Immune System News and Research

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New strategy may help guard beta cells, slow the onset of type 1 diabetes

Type 1 diabetes occurs when a person's own immune system destroys insulin-producing beta cells in the pancreas. In recent years, scientists have learned how to grow large volumes of replacement beta cells, but the researchers are still trying out many options to protect these cells against the immune attack.

27 Jul 2020

Employers require COVID liability waivers as conflict mounts over workplace safety

After spending a May day preparing her classroom to reopen for preschoolers, Ana Aguilar was informed that the tots would not have to wear face masks when they came back. What's more, she had to sign a form agreeing not to sue the school if she caught COVID-19 or suffered any injury from it while working there.

27 Jul 2020

National clinical trial to test potential vaccine against SARS-CoV-2

UC San Diego Health and the Altman Clinical and Translational Research Institute, part of UC San Diego School of Medicine, will be sites for an accelerated national clinical trial to assess the efficacy and immunogenicity of a vaccine intended to protect against SARS-CoV-2, the novel coronavirus that causes COVID-19.

25 Jul 2020

Researchers identify TLR7 gene that predisposes elderly patients to severe COVID-19

Current observations suggest that the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 causes severe symptoms mainly in elderly patients with chronic disease.

25 Jul 2020

MP Biomedicals and A*STAR jointly develop rapid antibody test kit for COVID-19

MP Biomedicals Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, a diagnostic corporation which has been operating for over 30 years focusing on various infectious disease testing development and manufacturing, today announced the successful development of a rapid antibody test kit for COVID-19, in collaboration with the Agency for Science, Technology and Research.

From MP Biomedicals, LLC 25 Jul 2020

Spinal cord injuries in mice cause acquired bone marrow failure syndrome

Research conducted at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center and The Ohio State University College of Medicine found that spinal cord injuries in mice cause an acquired bone marrow failure syndrome that may contribute to chronic immune dysfunction.

24 Jul 2020

Study shows how protective T cells become pathogenic in atherosclerosis

High cholesterol kills. In fact, one in four Americans will die from the consequences of atherosclerosis, the buildup of plaques of fat and cholesterol in the arteries. Statins have helped reduce mortality, but millions are still at risk.

24 Jul 2020

Scientists discover how coronavirus enters cells without encountering immune system resistance

With an alarm code, we can enter a building without bells going off. It turns out that the SARS coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) has the same advantage entering cells. It possesses the code to waltz right in.

24 Jul 2020

Researchers design new version of protein to develop COVID-19 vaccine

Responding to a need to quickly develop billions of doses of lifesaving COVID-19 vaccines, a scientific team at The University of Texas at Austin has successfully redesigned a key protein from the coronavirus, and the modification could enable much faster and more stable production of vaccines worldwide.

24 Jul 2020

Modulating immunometabolic processes to control lung infection

When drugs to kill microbes are ineffective, host-directed therapy uses the body's own immune system to deal with the infection.

23 Jul 2020

Combining two immunotherapies into a single treatment found to be more effective

Some of the most promising advances in cancer treatment have centered on immunotherapies that rev up a patient's immune system to attack cancer. But immunotherapies don't work in all patients, and researchers have been searching for ways to increase their effectiveness.

23 Jul 2020

Study shows how mast cells regulate calcium levels to control the immune response

Instead of protecting us, the immune system can sometimes go awry, as in the case of autoimmune diseases and allergies. An Ludwig-Maximilian-Universitaet (LMU) in Munich team has dissected how mast cells regulate their calcium levels to keep the immune response under control.

23 Jul 2020

New strategy allows long-term, non-invasive tracking of cardiomyocytes

A new platform reported on today in STEM CELLS Translational Medicine (SCTM) will enable long-term tracking of cardiomyocytes produced from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) after implantation into the heart.

23 Jul 2020

Neutralizing antibodies isolated from COVID-19 patients can quash SARS-CoV-2

Scientists across the globe are racing to study how antibodies can help suppress SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

23 Jul 2020

White blood cells and their role in the brain

Researchers have found that the brain has specific immune cells that help in normal brain development and play a role in certain neurological diseases.

23 Jul 2020

Neo-self antibody could be a major cause of recurrent pregnancy loss

A research group centered around Kobe University Graduate School of Medicine's Professor YAMADA Hideto and Associate Professor TANIMURA Kenji (Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology), and Professor ARASE Hisashi et al. of Osaka University's Research Institute for Microbial Diseases (RIMD) have revealed for the first time in the world the high frequency of a novel autoantibody in women suffering from recurrent pregnancy loss.

23 Jul 2020