Penn Engineers have cooked up a new way to improve mRNA delivery, developing an optimal "recipe" for ionizable lipids -; key ingredients in lipid nanoparticles (LNPs), the molecules behind the COVID-19 vaccines and other innovative...
President-elect Donald Trump is continuing to staff his incoming administration, and his picks so far for key health policy positions are particularly polarizing.
Researchers have analyzed the entire mouse intestine, mapping gene expression and cell states and location in the healthy gut and in response to perturbations such as inflammation. They identified tight regulation of cell types and...
Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is an immune disease that affects up to 4% of the global population and causes painful, recurring skin lesions and inflammation, primarily in the folds of the skin. It commonly affects women of African...
A new study analyzed data from participants who have been followed for over 50 years, starting before their births. Researchers found that maternal immune activity during a critical period of sex-dependent brain development in pregnancy...
Scientists have discovered how long-term treatment of high blood pressure with commonly prescribed drugs can destroy the kidney's ability to filter and purify blood. The finding could open the door to better ways to manage high blood...
Inspired by the way that squids use jets to propel themselves through the ocean and shoot ink clouds, researchers from MIT and Novo Nordisk have developed an ingestible capsule that releases a burst of drugs directly into the wall of the...
Malaria, particularly in its severe forms, remains a global health and economic burden. It causes the deaths of more than 600,000 people every year – most of them African children under five.
A new study shows stimulating the vagus nerve in mice with colitis reduced stress-driven symptoms of inflammatory bowel disease by regulating SUMOylation, an immune response that triggers gut inflammation.
Scientists have identified human antibodies capable of targeting the proteins responsible for severe malaria, potentially paving the way for new vaccines or treatments. Using organ-on-a-chip technology, researchers successfully...
Researchers shrink gastrointestinal tumors in mice using a yeast probiotic to deliver immunotherapy to the gut, offering a potentially novel strategy to target hard-to-reach gut cancers.
The most comprehensive map of the developing human thymus sheds light on how immune responses are built and maintained at early life, with implications for understanding and treating immunodeficiency, autoimmunity, and cancer.
In most people, the lung-infecting pathogens known as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (hMPV) trigger mild cold-like symptoms. But in infants and seniors, these viruses can cause severe pneumonia and even death.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has granted Emergency Use Listing (EUL) for the LC16m8 mpox vaccine, making it the second mpox vaccine to be supported by WHO following the Director-General's declaration of an mpox public health...
A study provides insights into the diversity of cancer-associated fibroblasts in white and black skin cancer and describes their different immunomodulatory roles in the tumor environment. The results are relevant for the development of...
Excess cholesterol is known to form artery-clogging plaques that can lead to stroke, arterial disease, heart attack, and more, making it the focus of many heart health campaigns.
In most people, the lung-infecting pathogens known as respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) and human metapneumovirus (hMPV) trigger mild cold-like symptoms. But in infants and seniors, these viruses can cause severe pneumonia and even...
As whooping cough cases rise in the U.S., a new nasal vaccine developed by Tulane University may hold the key to reducing the spread of the highly contagious respiratory disease.
Ijeoma Uchegbu discusses nanomedicine's role in improving medication adherence and developing non-addictive pain relief solutions at ELRIG Drug Discovery 2024.
A new nasal whooping cough vaccine showed an ability to prevent both infection and transmission of the disease in mice. