Scientists describe a previously unknown disorder of the immune system: in a distinct subset of immune cells from patients with primary immunodeficiency, cellular respiration is significantly increased. This cellular metabolic overactivity leads to inflammation.
Read moreWhile the medical community agrees immune cells inside a tumor leads to improved health outcome, for a subset of colorectal cancer patients, having too much of a good thing is a strong predictor of disease recurrence and reduced chances of survival. Scientists identify patients who could benefit from immunotherapy. This is the first report of immune infiltrated tumors with poor health outcomes and is counter to the standard belief in the field.
Read moreIn experiments in mice, researchers say they have developed a way to successfully transplant certain protective brain cells without the need for lifelong anti-rejection drugs.
Read moreThe way immune cells pick friends from foes can be described by a classic maths puzzle known as the 'narrow escape problem'.
Read moreA preclinical study shows how the interplay of two interleukin signaling proteins, IL-6 and IL-2, affects the development of T follicular helper cells and germinal centers. This interplay may either maintain or disrupt the balancing act of the immune system between attacking infections and benign surveillance of the body's own cells. Thus, the research may help guide future disease treatment for autoimmune diseases like lupus.
Read moreIt's long been known that our immune cells mix and match bits of genetic code to make new kinds of antibodies to fight newly encountered threats. But how these different gene segments come together has been a mystery. A study provides the answer, showing how the classic process of V(D)J recombination makes use of chromatin looping to gather the segments to be spliced.
Read moreMicrobiologists have discovered a recycling process in the eukaryotic parasite Toxoplasma gondii that plays a vital role in the organism's unusual mode of reproduction.
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