Immune System News and Research

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Around 10 SARS-CoV-2 virions per cell in human body, study finds

A new study has found that there are about ten virus particles in each cell in the body. The research team from the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel and the University of California in the USA estimate that each infected person carries around 109-1011 virions during peak infection.

18 Nov 2020

COVID-19 during pregnancy can cause placental inflammation and impaired immunity

A new study conducted by a team of researchers at Johns Hopkins University, USA, has observed how pregnant women infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) show stunted antiviral immune responses.

18 Nov 2020

Severe COVID-19 complications linked to gut barrier breakdown

A new study claims that severe COVID-19 is caused by a positive feedback loop triggered by systemic inflammation and mediated by abnormal gut permeability. This finding could potentially help open up new avenues of treatment.

18 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2 causes a unique cytokine storm, study finds

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in November 2020 reports some of the unique elements of COVID-19-induced CRS and how understanding these distinctive characteristics of the disease could help in formulating specific interventions and therapies.

18 Nov 2020

COVID-19's harmful neurological effects are more common in patients with hypertension, diabetes

Some patients with COVID-19 are at higher risk of neurological complications like bleeding in the brain and stroke, according to a study being presented at the annual meeting of the Radiological Society of North America.

18 Nov 2020

Government-funded scientists laid the groundwork for billion-dollar vaccines

When he started researching a troublesome childhood infection nearly four decades ago, virologist Dr. Barney Graham, then at Vanderbilt University, had no inkling his federally funded work might be key to deliverance from a global pandemic.

18 Nov 2020

New study may shed light on the adaptive immune response to COVID-19

New research funded by the National Cancer Institute (NCI) aims to boost understanding of how the immune system responds to COVID-19, from the start of infection to recovery.

18 Nov 2020

Study reveals the metabolic signaling mechanisms that regulate function of eTreg cells

Effector regulatory T cells (eTreg cells) are a specialized subset of white blood cells that keep the immune system in check.

17 Nov 2020

UCLA researchers pinpoint how smoking causes more severe COVID-19 infection

UCLA researchers using a model of airway tissue created from human stem cells have pinpointed how smoking cigarettes causes more severe infection by SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, in the airways of the lungs.

17 Nov 2020

SARS-CoV-2-specific IgM / IgG responses accurately predict COVID-19 outcome

Researchers from the Huazhong University of Science and Technology and Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China, recently built a proteome microarray with 20 out of the 28 predicted SARS-CoV-2 proteins to help understand IgM/IgG responses specific to SARS-CoV-2.

17 Nov 2020

Study investigates possible link between sleep apnea and autoimmune diseases

New research by University of Georgia scientists sheds light on why people with obstructive sleep apnea may have associated autoimmune disorders. The results could lead to better approaches to treatment and possibly new drug therapies.

17 Nov 2020

Study identifies new factor that offers potential strategy for treating obesity

Obesity is a serious global health problem and a risk factor for diseases such as type II diabetes, heart disease and fatty liver disease.

17 Nov 2020

Males may have higher but more transient SARS-CoV-2 immunity than females post-infection

Adding another piece to the puzzle that is coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) serology, a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv* in November 2020 suggests that males have stronger but more transient anti-severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) protective immunity than females.

17 Nov 2020

Lower dairy intake may be beneficial for people with metabolic syndrome

Results from a new trial published by a team led by researchers at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center suggests lower dairy intake may be beneficial for people with metabolic syndrome.

17 Nov 2020

Discovery of 'Achilles heel' in protein crucial to HIV virulence could lead to new class of drugs

The discovery of a potential "Achilles heel" in Nef, the protein that is crucial to HIV virulence and its capacity to trigger AIDS, paves the way for the development of a new class of drugs against the virus.

17 Nov 2020

Researchers identify anti-inflammatory mechanisms that drive alcohol addiction

Deep within the brain, a small almond-shaped region called the amygdala plays a vital role in how we exhibit emotion, behavior, and motivation.

17 Nov 2020

Study shows limited influence of BMI on shaping SARS-CoV-2 antibody responses

A new study by researchers at the Harvard Medical School and the Ragon Institute of MGH, MIT and Harvard showed that obesity is not tied to the increased risk of SARS-CoV-2 infection. However, the team demonstrated that obesity is associated with increased manifestations of symptoms in mild COVID-19 infections, suggesting that obesity impacts the pathophysiology of COVID-19.

16 Nov 2020