CD4 News and Research

RSS

TET enzymes play key role in keeping immune cells on a healthy track

Researchers at La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) have shed light on a process in immune cells that may explain why some people develop cardiovascular diseases.

25 Jun 2021

Bivalent DNA SARS-CoV-2 vaccine induces strong humoral and cellular immunity in mice

A team of UK-based scientists has developed and validated a DNA vaccine against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) that encodes both spike receptor-binding domain (RBD) and nucleocapsid of the virus as vaccine immunogens.

24 Jun 2021

CD39+ monocyte count higher in pregnant than non-pregnant COVID-19 patients

A new study published on the bioRxiv* server describes the changes in the representation of a subset of activated monocytes in this group of patients.

23 Jun 2021

Cancer immunotherapy may self-limit its efficacy in fighting tumors, study finds

Cancer immunotherapy involving drugs that inhibit CTLA-4 also activates an unwanted response that may self-limit its efficacy in fighting tumors, according to a new study led by Francesco Marangoni, Ph.D., assistant professor of physiology & biophysics and member of the Institute for Immunology at the University of California, Irvine.

22 Jun 2021

Study shows activation of CD16+ T-cells contribute to severe COVID-19 illness

Do T-cells play a protective immune role, or are they responsible for severe COVID-19 illness?

21 Jun 2021

Different comorbid conditions in COVID-19 patients can impact outcomes of positive PCR test results

New study results indicate that different comorbid conditions affecting individuals diagnosed with COVID-19 may impact how long they continue to receive positive SARS-CoV-2 polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test results.

17 Jun 2021

COVID-e-Vax DNA vaccine candidate elicits robust immune responses in preclinical trials

A new study, released as a preprint on the bioRxiv* server, describes the late-stage clinical trial efficacy of a new vaccine candidate based on a deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) plasmid platform expressing the receptor-binding domain (RBD) of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein. Among different constructs of the vaccine plasmid, the RBD was found to produce the most potent and broad immune response.

16 Jun 2021

Potent antibodies against SARS-CoV-2 can be produced without T follicular helper cells, suggests study

It has been uncertain whether antibodies produced via this non-canonical pathway are protective against SARS-CoV-2. In a new study, recently released as a preprint on the bioRxiv*server, the neutralization potency of these antibodies is compared with those traditionally produced in germinal center-based antiviral responses.

15 Jun 2021

Immune memory responses differ between SARS-CoV-2 and influenza A

Researchers in Canada have shown that the long-lasting immunity that develops following infection with severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is characterized by different T cell responses than those observed for influenza A virus-specific immune memory.

14 Jun 2021

New Astra-Zeneca B.1.351 vaccine AZD2816 strongly immunogenic against multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants of concern

A new study, released on the bioRxiv* preprint server, supports the efficacy of the wildtype ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 (AZD1222) vaccine against B.1.351, B.1.617.1 and B.1.617.2, while showing that a booster dose of vaccine based on the B.1.351 spike induces further increase in antibody titers.

11 Jun 2021

Mix and match COVID-19 vaccines safe and effective: German study

A new preprint study posted to the medRxiv* server shows an AstraZeneca’s ChAdOx1-nCov-19 and Pfizer/BioNTech BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine combination is immunologically superior to two AstraZeneca ChAdOx1-nCov-19 doses.

9 Jun 2021

Antihistamines might be effective in long-COVID

A team of scientists from the United Kingdom has recently revealed the therapeutic benefits of histamine receptor antagonists in reducing long-term symptoms of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). They have also indicated that T cell immune responses to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection vary between asymptomatic COVID-19 and long-COVID.

8 Jun 2021

Could the intranasal route be an alternate avenue of COVID-19 vaccination?

A new study has been published in the journal Vaccines that summarizes the history of vaccines, reviews the current progress in COVID-19 vaccine technology, and discusses the status of intranasal COVID-19 vaccines as a potential pathway to immunization.

8 Jun 2021

Repeated low-dose dose exposure to SARS-CoV-2 may protect against severe COVID-19

The Italian authors of this paper, published in the journal Viruses, have taken this hypothesis and expanded it to include viral particles suspended in the air or on inanimate objects as a possible source of T cell immunity due to the repeated low-dose exposure, potentially explaining virus immunity found in non-infected individuals.

7 Jun 2021

Could sustained inflammation following mild to moderate COVID-19 be a driver of long COVID?

A new study describes the discovery of sustained though low-level rises in inflammatory mediators and immune cells, as well as the loss of some subsets of naïve un-activated cells. This may indicate a widespread though muted immune-mediated inflammatory response in these patients.

7 Jun 2021

Maternal SARS-CoV-2 infection imprints immune response in the newborn

A new bioRxiv* preprint reports the immunological footprint in the newborn left by maternal infection with SARS-CoV-2 during pregnancy.

4 Jun 2021

Heterologous AstraZeneca and Pfizer vaccines induce strong immune response and T cell reactivity against multiple SARS-CoV-2 variants

Researchers from Germany recently analyzed a cohort of 26 individuals in the age range of 25 to 46 (median 30.5) years who had received a ChAdOx1 nCoV-19 prime vaccine followed by a BNT162b2 boost vaccine after a 56-day interval due to changing vaccine recommendations in Germany. There were 16 females and 10 males in the cohort, and they were assessed for immune responses, reactogenicity, and T cell reactivity. This study is published on the medRxiv* preprint server.

3 Jun 2021

Large-scale expansion of spike-reactive T cells feasible after COVID-19 vaccination

A new bioRxiv* preprint reports on the successful use of a protocol to expand SARS-CoV-2-reactive T-cells a thousand-fold.

2 Jun 2021

New vaccine candidate with RBD and N protein targets protects against SARS-CoV-2 in preclinical trials

A recent study published in the journal Science Advances, explores the immunization of RBD with the P2 epitope of tetanus toxoid, to enhance its immunogenicity, and also tests the benefit of N protein in the vaccine.