Researchers have found a reliable way to grow helper T cells from stem cells, solving a major challenge in immune-based cancer therapy. Helper T cells act as the immune system’s coordinators, helping other immune cells fight longer and harder. The team…
Training people to activate a part of the brain linked to reward and positive expectations may be associated with an increase in the body’s immune response to a vaccine. The findings from a study involving 85 participants, published in Nature Medicine,…
An estimated 3 million Americans have an inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) such as Crohn’s disease or ulcerative colitis. But a lucky few individuals are far less likely to develop IBD because they have a rare variant of a gene called CARD9. This protec…
A decision by federal officials to scale back the number of vaccines recommended for children surprised some Northeastern University public health experts, who warn the move could confuse parents and increase the risk of preventable diseases.
Researchers at Mass General Brigham and Karolinska Institutet have identified a new method to predict asthma exacerbations with a high degree of accuracy. The study is published in Nature Communications.
In order to reprogram readily available cells into specific immune cells that fight various diseases, one must know the “recipe” for the transformation. Researchers at Lund University have now created a library of the 400 factors needed for reprogrammi…
Stanford University-led researchers report that tumor cells hijack mitochondria from immune cells, reducing anti-tumor immune function and activating cGAS-STING and type I interferon signaling that promotes lymph node metastasis.
In a unique finding, researchers at Georgetown’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center discovered that when pancreatic cancer cells send out tiny particles that are packed with certain microRNA molecules, nearby immune cells called macrophages are repro…
Researchers from Hiroshima University in Japan and collaborating institutions have found that adults with asthma who experience symptoms of depression have elevated blood levels of a protein called brain-derived neurotrophic factor, or BDNF. This prote…
A team led by UT Southwestern Medical Center researchers has uncovered a molecular pathway that links obesity to widespread inflammation, providing long-sought insight into why obesity increases the risk of type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, fatt…
A vitamin A byproduct has been found to quietly disarm the immune system, allowing tumors to evade attack and weakening cancer vaccines. Scientists have now developed a drug that shuts down this pathway, dramatically boosting immune responses and slowi…
Researchers at University College London (UCL) have uncovered a key mechanism that helps the body switch off inflammation—a breakthrough that could lead to new treatments for chronic diseases affecting millions worldwide.
A 2024 U.S. national survey reported that 11.8% of males and 7.6% of females ages 12 and older met the criteria for Alcohol Use Disorder (AUD) in 2023, meaning they could not stop or control alcohol use despite serious health and relationship consequen…
The immune system remains seriously out-of-whack—in an inflammatory state of overactivation and impaired functionality—following the international gold standard for treating people with latent tuberculosis (TB) and HIV, a team at Texas Biomedical Resea…
Metformin makes it easier for women with the hormone disorder PCOS to get pregnant, and the mother often gets better throughout the pregnancy. Her children, however, have a markedly higher risk of eczema and allergies.
Dealing with an infection isn’t as straightforward as simply killing the pathogen. The body also needs to carefully steer and monitor its immune response to prevent collateral damage. This regulation, called disease tolerance, is crucial to protecting …
Approximately 20% to 30% of all people who suffer from psoriasis also develop painful inflammation in their joints over time. If left untreated, this condition known as psoriatic arthritis can lead to permanent damage to bones and joints. Until now, it…
Scientists are taking a closer look at monk fruit and discovering it’s more than just a sugar substitute. New research shows its peel and pulp contain a rich mix of antioxidants and bioactive compounds that may support health. Different varieties offer…
The American College of Chest Physicians recently released a new clinical guideline on biologic management in severe asthma. Published in the journal CHEST, the guideline contains seven evidence-based recommendations to provide a framework for pulmonol…
A research team led by Professor Chen Peng from the College of Chemistry and Molecular Engineering at Peking University has developed a novel cancer immunotherapy strategy that forces tumors to expose themselves to the immune system.
A faulty ion channel function is a consistent biological feature of Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), providing long-awaited validation for hundreds of thousands of Australians living with the debilitating illness.
Autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis arise when the immune system turns against the body itself. Yet for most of them, it remains unclear why this process begins. Researchers have now identified how the Epstein-Barr virus can, under specific …
Abdominal fat is not a uniform tissue. A new study from Karolinska Institutet, Steno Diabetes Center Copenhagen, and Helmholtz Munich reveals that fat located close to the large intestine contains an unusually high number of inflammatory fat cells and …
The immune system’s reaction to the common Epstein-Barr virus can ultimately damage the brain and contribute to multiple sclerosis (MS), according to new research from Karolinska Institutet, published in Cell. The study provides new insight into the lo…
Select gut bacteria protect mice against post-influenza virus secondary bacterial pneumonia, according to a study published by researchers in the Institute for Biomedical Sciences at Georgia State University.
A recent publication in Nature Medicine describes a novel immunotherapy targeting pancreatic cancer that has shown promising results in a first in-human phase 1/2 trial.
A Northwestern Medicine study published in Nature Communications has revealed how HIV can protect infected cells by altering the sugars on their surface, hindering the host immune system and avoiding detection.
Georgetown University’s Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center researchers have identified a new way to reprogram T cells, which are infection and tumor-fighting white blood cells, so that they have a superior memory, thereby making them more effective i…
Nearly 1.5 million Americans and nearly 5% of women over the age of 55 have rheumatoid arthritis (RA), an incurable autoimmune disease marked by joint inflammation and subsequent damage. Despite advances in treatment, such as targeted immunotherapies, …
Oncologists have achieved some immune system responses in patients with pancreatic cancers using various combinations of vaccines and immune checkpoint inhibitor drugs, but it’s not always clear which therapy is inducing what type of response. To help …
Allergies and asthma affect an increasing number of children worldwide, but now an international research group led by DTU has identified a previously unknown mechanism that can reduce the risk of allergies and asthma later in life. The study shows tha…
Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a debilitating and progressive neurodegenerative disorder caused by the loss of dopamine-producing neurons in the substantia nigra, a brain region essential for motor control. Clinically, it is marked by tremor, rigidity, br…
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease characterized by nerve damage and consequent impairments in vision, movement, balance and mental function. In MS, the immune system mistakenly starts attacking myelin, the protective sheath that…
Scientists have made a discovery that helps explain why humans and animals are so susceptible to contracting tuberculosis (TB)—and it involves the bacteria harnessing part of the immune system meant to protect against infection.
Researchers have developed a new class of antibodies that amplify the immune system’s ability to fight cancer. By clustering immune receptors that normally receive weak signals from tumors, these four-pronged antibodies push T cells into full attack mo…
A new study maps the immune cell landscape of bone marrow in patients with multiple myeloma, a rare cancer that develops in the plasma cells of the bone marrow and has no cure. This large immune cell atlas, which includes robust patient outcome data, p…
In 2024, 31.7% of adults and 29.5% of children had a diagnosed seasonal allergy, diagnosed eczema, or a diagnosed food allergy in the United States, according to two data briefs published online Jan. 8 by the National Center for Health Statistics.
Long COVID affects an estimated 65 million people worldwide and can damage the brain, heart, blood vessels, and immune system long after infection. Researchers now link symptoms to lingering virus, inflammation, micro-clots, and disrupted energy metabo…
Multiple myeloma, a cancer of the bone marrow, remains difficult to treat despite modern CAR T cell therapies. In recent research, a team led by Dr. Armin Rehm presents an improved immunotherapy that recognizes two distinct features of malignant cells …
Researchers from Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) have developed a method to help cancer immunotherapies reach otherwise “invisible” tumors by helping guide therapies to their appropriate targets. This could be particularly useful for very di…
Novel research led by Brazilian scientists describes the immune system’s reactions in detail in the first living patient to receive a genetically modified pig kidney transplant. This paves the way for the search for therapies that can prevent organ rej…
Cambridge researchers have discovered that an existing therapy which boosts protective immune cells in people who recently had heart attacks reduces blood vessel inflammation and may reduce the likelihood of future heart attacks.
For the first time, researchers at the University of British Columbia have demonstrated how to reliably produce an important type of human immune cell—known as helper T cells—from stem cells in a controlled laboratory setting.
A novel tumor suppressor, BATF2, can be silenced by factors in the tumor microenvironment, leading to a reduced immune response in five preclinical models of head and neck cancer, according to researchers from The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer…
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have discovered that targeting a specific immune process could help improve recovery after nerve injury and reduce chronic pain.
