Natural Killer Cells News and Research

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Scientists engineer natural killer cells that target tumors and their immunosuppressive allies

Scientists have engineered natural killer immune cells that not only kill head and neck tumor cells in mice but also reduce the immune-suppressing myeloid cells that allow tumors to evade the immune response, according to a new study in eLife.

7 Jul 2020

Aspirin and flavonoids in fruits and vegetables could help prevent colorectal cancer

A diet rich in fruits and vegetables and a daily dose of aspirin have one thing in common-;both can help prevent colorectal cancer. Yet scientists have struggled for decades to find the source of their ability to inhibit cancer cell growth.

7 Jul 2020

Immune response variations across the COVID-19 spectrum

A new study published on the preprint server medRxiv in June 2020 describes differences in the adaptive and innate immune response in mild, moderate, and severe COVID-19. This may mean that permanent immune responses occur only in patients who recover from severe COVID-19.

25 Jun 2020

Engineered natural killer cells show promise for treating a form of leukemia

Using induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) and deleting a key gene, researchers at University of California San Diego School of Medicine have created natural killer cells -; a type of immune cell -; with measurably stronger activity against a form of leukemia, both in vivo and in vitro.

12 Jun 2020

Harnessing the formation of natural killer–tumor cell immunological synapse to treat solid cancers

There are immune cells in our bodies that directly destroy infected or cancer cells - they are called natural killer cells. Recently, a POSTECH research team has developed an integrative cancer therapy using adoptive natural killer cell therapy and chemotherapy.

13 May 2020

Scientists discover a new way for T cells to attack diseased cells

Scientists at the Kennedy Institute of Rheumatology in the Nuffield Department of Orthopaedics, Rheumatology and Musculoskeletal Sciences have discovered a new way for T cells to attack cells infected by viruses or deranged by cancer.

12 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

UK-based biotechnology firm discovers potential treatments for Covid-19

A UK-based biotechnology firm has announced the discovery of two separate novel treatments for Covid-19 patients before they are put on ventilators. They are now urgently seeking funding of £4m to accelerate safety studies and clinical trials.

30 Apr 2020

Using 'young NK cells' could improve the effectiveness of immunotherapy for cancer patients

Immunotherapy that involves treating cancer with the body's own immune cells, or those of a matched donor, shows promise in clinical trials for some patients, but not all.

22 Mar 2020

'Natural killer' cells could help stop progression of Parkinson's disease

Researchers at the University of Georgia's Regenerative Bioscience Center and their colleagues have found that "natural killer" white blood cells could guard against the cascade of cellular changes that lead to Parkinson's disease and help stop its progression.

16 Mar 2020

Boosting immune cells to treat eczema

A new drug regimen is reported to have marked benefits in treating the troublesome and distressing skin condition called eczema. The study, published in February 2020 in the journal Science Translational Medicine, shows that boosting the levels of a type of immune cell called natural killer cells can be a more effective way to treat eczema in a mouse study.

27 Feb 2020

New clinical trial uses universal natural killer cell approach to treat acute myeloid leukemia

A new, phase I clinical trial offered The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute will treat patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukemia using a novel universal natural killer cell approach.

27 Feb 2020

Study reveals how clotting protein and blood platelets promote immune evasion, tumor progression

A new study led by researchers at The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center - Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and Richard J. Solove Research Institute reveals how a clotting protein and blood platelets can promote cancer progression and suppress immune responses to cancer.

14 Jan 2020

Small, thin metal mesh loaded with T cells shrinks tumors in ovarian cancer models

New findings published Dec. 9 in Nature Biomedical Engineering from scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center show for the first time that a piece of small, thin metal mesh loaded with cancer-fighting immune cells shrinks tumors in preclinical models of ovarian cancer.

9 Dec 2019

Young patients with IBD have increased risk of severe viral infections

Young patients with inflammatory bowel disease are five times more likely than the general population to develop viral infections that can lead to hospitalization or permanent organ damage, a new study published in the UEG Journal has found.

5 Dec 2019

Transitional T cells could help improve cancer immunotherapy

In chronic viral infections and cancer, T cell dysfunction is sure to be observed. A new study to be published in the journal Immunity shows that before these cells are completely exhausted, there is a transitory stage in which some cells are present with features that are characteristic of neither the stem-like T cells nor the mature but exhausted T cells.

4 Dec 2019

SDSU researchers show cancer-inhibiting potential of flavonoid metabolite

Eating fruits and vegetables is more important than ever.

2 Dec 2019

New textbook on mysterious and deadly cytokine storm syndrome

There's no telling where the call will come from, or when. But Randy Cron, M.D., Ph.D., professor of pediatrics and medicine at UAB, knows to expect them.

11 Nov 2019

Researchers discover new process of antitumor response of NK cells in myeloma

NK cells mean Natural Killer cells. They are part of the innate immune system. They are known primarily for their ability to recognize and kill tumor cells, cells infected by viruses and bacteria, or dying by apoptosis. Although evidence about their antitumoral capacity, how this activity occurred remained unknown.

5 Nov 2019

Fetal gut has more well-developed immune capabilities than previously thought

Most biology textbooks explain that the fetal immune system is largely undeveloped and that it learns after being exposed to the world at birth. New research from the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine and UPMC Children's Hospital of Pittsburgh challenges that paradigm, and provides the first comprehensive look at the immune system of the developing gut.

10 Oct 2019