Immune Response News and Research

RSS

COVID-19 Rapid Research Fund allows coronavirus research in Ontario and London

Sepsis is a life-threatening condition. It occurs when the body's response to an infection is out of balance, triggering hyperinflammation that can damage multiple organs.

27 May 2020

CanSino's potential coronavirus vaccine triggers immune response in clinical trial

Scientists across the globe are racing to develop a vaccine that can provide protection against coronavirus disease (COVID-19). An effective and safe vaccine would curb not only the current coronavirus pandemic but also prevent future outbreaks

27 May 2020

What affects the case fatality rate of COVID-19? Analysis of top 50 affected countries

Ever since the beginning of the international spread of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that causes COVID-19 disease, researchers have been trying to identify the risk factors that increase the chances of infection. Now, a new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in May 2020 discusses various potential factors and reports the observed associations.

27 May 2020

Many different T cell receptors recognize SARS-CoV-2 antigenic sites

The global COVID-19 pandemic caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is spreading over the world. However, not much is known about how the adaptive immune response kicks in following the viral challenge. This knowledge is crucial to predicting the efficacy of a vaccine and estimating the chances of reinfection.

26 May 2020

IgG antibodies reduce viral load of SARS-CoV-2

A study conducted by researchers at the University of Washington has highlighted the importance of serological testing for infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2).

26 May 2020

Montefiore and Einstein evaluate a new drug combination to fight COVID-19

Montefiore Health System Albert Einstein College of Medicine have begun the next stage of the Adaptive COVID-19 Treatment Trial (ACTT), to evaluate treatment options for people hospitalized with severe COVID-19 infection.

26 May 2020

The eye initiates an immune response in the lens after injury

The lens of the eye is an unusual organ. Unlike most of the body's organs, blood vessels don't reach the lens. If they did, they'd obscure our vision and we wouldn't be able to see.

26 May 2020

Novel testing system predicts outcomes in patients with sepsis

More than 1.7 million Americans develop sepsis each year, and more than 270,000 die from it. The condition--which happens when the body has an extreme response to a bacterial or viral infection, causing a chain reaction that can lead to organ failure and death--has few strategies for treatment.

26 May 2020

Inherited genetic variations can alter progression of melanoma, indicates study

Sometimes cancer stays put, but often it metastasizes, spreading to new locations in the body. It has long been suspected that genetic mutations arising inside tumor cells drive this potentially devastating turn of events.

26 May 2020

New study pinpoints ideal antiviral targets within the SARS-CoV-2 viral cycle

A specific biophysical model for severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) shows how potential drugs inhibiting both viral transcription and translation would be particularly effective against coronavirus disease (COVID-19). The model was developed by University of Minnesota researchers and described in their recent publication available on the bioRxiv preprint server.

25 May 2020

Children with COVID-19 presenting with sudden severe lung disease

Even as the COVID-19 pandemic continues to seek out new victims, puzzling new presentations are further confusing the situation. A new study published online in The Lancet Rheumatology in May 2020 reports a case of severe COVID-19 in a child who rapidly developed acute respiratory distress symptoms without prior respiratory symptoms. This case should alert clinicians to consider this diagnosis in children as well.

24 May 2020

New biomarkers to consider for SARS-CoV-2 vaccine

Researchers at the University of Melbourne have made new discoveries about how the immune system responds to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that could be important to consider in vaccine research.

24 May 2020

First COVID-19 vaccine found to be safe, able to generate rapid immune response in phase 1 clinical trial

The first COVID-19 vaccine to reach phase 1 clinical trial has been found to be safe, well-tolerated, and able to generate an immune response against SARS-CoV-2 in humans, according to new research published in The Lancet.

22 May 2020

Different immune responses can occur in Covid-19, shows study

The human immune system is reactive to more than just the viral protein on which researchers have focused to date. This is relevant for tests and potential vaccines.

22 May 2020

Blood test could reveal how the immune system responds to coronavirus

A highly detailed analysis of the composition of immune cells in the blood of patients with COVID-19, reveals new aspects of how the SARS-Cov-2 coronavirus causes disease.

22 May 2020

New clinical trial to test treatment that targets overactive immune response to COVID-19

For some COVID-19 patients, the body's immune response may be as destructive as the virus that causes the disease.

22 May 2020

Changes in antibodies and RNA shedding during early SARS-CoV-2 infection

As the COVID-19 pandemic and its far-reaching implications continue to unfold globally and disrupt our normal way of life, scientists and researchers are racing to find an appropriate vaccine or therapeutic drug. This process involves understanding how the virus interacts with the host cell, the dynamics of the host immune response, and the eventual outcome.

22 May 2020

New review discusses findings on coronavirus immunity

A new review discusses the findings from over 40 studies on coronavirus immunity and what they could mean for the Covid-19 pandemic.

22 May 2020

Study to examine how stem cell transplant patients react to COVID-19 infection

A new study will look at how patients, who receive stem cell transplants for blood cancers and blood disorders, react to COVID-19 infection during their recovery.

22 May 2020

IL-6 blocker use in severe COVID-19 increases risk of secondary infections

With many hundreds of thousands of deaths due to the current COVID-19 pandemic, there is a rush to find an effective vaccine or drug against the virus. A new study on the preprint server medRxiv* in May 2020 shows that the use of some biologically plausible drugs may be counterproductive, and care should be taken when trying out unproven therapies.

22 May 2020