A multiyear community asthma program on the Navajo Nation increased asthma-related care and awareness among families, even as the COVID-19 pandemic dramatically disrupted health care and school systems. The findings come from a new study led by researc…
An international research team has uncovered compelling evidence that gut-microbe-derived molecules may play an important role in shaping the developing immune system during early childhood.
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized cancer treatment by using the patient’s own T-cells to target tumors. However, they can cause rare, but potentially fatal cardiac inflammation known as ICI-myocarditis. This is particularly true i…
In a study published in Nature Immunology on January 6, a research team led by Prof. Qian Youcun from the Shanghai Institute of Nutrition and Health (SINH) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences identified a new member of the human IL-17 receptor family, I…
Pain-sensing neurons in the gut kindle inflammatory immune responses that cause allergies and asthma, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine. The findings, published in Nature, suggest that current drugs may not be as effective because they…
The parasite that may already live in your brain can infect the very immune cells trying to destroy it, but new UVA Health research reveals how our bodies keep it under control.
From football fields to military training grounds, head injuries are leaving lasting marks on the brain in ways we’re only beginning to understand. Repeated concussions can increase the risk of mood issues, memory loss and movement problems as well as …
Researchers at Karolinska Institutet have discovered that the nervous system’s own immune cells help protect the spinal cord from age-related damage. The results, which may contribute to new knowledge about how certain neurological diseases arise, are …
Researchers at Case Western Reserve University have developed a treatment for advanced prostate cancer that could eliminate a side effect so debilitating that patients often refuse the life-saving therapy.
Collaborating institutions in Taiwan report higher risks of atopic disease among children conceived via assisted reproductive technology compared to those conceived naturally.
Scientists at the Princeton University Branch of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research have identified novel mechanisms by which a metabolic derivative of vitamin A—all-trans retinoic acid—compromises both the body’s normal anti-cancer immune respon…
Scientists have found that combining silybin with carvedilol works far better against liver fibrosis than either drug alone. The duo targets the root drivers of liver scarring, sharply reducing collagen buildup and liver damage in experimental models. …
Scientists from the Institute of Molecular Genetics of the Czech Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with the Faculty of Science at Charles University, have uncovered a completely new role for the protein Claudin-1 in the immune system. The study is …
The immune system provides constant surveillance for the body, aiming to spot and eliminate disease-causing microbes or cancerous cells. But tumor cells develop many features that help them hide from the immune system to avoid being detected and killed.
Burkitt’s lymphoma is a rare and aggressive blood cancer characterized by a translocation of the MYC gene. It occurs most often in children and young adults. In recent years, CAR-T cell therapy—often referred to as a “living drug” and administered as a…
Neoantigens are unique markers that distinguish only cancer cells. By adding B cell reactivity, cancer vaccines can move beyond one-time attacks and short-term memory to become a long-term immunity that “remembers” cancer, effectively preventing recurr…
A new University of Toronto-led study has discovered a possible biomarker linked to multiple sclerosis (MS) disease progression that could help identify patients most likely to benefit from new drugs.
Oregon Medical Research Center in Portland, Oregon, has led a phase 2 trial in moderate-to-severe plaque psoriasis that paired higher-than-approved doses of risankizumab with extended follow-up and found high early skin clearance alongside reduced lesi…
In laboratory models, researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center discovered that a mother’s circadian rhythms, or internal body clock, can influence the immune system states of her offspring, which can accurately predict the risk …
Cleveland Clinic researchers have discovered that bacteria inside cancerous tumors may be key to understanding why immunotherapy works for some patients but not others.
