immunity News and Research

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Enzyme caspase-8 controls apoptosis, necroptosis and pyroptosis

The enzyme caspase-8 induces a molecular cell death programme called pyroptosis without involving its enzymatic activity, a new study by Hamid Kashkar published in Nature shows.

26 Nov 2019

Researchers trace the origins and global spread of S. aureus lineages

Staphylococcus aureus is a major human pathogen prone to developing antibiotic resistance, causing 120,000 cases of bloodstream infections every year in the United States and over 5000 in Australia; the mortality rate is around 25 per cent from each case.

26 Nov 2019

Secretome of pleural effusions linked to NSCLC and malignant mesothelioma

Cryopreserved cell-free PE fluid from 101 NSCLC patients, 8 mesothelioma and 13 with benign PE was assayed for a panel of 40 cytokines/chemokines using the Luminex system.

25 Nov 2019

Discovery enables strategies to be developed for preventing malaria transmission

The bacteria that form the gut microbiota influence important processes of the human body, such as digestion, nutrient absorption, and defense against pathogens. The same type of relationship is present in most animals, including in the Anhopheles darlingi mosquito, the main vector of malaria in Brazil.

22 Nov 2019

Combination therapy improves survival in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Combination therapy with the PD-L1 inhibitor atezolizumab and the VEGF inhibitor bevacizumab significantly improves overall survival and progression-free survival in patients with unresectable hepatocellular carcinoma compared to standard of care, showed results from a phase 3 study reported at the ESMO Asia 2019 Congress.

22 Nov 2019

Wound healing events in mucous tissues could guard against AIDS

Wound healing events in mucous tissues during early infection by Simian Immunodeficiency Virus, or SIV, guard some primate species against developing AIDS, a recent study has learned.

21 Nov 2019

Immunity within the lung tissue provides most protection for preventing pneumonia

Previous research has shown that recovery from bacterial pneumonia hugely improves our defense against further infections by seeding the lungs with immune cells called lung resident memory T (TRM) cells, but how these cells actually protect the lungs against future bacterial infections has been unknown until now.

21 Nov 2019

Statin use may reduce risk of developing lethal prostate cancer

New research led by Queen's University Belfast has found that men who are on statins, medicine used to lower blood cholesterol, may have a reduced risk of developing a more lethal form of prostate cancer.

21 Nov 2019

Experimental vaccine elicits antibodies that can neutralize multiple HIV strains

An experimental HIV vaccine developed by scientists at Scripps Research and the nonprofit vaccine research organization IAVI has reached an important milestone by eliciting antibodies that can neutralize a wide variety of HIV strains.

21 Nov 2019

Exploring the links between chronic stress, inflammation and depression

Chronic stress can inflame our brain, destroy the connections between our neurons and result in depression, scientists say.

21 Nov 2019

Dopamine may worsen lung inflammation in asthma

A new study on a mouse model of asthma shows that nerve cells producing dopamine, a neurotransmitter, signal T cells in the body to promote inflammation due to allergic reactions in the lungs during childhood but not in adult mice.

19 Nov 2019

Malaria research advances immunotherapy in lupus, HIV

A new study published on November 19, 2019, in the journal Cell Reports, shows how the body’s immune system responds to malaria, which in turn promises to teach scientists how to design more effective therapies for a range of illnesses that are modulated by the immune response.

19 Nov 2019

UC Davis study identifies mechanism to rapidly repair leaky gut in monkeys with SIV infections

A UC Davis study found that the damaged gut lining (known as leaky gut) in monkeys infected with chronic simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), an HIV-like virus, was rapidly repaired within five hours of receiving Lactobacillus plantarum bacteria.

19 Nov 2019

Researchers discover new pathway to 'reprogram' killer cells

Killer cells of the immune system detect and kill infected cells or cancer cells. Researchers at the Institute of Pathology at the University of Bern have now discovered that the mechanism by which certain immune cells kill their target cells can also be used to control the killer cells themselves.

19 Nov 2019

Researchers identify new mechanism to resist fungal infection in cells

Indiana University researchers have identified a mechanism involving the body's ability to resist fungal infection. The work could help advance research on cancer therapies that use the body's own immune system to fight disease.

18 Nov 2019

Legislation and rising incidence of vaccine preventable diseases – the connection explored

There have been repeated reports of outbreaks of “vaccine-preventable disease” or VPDs across United States over the past few years. A new research letter was published this week in the JAMA Pediatrics. It was titled, “Association of Vaccine-Preventable Disease Incidence With Proposed State Vaccine Exemption Legislation.”

18 Nov 2019

Vaping wrecks immune cell function, increases infection risk

A new study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology shows that e-cigarettes have toxic effects on neutrophils function, making them a threat to human health by increasing the likelihood of infection with Gram-negative bacteria.

17 Nov 2019

Melbourne researchers find how MAIT cells identify and attack foreign invaders

Melbourne researchers have identified what makes a specialized immune cell, known as mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT), cells boost their numbers and attack foreign invaders at the site of the infection.

15 Nov 2019

New NIH funding will accelerate progress in TB vaccine development

Seattle Children's Research Institute is one of three recipients of $30 million in first-year-funding provided by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health, to establish centers for immunology research to accelerate progress in tuberculosis vaccine development.

15 Nov 2019

CSU awarded $1.2 million subcontract to accelerate tuberculosis vaccine development

A team of researchers in the Department of Microbiology, Immunology and Pathology at Colorado State University aim to advance what is known about the complex immune response necessary to prevent tuberculosis disease.

15 Nov 2019