immunity News and Research

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New antiviral drug reduces transmission of influenza, study shows

The antiviral drug, baloxavir (tradename Xofluza), is the first treatment for influenza with a new mode of "action" to be licensed in nearly 20 years.

16 Apr 2020

Scripps Research establishes collaborative global effort to rapidly find drugs against COVID-19

With the COVID-19 pandemic continuing to spread across the globe, Scripps Research has quickly established an international network of collaborating scientific laboratories to leverage ReFRAME, the world's leading drug repurposing collection, to find antiviral compounds against the novel coronavirus.

16 Apr 2020

Potential universal Ebola vaccine may neutralize all four harmful virus species

Infectious disease scientists report early development of a potential universal vaccine for Ebola viruses that preclinical tests show might neutralize all four species of these deadly viruses infecting people in recent outbreaks, mainly in Africa.

16 Apr 2020

FDA grants Emergency Use Authorization to Ortho’s COVID-19 total antibody test

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration today announced it granted Emergency Use Authorization to Ortho Clinical Diagnostics' total antibody assay for COVID-19—the VITROS Immunodiagnostic Products Anti-SARS-CoV-2 Total Reagent Pack and Calibrators.

From Ortho-Clinical Diagnostics, Inc. 16 Apr 2020

'Chaperone protein' protects against autoimmune diseases, mice study shows

Like a parent of teenagers at a party, Mother Nature depends on chaperones to keep one of her charges, the immune system, in line so that it doesn't mistakenly attack normal cells, tissues and organs in our bodies.

15 Apr 2020

Researchers decode how immune sensor plays role in defending cells against intruders

Until now, the immune sensor TLR8 has remained in the shadows of science. A research team led by the University of Bonn has now discovered how this sensor plays an important role in defending human cells against intruders.

15 Apr 2020

A desperate scramble as COVID-19 families vie for access to plasma therapy

Stephen Garcia's family is frantic. The auto body worker, just 32 years old, has been on a ventilator in a Los Angeles-area hospital for nearly two weeks, gravely ill with COVID-19, unresponsive — and unaware of the battle they're waging on his behalf.

15 Apr 2020

New blood test for antibodies in COVID-19 infected

The COVID-19 disease pandemic is raging across the world, costing tens of thousands of lives. Many countries have enforced widespread, if not universal lockdowns, to prevent the spread of the virus to new areas, carried by infected travelers.

14 Apr 2020

Molecular pathway that controls immunosuppression in tumors identified

An active immune system plays an important role in stopping cancer progression by identifying tumor cells and targeting them for destruction. Any deviation in the normal activities of the immune system could lead to accelerated tumor growth.

14 Apr 2020

Temple researchers receive NIAID grant to study immunological synapse formation

Switching immune cells on is a critical step in combating infection. In the case of T cells, which are key players in immunity, this happens when dormant T cells circulating in the blood encounter a suspicious agent on the surface of specialized antigen-presenting cells.

14 Apr 2020

California COVID-19 herd immunity theory debunked

A recent theory suggesting that severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) was doing the rounds in California as early as November 2019, infecting thousands undetected and leading to herd immunity, was debunked by experts from the scientific community. Antibody testing by a group of Stanford Medicine researchers was linked to the theory.

14 Apr 2020

UTSW researchers show how vulnerable cells armor themselves against infection

Cells in some of the body's most vulnerable entry routes to bacterial infection buffer themselves when the immune system detects danger by reorganizing the cholesterol on their surfaces, a new study led by UTSW scientists suggests.

13 Apr 2020

Novel coronavirus attacks and destroys T cells, just like HIV

The immune system has many components that work together in protecting the body from foreign invaders. One of the most important types of immune cells is T lymphocytes or T cells, a type of white blood cell that acts as the core of adaptive immunity, the system that modifies the immune response to specific pathogens.

13 Apr 2020

Extend lockdowns to stave off second wave of COVID-19

Social distancing, keeping people at home, and lockdowns are being implemented in many nations to prevent the spread of the highly infectious severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). Some countries that have seen declines in the number of new infections due to lockdowns are now looking to allow people to return to more normal daily routines.

13 Apr 2020

UChicago Medicine launches clinical trial to explore plasma transfusions for COVID-19 patients

The University of Chicago Medicine is launching a clinical trial to study whether blood plasma from people who have recovered from COVID-19 can be used to treat patients who are still in the hospital with severe disease symptoms.

13 Apr 2020

Physical-distancing slows spread of COVID-19 and reduces ICU admissions

The world is now at a standstill, as many countries have imposed restrictions to stem the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Nations are in lockdowns indefinitely, until the situation improves. The vast spread of the novel coronavirus is now inevitable, as the number of confirmed cases topped 1.85 million, many scientists are determining health measures that could help mitigate the global pandemic.

12 Apr 2020

Recovered South Korean COVID-19 patients test positive again

Following the reports from different countries of patients recovered from coronavirus disease (COVID-19) but testing positive again during the control diagnostic appraisal, South Korea's Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) documents a similar occurrence in 51 patients.

12 Apr 2020

FDA approves COVID-19 solutions created by Ohio State Medical Center scientists

The Food and Drug Administration has approved solutions created by scientists at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center that both expand and accelerate COVID-19 testing across Ohio.

12 Apr 2020

A Colorado ski community planned to test everyone for COVID-19. Here’s what happened.

In late March, residents of the Colorado town of Telluride and surrounding San Miguel County stood in line, along marked spots spaced 6 feet apart, to have their blood drawn by medical technicians wearing Tyvek suits, face shields and gloves for a new COVID-19 test.

10 Apr 2020

Testing One, Two, Three - Over 75% of people with COVID-19 are asymptomatic

A new study published in the British Medical Journal in April 2020 suggests that the number of people infected with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is astonishingly higher than the number of cases reported so far. This could help shape future social distancing measures.

9 Apr 2020