The Immune System

Scientists have made a promising discovery relating to MS, demonstrating how neutralizing a specific protein can selectively temper the inflammation that drives the disease, which makes it an ideal target in the ongoing pursuit of a cure.

A big flush of funding in the UK is pushing new research on ways to diagnose and treat long COVID. A University of Cambridge team is now working on a blood test to objectively diagnose this emerging chronic condition using immune biomarkers.

A new heat-tolerant COVID-19 vaccine has delivered strong preclinical results. The vaccine can remain stable for up to 30 days at around 37 °C (98 °F) and researchers are looking to begin human trials later this year.

New studies are beginning to shed light on the lingering condition dubbed long COVID, offering evidence of who is more susceptible and what kind of symptoms are common. But experts say we still don't know what the long-term effects of COVID-19 will be.

Investigating the relationship between diet, gut bacteria and systemic inflammation, Stanford University researchers found just a few weeks of following a diet rich in fermented foods can improve microbiome diversity and reduce inflammatory biomarkers.

When will COVID-19 vaccine booster shots be necessary? Pfizer claims a third booster of its vaccine may be needed six to 12 months after vaccination but not everyone is convinced, with new research finding mRNA vaccines may offer years of protection.

New research from the Stanford University School of Medicine and the Buck Institute for Research on Aging is demonstrating a new tool that can calculate a person’s immune system age, which could help predict frailty and disease before symptoms appear.

Australian researchers have identified the mechanism that enables some immune cells to outlast others. The findings point to a treatment method that could improve the success of cancer immunotherapy and help patients beat severe viral infections.

It’s hard to overstate the incredible influence our gut microbiome has on our health. Now, researchers have found that certain metabolites from intestinal bacteria could boost the cancer-killing effect of immunotherapy.

Researchers at Karolinska Institute in Sweden have made a breakthrough in the arms race that is cancer immunotherapy. The team has blocked a protein that silences an important tumor-suppressing protein, allowing the latter to get back to work.

A new study from Stanford University researchers has found previous recent exposure to common-cold-causing coronaviruses could help explain why some people infected with SARS-CoV-2 only suffer mild symptoms.

Researchers have engineered standard baking yeast to treat inflammatory bowel disease. The microbe has been modified to secrete an anti-inflammatory molecule in response to signs of gut inflammation and has proven effective in mouse tests.