Immunosuppression News and Research

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Immunosuppression involves an act that reduces the activation or efficacy of the immune system. Some portions of the immune system itself have immuno-suppressive effects on other parts of the immune system, and immunosuppression may occur as an adverse reaction to treatment of other conditions.

New insight into SARS-CoV-2 mRNA vaccine breakthrough infections

In the current study, vaccine breakthrough infections were noted in 24 people who had previously received COVID-19 vaccines.

17 Jun 2021

Macrophages can aid tumor growth by distracting cancer-killing CD8+ T cells

A Ludwig Cancer Research study adds to growing evidence that immune cells known as macrophages inhabiting the body cavities that house our vital organs can aid tumor growth by distracting the immune system's cancer-killing CD8+ T cells.

11 Jun 2021

Discovery suggests new pathways for safeguarding the immune system’s ability to fight cancer

In order for cancer to grow and spread, it has to evade detection by our immune cells, particularly specialized "killer" T cells.

10 Jun 2021

Study reports safety, efficacy of targeted treatment for IgA nephropathy

IgA nephropathy (IgAN) is a chronic kidney disease occurring in young adults and is one of the most common reasons for kidney transplantation in this age group.

7 Jun 2021

Majority of women do not meet criteria for cervical cancer screening exit

Current guidelines recommend stopping cervical cancer screening at age 65, but women over age 65 make up over one in five new cervical cancer diagnoses, and are twice as likely to die after a cervical cancer diagnosis compared to younger women.

7 Jun 2021

New biomaterial for pancreatic islet transplants does not trigger the body's immune response

A multidisciplinary research team led by Jonathan Lakey, Ph.D., professor of surgery and biomedical engineering at the University of California, Irvine, has developed a biomaterial for pancreatic islet transplants that doesn't trigger the body's immune response.

4 Jun 2021

Reusing old vaccines to boost innate immunity against COVID-19

The COVID-19 vaccine is currently the best form of protection against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) and its variants. But a new perspective article published in the journal PNAS suggests it’s not the panacea to stopping SARS-CoV-2.

31 May 2021

An exploratory study of T-cell and antibody responses after COVID-19 mRNA vaccination

Recent COVID-19 investigations have found that up to half of immunocompromised individuals struggle to produce antibodies after receiving their severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) vaccinations.

26 May 2021

Combination approach can improve the success rate of cancer treatment

A new cancer vaccine could boost the positive effects of existing immunotherapy drugs, improving the success rate of treatments from 20% to 75% of cases, according to a new study by immunologists from the University of Konstanz.

19 May 2021

Huge healthcare burden of post-COVID-19 symptoms likely, suggests new study

How well do patients who had COVID-19 recover after the virus is cleared from their systems? A new preprint reports on symptom profiles over the first nine months of the illness.

13 May 2021

Sepsis can cause alterations in the functioning of defense cells that lead to death

An article published in Frontiers in Immunology suggests that sepsis can cause alterations in the functioning of defense cells that persist even after the patient is discharged from hospital.

12 May 2021

Immunosuppression in COVID-19 promotes emergence of multiple immune escape mutants

An interesting new study describes the emergence of several such variants from a chronically immunosuppressed COVID-19 patient, who remained infected for over 170 days before clearing the virus.

7 May 2021

SARS-CoV-2 infection prolongs viral shedding and lymphocyte loss in patients with cancer

Patients with cancer have a more challenging time with infections while undergoing treatment — placing them as high-risk for severe COVID-19 illness and death. However, how the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) interacts with cancer therapies remains poorly understood.

7 May 2021

Transplant recipients with COVID-19 may show lower cellular and antibody immune responses

Transplant patients are typically on chronic immunosuppression, making them automatically more vulnerable to infection with SARS-CoV-2, the agent responsible for the loss of over three million lives in the current COVID-19 pandemic. A new study discusses evidence for subnormal immune responses following COVID-19 in this population.

6 May 2021

Can control theory explain differences in virulence and transmission of SARS-CoV-2?

A new study discusses variations in viral pathogenicity and in transmission, which are responsible for asymptomatic infection and for superspreading events. The ability to understand this would open the way to understand how this virus behaves the way it does, in terms of its virulence, its spread, and its emergent variants of concern.

28 Apr 2021

SARS-CoV-2 antibody response robust in nursing home residents after Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine

However, with the waning of the immune response, it is not clear if these older people respond to the vaccine as well as younger individuals do. A recent study explored this question and found that though the antibody levels were somewhat lower in this group, they were still robust. This is a promising observation.

26 Apr 2021

Researchers discover molecule that provides dual protection against vascular inflammation

A multidisciplinary team of researchers from Duke-NUS Medical School and the Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR) in Singapore discovered a new mitochondrial peptide called MOCCI that plays an important role in regulating inflammation of blood vessel and immunity.

22 Apr 2021

Can biomaterials offer novel therapeutic strategies against COVID-19?

A team of scientists reviews the current and potential impact of the biomaterial sciences on the COVID-19 pandemic.

15 Apr 2021

UHN performed first double-lung transplant after COVID-19 in Canada

University Health Network has performed what is believed to be the first lung transplant in Canada on a patient whose lungs were irreparably damaged by COVID-19.

12 Apr 2021

Researchers evaluate new drug for spinal muscular atrophy in a broader spectrum of patients

The rarity of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) means that promising new treatments may be tested in only a limited spectrum of patients before approval. Investigators evaluated a newly approved drug, onasemnogene abeparvovec, in a broader spectrum of patients in order to obtain expanded data on its side effects profile.

6 Apr 2021