Immunology News and Research

Latest Immunology News and Research

Scientists create first international consensus definition of fermented foods

Humans have consumed different types of fermented foods - from kimchi to yogurt - for thousands of years. Yet only recently, with the availability of new scientific techniques for analyzing their nutritional properties and microbiological composition, have scientists begun to understand exactly how the unique flavors and textures are created and how these foods benefit human health.

6 Jan 2021

Study: Decreased activation of LEF1 gene disrupts ordinary neuronal function

Lithium is considered the gold standard for treating bipolar disorder (BD), but nearly 70 percent of people with BD don't respond to it.

5 Jan 2021

UC-MSC infusions reduce risk of death, quicken recovery time in severe COVID-19 cases

Dr. Camilo Ricordi, director of the Diabetes Research Institute and Cell Transplant Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, and his team of international collaborators are reporting the results of a groundbreaking randomized controlled trial showing umbilical cord-derived mesenchymal stem cell (UC-MSC) infusions safely reduce risk of death and quicken time to recovery for the most severe COVID-19 patients.

5 Jan 2021

Researchers apply AI to help physicians customize treatments for patients with oral cancers

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University and partners in the United States and India are applying the investigative and predictive capabilities of artificial intelligence (AI) to help physicians customize treatments for patients with oral squamous cell carcinomas.

5 Jan 2021

Researchers discover protein crucial to T cell metabolism and anti-tumor immune response

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have discovered that a protein called NF-kappa B-inducing kinase (NIK) is essential for the shift in metabolic activity that occurs with T cell activation, making it a critical factor in regulating the anti-tumor immune response.

4 Jan 2021

Sugar-binding protein could promote inflammation and worsen sepsis

A sugar-binding protein could fuel terrible inflammation and worsen sepsis, a disease that kills more than 270,000 people every year in the US alone, reports a team of researchers led by UConn Health in the 4 January issue of Nature Immunology.

4 Jan 2021

Six clearly distinguishable subtypes of prediabetes identified

All prediabetes is not the same: in people in the preliminary stages of type 2 diabetes, there are six clearly distinguishable subtypes, which differ in the development of the disease, diabetes risk, and the development of secondary diseases.

4 Jan 2021

Study uncovers why cancer patients with liver metastases have poor outcomes

Michael Green, M.D., Ph.D., noticed that when his patients had cancer that spread to the liver, they fared poorly – more so than when cancer spread to other parts of the body. Not only that, but transformative immunotherapy treatments had little impact for these patients.

4 Jan 2021

Heading off the next pandemic

As the covid-19 pandemic heads for a showdown with vaccines it's expected to lose, many experts in the field of emerging infectious diseases are already focused on preventing the next one.

4 Jan 2021

New cell therapy can boost immunotherapy against breast cancer

Boosting immune system T cells to effectively attack solid tumors, such as breast cancers, can be done by adding a small molecule to a treatment procedure called chimeric antigen receptor-T (CAR-T) cell therapy, according to a study by researchers at the UNC Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center.

4 Jan 2021

Severity of COVID-19 correlates with the ratio of antibodies targeting crucial viral protein

COVID-19 antibodies preferentially target a different part of the virus in mild cases of COVID-19 than they do in severe cases, and wane significantly within several months of infection, according to a new study by researchers at Stanford Medicine.

24 Dec 2020

Thymus gland works to prevent miscarriage, diabetes in pregnant women

An international research team led by the University of British Columbia (UBC) has uncovered for the first time the importance of a small gland tucked behind the sternum that works to prevent miscarriage and diabetes in pregnant women.

24 Dec 2020

Study uncovers a new paradigm for the role of the thymus in pregnancy

How the immune system adapts to pregnancy has puzzled researchers for decades. An international team of researchers, including scientists from IMBA – Institute of Molecular Biotechnology of the Austrian Academy of Sciences – has now discovered that important changes in the thymus occur in order to prevent miscarriages and gestational diabetes.

23 Dec 2020

Forward genetics used to identify gene linked to autism spectrum disorder

UT Southwestern scientists have adapted a classic research technique called forward genetics to identify new genes involved in autism spectrum disorder (ASD).

23 Dec 2020

Study assesses link between secondary bloodstream infection and severe COVID-19

People with severe COVID-19 and a secondary blood infection were significantly sicker upon hospital admission, had longer hospital stays and poorer outcomes, according to a Rutgers study.

23 Dec 2020

Modulating BST2 expression on blood stem cells may help regulate cell activation during chronic infections

When a person has an infection, the body activates immune responses to fight it. IFNγ is an inflammatory molecule produced by the immune system that helps fight infections.

23 Dec 2020

COVID-19 patients retain immunity against the virus for at least 8 months

Australian researchers have revealed - for the first time - that people who have been infected with the COVID-19 virus have immune memory to protect against reinfection for at least eight months.

22 Dec 2020

Nanoplastics affect composition and diversity of human intestinal microbiome

We live in a world invaded by plastic. Its role as a chemically stable, versatile and multi-purpose fostered its massive use, which has finally translated into our current situation of planetary pollution.

22 Dec 2020

Novel 3D maps show how genes interact in several types of immune cells

The COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted how our small genetic differences can have a tremendous effect on how our bodies respond to disease.

22 Dec 2020

Study reveals how the immune system detects signs of disease, activates a protective response

Researchers at the Francis Crick Institute have uncovered an important process in how our immune system detects signs of disease and activates a protective response. This understanding could improve efforts to find new and effective immunotherapy treatments for diseases like cancer.

22 Dec 2020