Immune System News and Research

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Study may lead to new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases

Scientists have made a breakthrough in understanding how the enteric nervous system forms, which could pave the way for new treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson's.

28 Aug 2020

New cellular pathway protects cells from infection by Ebola virus, coronaviruses

Discoveries from the Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason (BRI) have identified a new cellular protection pathway that targets a common vulnerability in several different pandemic viruses, and collaborators at Case Western Reserve University, Boston University School of Medicine and MRIGlobal have shown that this pathway can protect cells from infection by Ebola virus and coronaviruses, like SARS-CoV-2.

28 Aug 2020

Researchers discover how brain cancer cells evade the body's immune system

Researchers in China have discovered how brain cancer cells increase production of a key protein that allows them to evade the body's immune system.

27 Aug 2020

First cell atlas of mosquito immune cells created to help fight malaria

Scientists have created the first cell atlas of mosquito immune cells, to understand how mosquitoes fight malaria and other infections.

27 Aug 2020

New diagnostic tool can predict cancer patients' response to immunotherapy

A new diagnostic tool that can predict whether a cancer patient would respond to immunotherapy treatment has been developed by scientists at the University of Bath.

27 Aug 2020

Researchers find link between dystrophic muscles and lymphatic system in mice with Duchenne disease

Researchers at the Universities of Maynooth and Bonn discover a new connection in muscular dystrophy Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD) is the most common muscle disease in children and is passed on by X-linked recessive inheritance.

27 Aug 2020

UKRI funding could initiate clinical trial for Cambridge-developed DNA vaccine against SARS-CoV-2

A Cambridge-developed DNA vaccine candidate against SARS-CoV-2 could begin clinical trials in the UK in late autumn or early next year, thanks to a £1.9 million award from the UK government.

27 Aug 2020

Study: Blocking nerve signals to the pancreas could stop patients from developing type 1 diabetes

Your pancreas is a little sweet potato-shaped organ that sits snug behind your stomach. The pancreas is studded with islets, the cell clusters that house insulin-producing beta cells.

27 Aug 2020

Obesity ups COVID-19 death risk by 48 percent

Now, a new study by researchers from the University of North Carolina (UNC), the World Bank, and Saudi Health Council, shows that obesity increases the risk of dying from COVID-19 by as much as 48 percent, hinting that a vaccine against the virus could be less effective in obese people.

26 Aug 2020

Blood test can help predict who is likely to develop psychotic disorders

Scientists have discovered that testing the levels of certain proteins in blood samples can predict whether a person at risk of psychosis is likely to develop a psychotic disorder years later.

26 Aug 2020

Novel cell-based therapy holds promise for obesity and diabetes

Obesity is the main cause of type 2 diabetes and related chronic illnesses that together will kill more people around the globe this year than the Covid-19 coronavirus.

26 Aug 2020

Inflammatory protein produced by mast cells contributes to fibrosis in gastric cancer

Gastric cancer, one of the leading causes of cancer-associated mortality worldwide, is renowned for its ability to disseminate throughout the peritoneal cavity.

26 Aug 2020

Two Navajo sisters who were inseparable died of COVID just weeks apart

Cheryl and Corrina Thinn were almost joined at the hip. The sisters, both members of the Navajo Nation, shared an office at Arizona’s Tuba City Regional Health Care. Cheryl conducted reviews to make sure patients were receiving adequate care. Corrina was a social worker. Their desks were just inches apart.

26 Aug 2020

Exosomes: The cancer cell communication mechanism

Professor Deborah Goberdhan speaks to News-Medical about her team's latest research into cancer cells, and the mechanisms they use to communicate.

26 Aug 2020

Estradiol appears to help in female SARS-CoV-2 infection

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in August 2020 shows that the risk of infection is high for pre-menopausal women but the risk of death is much higher for men in the same age group and throws light on the protective nature of estradiol therapy in post-menopausal women.

26 Aug 2020

Blood transfusions protect the brain from stroke damage

Muscle weakness permeates through one side of your body and your speech slurs. It's a stroke. And you need to be rushed to the emergency room.

26 Aug 2020

Allowing low-level CMV infection may boost immunity in stem cell transplant recipients

Patients who develop cytomegalovirus infections after allogeneic stem cell transplantation may be able to develop an immunity against the virus, strengthen their immune system and reduce reliance on strong antiviral medications, a team of cellular-therapy specialists from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center has found.

25 Aug 2020