cells to metastasize to the brain to form secondary tumor cells there.

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Over 80 percent of 200 COVID-19 patients in a hospital in Spain have vitamin D deficiency, according to a new study published in the Endocrine Society’s Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism.

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The inflammasome—a protein signaling network that is activated to rid the body of virus or bacteria-infected cells—may play an important role in triggering an immune response to cancer and causing an existing class of drugs to work better against cancers.

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A new analysis highlights the diversity of immune response in pancreatic cancer, and points toward the need for treatments tailored to individual patients.

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Researchers uncover defining features of a subset of T-cells that may drive autoimmunity in MS, and could prove to be a new target for therapy.

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University of Minnesota Medical School physician researchers studied hydroxychloroquine as a treatment to prevent COVID-19 for those with high-risk for exposure to the virus - health care workers.

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Transplanting cadaver pancreatic islets is a promising therapy for Type 1 diabetes, but a reactivated autoimmunity means low graft viability after five years. Research now shows that a protective coating of two biopolymers can delay allograft and autoimmune-mediated rejection in mouse models of T1D.

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New research from an immunology team at the University of Chicago may shed light on the challenges of developing a universal flu vaccine that would provide long-lasting and broad protection against influenza viruses.

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Ancient embedded elements in our DNA from generations past can activate a powerful immune response to kill cancer cells like an infection.

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Two Rutgers New Jersey Medical School pediatricians discuss the importance of keeping children and adults up to date with immunizations during the coronavirus crisis.

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An immunology researcher in Canada has found a simple solution to prevent infections in children with lactic acidosis: get them vaccinated.

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Patients with psoriasis who are taking drugs that affect their immune system have high rates of survival from COVID-19. According to the first findings from a global registry of psoriasis and COVID-19 patients, led by Guy's and St Thomas' clinicians, over 90% survive.

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CAR-T biotherapeutics company Carina Biotech and researchers at the University of South Australia have developed a novel approach based on microfluidic technology to “purify” the immune cells of patients in the fight against cancer.

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One way CBD appears to reduce the "cytokine storm" that damages the lungs and kills many patients with COVID-19 is by enabling an increase in levels of a natural peptide called apelin, which is known to reduce inflammation and whose levels are dramatically reduced in the face of this storm.

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Scientists have developed a new lab testing procedure for the detection of antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 that gives results more quickly than existing assays and specifically identifies so-called “neutralizing” antibodies.

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To help public health professionals and scientists better understand the spread of COVID-19 in Texas and the immune response it causes in individuals, researchers at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth) are partnering with the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to launch the Texas Coronavirus Antibody Response Survey (Texas CARES). Texas CARES will determine the proportion of people throughout Texas who have COVID-19 antibodies, indicating a past infection and presumably some degree of immune protection.

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The National Institutes of Health has launched an adaptive Phase 3 clinical trial to evaluate the safety and efficacy of three immune modulator drugs in hospitalized adults with COVID-19.

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In the absence of approved, effective treatments for COVID-19, some hospitals have been treating patients with severe COVID symptoms with blood plasma from recovering patients. The blood of recovered patients contains antibodies that act against the coronavirus.

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University of Chicago Medicine infectious diseases expert Dr. Allison Bartlett explains what to know to stay safe this winter from both influenza and COVID-19.

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In a study published online in Science today, an international team of almost 200 researchers from 14 leading institutions in six countries studied the three lethal coronaviruses SARS-CoV-2, SARS-CoV-1 and MERS-CoV in order to identify commonly hijacked cellular pathways and detect promising targets for broad coronavirus inhibition.

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Researchers with the U.S. Army Futures Command are part of a team that tested alternative ways to measure COVID-19 antibody levels, resulting in a process that is faster, easier and less expensive to use on a large scale.

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The patient, whose tumor responded within two weeks after receiving the combination, resumed normal activity and was in a complete remission at the time of the report.

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Treatment with a peptide that mimics the naturally occurring protein GIV prevents immune overreaction and supports a mechanism critical for survival in mouse models of sepsis and colitis, according to a UC San Diego study.

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COVID-19 remains stubbornly inconsistent. More than a million people have died and 35 million have been diagnosed, but a large fraction of people infected with the coronavirus--about 45%, according to recent estimates--show no symptoms at all.

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UCLA researchers have found that a drug that activates the body’s natural defenses by behaving like a virus may also make certain stealthy melanoma tumors visible to the immune system, allowing them to be better targeted by immunotherapy.

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People who have recovered from COVID-19, and their close contacts, could hold the key to understanding how immunity to the disease develops, how long it lasts and what happens when immunity is lost.

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New research in Clinical and Translational Immunology, provides a clearer picture of the protective antibodies induced by SARS-CoV-2 and their role in serious illness and what’s needed for full protection.

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As of October 2020, SARS-CoV-2 causes an ongoing pandemic, with more than 35 million reported cases and more than 1 million deaths worldwide.

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Scientists from an initiative launched by the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy (PICI) and the Cancer Research Institute called the Tumor Neoantigen Selection Alliance (TESLA) have discovered parameters to better predict which neoantigens can stimulate a cancer-killing effect.

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Researchers from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai will receive more than $7.3 million from the National Cancer Institute (NCI) as part of the NCI’s new Serological Sciences Network (SeroNet), one of the largest coordinated national efforts to study immunology and SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. Mount Sinai was selected as one of only four Capacity Building Centers and one of eight Centers of Excellence as part of this new network.