Interferons News and Research

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Cancer cells block T-cell activation, but new therapies restore immune defenses

Cancer cells impair monocyte-mediated T-cell activation by disrupting inflammatory pathways in the tumor microenvironment. Restoring balance through PGE2 inhibition and IFN-I enhancement could renew immune defenses and improve immunotherapy outcomes.

4 Dec 2024

New insights into the role of innate immunity in tumor initiation

Along with defending against pathogens, the body's innate immune system helps to protect the stability of our genomes in unexpected ways - ways that have important implications for the development of cancer, researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) are discovering.

5 Nov 2024

New study reveals mechanism of inflammation in lupus

Immune cells called monocytes produce a key inflammatory protein called interleukin-1 beta (IL-1β) through an unconventional pathway in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus, commonly referred to as lupus, according to a new study by Weill Cornell Medicine investigators.

15 Oct 2024

New insights into pain mechanisms related to viral infections

An article published in the journal Brain, Behavior, and Immunity reports the findings of a study by researchers based in Brazil, the United States and South Korea who set out to understand how viral infections cause pain and to contribute to the search for novel ways of relieving it.

15 Oct 2024

Study uncovers mechanism of MX protein in fighting HIV-1 and herpes simplex virus

A group of researchers led by Xavier Saelens and Sven Eyckerman at the VIB-UGent Center for Medical Biotechnology discovered how a protein linked to the human immune system wards off HIV-1 and herpes simplex virus-1 by assembling structures in the cell that lure in these viruses and then trap them or even take them apart.

9 Oct 2024

UMass Amherst researcher receives $2.2 million grant to study tuberculosis response

The National Institutes of Health recently awarded $2.2 million to Alissa Rothchild, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and an expert in tuberculosis (TB) immunology, to study the very first cells that respond to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb), the bacteria causing TB.

7 Oct 2024

A faster, cheaper method to detect immune autoantibodies in whole blood

Researchers developed a quick and affordable whole-blood assay to detect autoantibodies against type I IFNs, enabling rapid diagnostics for immune disorders. This new method has potential clinical impact by addressing key limitations of current tests.

25 Sep 2024

Scientists reveal how DNA methylation drives astrocytes to become stem cells, unlocking new potential for brain repair

Researchers have discovered that DNA methylation is crucial for reprogramming astrocytes into stem cells in the adult mouse brain, especially after ischemic injury, with potential implications for regenerative medicine.

6 Sep 2024

Common chemotherapy supplement weakens the pancreatic cancer's defenses in mice

The fight against cancer is an arms race, and one of the most effective weapons in clinicians' arsenals is immunotherapy. Immune checkpoint therapy has become the standard for treating several types of cancer.

27 Aug 2024

Autoantibodies against type 1 interferons linked to higher susceptibility to viral disease

A new study shows that about two percent of the population develop autoantibodies against type 1 interferons, mostly later in life.

18 Jul 2024

ARPA-H funding boosts Wyss Institute's RNA therapeutic project

With the award for up to $27 million from the Advanced Research Projects Agency for Health (ARPA-H), a collaborative research project at the Wyss Institute for Biologically Inspired Engineering at Harvard University will advance a disease-agnostic novel RNA therapeutic with the potential to treat diverse diseases, and to be effectively and rapidly deployable.

15 Jul 2024

Unveiling the role of auto-antibodies in COVID-19 severity

Even though COVID-19 manifests as a mild and short-lived disease in most people, some suffer extremely severe symptoms; in the worst cases, these patients die due to complications such as respiratory failure or thromboembolism.

19 Jun 2024

Attenuated virus helps eliminate cancer in mice

Northwestern Medicine scientists have discovered that an attenuated (weakened) virus can help eliminate cancer in mice.

11 Jun 2024

New study sheds light on interferon combinations' role in lupus variability

In a new study, researchers from Johns Hopkins Medicine say they have uncovered insights as to why lupus symptoms and severity present differently in individuals with the autoimmune condition, which affects up to 1.5 million Americans.

14 May 2024

Repurposed nasal antibiotic neomycin shows promise in preventing and treating respiratory viral infections

Intranasal administration of neomycin sulfate in murine models shows promise as a prophylactic and therapeutic agent against respiratory viruses like influenza A and SARS-CoV-2 by inducing interferon-stimulated gene (ISG) expression, independent of microbiota and interferon activation.

24 Apr 2024

Study reveals key protein's role in balancing immune response to viral infections

Researchers have revealed the regulatory mechanism of a specific protein that plays a key role in balancing the immune response triggered by viral infections in mammal cells.

18 Apr 2024

Metabolic health determines effectiveness of influenza vaccination

Metabolic health (normal blood pressure, blood sugar and cholesterol levels, among other factors) influences the effectiveness of influenza vaccinations. Vaccination is known to be less effective in people with obesity compared to those with a healthier body mass index (BMI), but St. Jude Children's Research Hospital scientists have found it is not obesity itself, but instead metabolic dysfunction, which makes the difference.