immunity News and Research

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SARS-CoV-2 found in semen of COVID-19 patients

Since the novel coronavirus, now called the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), emerged in December 2019, viral loads have been detected in body fluids, such as urine samples, saliva, stool samples, and in the gastrointestinal tract. Now, a new study reveals the SARS-CoV-2 virus in semen.

7 May 2020

Cholesterol lowering drugs can improve composition of gut bacteria in obese individuals

The human gut microbiota consists of trillions of bacteria, fungi and virus constituting an inner chemical factory producing a multitude of microbial compounds affecting immunity, neurobiology and metabolism of the human host.

7 May 2020

Arrayjet develops COVID-19 antibody screening technology to facilitate vaccine development

Arrayjet Limited, the Scottish-based bio-printing technology specialist for the life sciences industry, has re-purposed its in-house antibody screening technology to create a population-scale diagnostic program that will help scientists better understand the behavior of the Covid-19 virus and further the rapidity of a global vaccination program.

7 May 2020

Low CD8 and NK cell counts in the lung linked to high SARS-CoV-2 ACE2 receptor levels

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in April 2020 reports that low levels of specific immune cells, namely, CD8 T cells and NK cells, are linked to higher expression of the ACE2 molecule, which acts as a receptor for the CoV.

6 May 2020

COVID-19 infection risk and outcomes explained by the cell receptor genetic variability

Genetic variants in the angiotensin‐converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) receptor, utilized by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS‐CoV‐2) for cell entry, are predicted to either encourage or inhibit interaction with viral proteins and subsequently contribute to genetic risk in coronavirus disease (COVID-19). This is the key finding of a new study available on the preprint server bioRxiv*.

5 May 2020

Patients recently recovered from COVID-19 produce virus-specific antibodies

Most newly discharged patients who recently recovered from COVID-19 produce virus-specific antibodies and T cells, suggests a study published on May 3rd in the journal Immunity, but the responses of different patients are not all the same.

5 May 2020

Study explores maternal infection and its role in neurodevelopmental disorders

The immune responses of a female mouse before pregnancy can predict how likely her offspring are to have behavioral deficits if the immune system is activated during pregnancy, according to researchers from the Center for Neuroscience at the University of California, Davis.

5 May 2020

COVID-19 progression linked to B cell activation

The disease course of COVID-19 is diverse, ranging from asymptomatic to fatal respiratory failure. Scientists have been working to uncover the immunological reasons behind this heterogeneity. A recent study on B cells, published on the preprint server medRxiv in April 2020, shows that extrafollicular B cells could be a marker of severe infection in the early stages, predicting the need for earlier immunomodulatory therapy.

4 May 2020

Uncovering immune cell reactions in COVID-19

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in April 2020 suggests that an overactive immune response is responsible for the more severe manifestations of the illness.

4 May 2020

Human endemic coronavirus reinfection possible after recovery

The novel coronavirus started spreading in December 2019, and since then, it has rippled across the globe, affecting 187 countries and territories, and infecting more than 3.18 million people. However, the behavior and mechanism of the virus, including whether it provides adaptive immunity, is still unclear. There have been reports of reinfection out of South Korea and Japan

4 May 2020

New information on viral antigens could improve COVID-19 testing

Researchers in France and China have characterized antibody responses to a wide range of antigens present on severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus (SARS-CoV-2) among patients with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

4 May 2020

Scientists develop a highly sensitive COVID-19 diagnostic platform

Cima Universidad de Navarra researchers have developed a large-scale, highly sensitive COVID-19 diagnostic platform more efficient than the commercial PCR test kits currently available.

4 May 2020

UC San Diego receives $55 NIH grant to advance clinical and translational research

The Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute at University of California San Diego has received a five-year, $54.7 million Clinical and Translational Science Award from the National Center for Advancing Translational Science, part of the National Institutes of Health.

4 May 2020

A $10 million grant enables expansion of BCG vaccine trial against COVID-19

An A$10 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will allow the Murdoch Children's Research Institute's clinical trial of the BCG vaccine against COVID-19 to extend to 10,000 healthcare workers across Australia, Spain and The Netherlands.

4 May 2020

Number of COVID-19 cases diagnosed in Spain increases to almost 10% of the people infected

A multidisciplinary research group of the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya · BarcelonaTech (UPC) and the Germans Trias i Pujol Research Institute (IGTP) have analysed the diagnostic delay between the development of symptoms of COVID-19 and the registration of a positive case in ten countries in the European Union.

4 May 2020

Research detects a more dangerous SARS-CoV-2 mutation

A new study published on the preprint server bioRxiv in May 2020 reports the setting up of a system to help track new mutations in the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that is behind the current COVID-19 pandemic. This will help analyze mutations to find and track the spread of those that are most likely to increase the pathogenicity of the virus, either by making it easier to transmit or by enhancing its resistance to treatment.

4 May 2020