The visual analog scale (VAS) demonstrates comparable validity for perennial allergic rhinitis (PAR) and nonallergic rhinitis (NAR) severity and quality-of-life (QoL) impairment, according to a study published online Dec. 23 in The Journal of Allergy a…
For centuries, physicians observed that nuns, who are celibate, had much higher rates of breast cancer, leading to the theory that pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding might be associated with lower breast cancer risk. Numerous epidemiological stud…
Scientists at Children’s Medical Center Research Institute at UT Southwestern (CRI) have discovered a benefit of vitamin C deficiency: protection from a major parasitic disease. Their research suggests an explanation for the loss of the ability to synt…
More than 7 million Americans have Alzheimer’s disease, and two-thirds of them are women, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. The O’Banion Lab at the Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience at the University of Rochester has long been studying this …
As the immune system weakens with age, scientists have found a way to restore some of its lost strength. By delivering mRNA to the liver, they created a temporary source of immune-boosting signals that normally come from the thymus. Older mice treated …
From minimalist wrist designs to full sleeves, body art has become so common that it barely raises an eyebrow. But while the personal meaning of a tattoo may be obvious, the biological consequences are far less visible. Once tattoo ink enters the body,…
A new international study led by Prof. Carmit Levy of the Department of Human Genetics and Biochemistry at the Gray Faculty of Medical & Health Sciences at Tel Aviv University finds that melanoma cancer cells paralyze immune cells by secreting extracel…
Children with peanut allergies may not need large doses of peanut oral immunotherapy (OIT) to build protection against peanuts, finds a new study led by The Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) and Montreal Children’s Hospital.
One of the most challenging moments in cancer treatment comes when a therapy stops working. In many metastatic cancers, drugs that are initially effective lose their potency over time, as malignant cells acquire mutations that enable them to survive an…
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) have revolutionized cancer therapy by harnessing the body’s immune system to target tumors. Despite their initial clinical success, many patients eventually experience diminished therapeutic responses as tumors acqui…
Stanford scientists have uncovered how mRNA COVID-19 vaccines can very rarely trigger heart inflammation in young men — and how that risk might be reduced. They found that the vaccines can spark a two-step immune reaction that floods the body with infl…
Researchers at the Johns Hopkins Kimmel Cancer Center’s Ludwig Center developed a new treatment that selectively targets TRBC2-positive T-cell cancers, expanding a precision approach they established in 2024 for TRBC1-positive tumors.
Researchers at the University of Sharjah are exploring a promising approach that could enhance the immune system’s ability to fight cancer, potentially paving the way for new treatments.
A new study analyzing the immune response to COVID-19 in a Catalan cohort of health workers sheds light on an important question: does it matter whether a person was first infected or first vaccinated?
A research team at the Nano Life Science Institute (WPI-NanoLSI) and the Faculty of Medicine at Kanazawa University has developed a new class of engineered extracellular vesicles (EVs) capable of inducing antigen-specific regulatory T cells (Tregs), th…
RNA is usually portrayed as a molecule that works deep inside the cell, helping to turn genetic information into proteins. But new research led by Utrecht University scientist Jack Li shows that RNA also plays an active role on the outside of cells. Th…
When killer T cells of our immune system divide, they normally undergo asymmetric cell division (ACD): Each daughter cell inherits different cellular components, which drive the cells toward divergent fates—one cell becomes a short-lived fighter called…
MOG antibody-associated disease (MOGAD) is a rare autoimmune disease of the central nervous system. The blood of patients contains antibodies against myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (MOG), a protein in the myelin layer that surrounds the neurons in…
Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have found that a mitochondrial enzyme, GFER, creates an immunosuppressive environment within pancreatic tumors, leading to treatment resistance.
Feeding babies peanut-containing foods as early as possible can help prevent peanut allergy, but a new study published in JAMA Network Open found that parents need more support to get it right. Interviews with parents revealed widespread confusion abou…
Alveolar macrophages are immune cells that live in the tiny air sacs of the lungs. Under normal conditions, these cells act as guardians, keeping the lungs healthy, supporting breathing, and preventing unnecessary immune responses.
Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a chronic autoimmune disease characterized by the disruption of nerve signals and various associated neurological symptoms, ranging from vision problems to numbness, weakness, fatigue and cognitive impairments. These symptoms…
Published today in Clinical Cancer Research, findings from a study led by investigators at the Vall d’Hebron Institute of Oncology (VHIO), which forms part of the Vall d’Hebron Campus, underscore the efficacy of analyzing circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) …
Gut microbes may play a key role in training a mother’s immune system to adapt to the developing fetus during pregnancy, according to a preclinical study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.
EPFL researchers have successfully engineered cells of the immune system to more effectively recognize cancer cells. The work, covered in two papers, turns the previously lab-based method into a full-blown immunotherapy strategy.
