New therapies for autoimmune rheumatic diseases (AIRDs) that are designed to better regulate lipid (fat) metabolism, could significantly reduce the harmful side-effects caused by conventional treatments, finds a new large-scale review.
Biostatisticians launch Cancer-Immu data portal for predicting response to immune checkpoint blockade immunotherapy
A new data portal called Cancer-Immu established by a team of biostatisticians can help cancer clinicians and researchers predict which patients will respond to immune checkpoint inhibitors. With data from 3,652 samples for 16 cancer types, Cancer-Immu…
Antibodies in blood soon after COVID-19 onset may predict severity, study finds
A look at antibodies in patients soon after they were infected with the virus that causes COVID-19 showed key differences between those whose cases remained mild and those who later developed severe symptoms.
Boosting T cells improves survival in mice with glioblastoma
A new study shows that treatment with an immune-boosting protein called interleukin 7 (IL-7) in combination with radiation improves survival in mice with glioblastoma. The study in mice suggests promise for a phase 1/2 clinical trial that is investigat…
Additional antibodies may protect against COVID, study shows
When we talk about antibodies against COVID-19, we tend to mean the so-called neutralizing antibodies, that offer protection by blocking the virus from invading our cells. Now, a new study has revealed that non-neutralizing antibodies may also be impor…
Respiratory viruses that hijack immune mechanisms may have Achilles’ heel
One viral protein could provide information to deter pneumonia causing the body’s exaggerated inflammatory response to respiratory viruses, including the virus that causes COVID-19. That viral protein is NS2 of Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV), and a …
Biologists pinpoint key factor in immune system response to viral infection
Researchers studying how small worms defend themselves against pathogens have discovered a gene that acts as a first-line response against infection. They identified ‘ZIP-1’ as a centralized hub for immune response, a finding could have implications fo…
Human immune system uses ancient family of cell death proteins also found in bacteria
The human immune system, that marvel of complexity, subtlety, and sophistication, includes a billion-year-old family of proteins used by bacteria to defend themselves against viruses, scientists have discovered.
Unexpected insight of lymphatic vessels in the heart
Researchers identified a protein called VE-cadherin as a key factor in the maintenance of lymphatic vessels serving the heart. Deleting VE-cadherin from the lymphatic vessels in newborn and adult lab mice caused the lymphatic vessels in the heart to re…
Researchers unlock immune cell contributions that could lead to new therapies for endometrial cancer
Endometrial cancer is the most common cancer of the female reproductive system. Patients who have active immune responses against cancer cells tend to have better outcomes, but much of what is known focuses on only one type of immune cell called T cell…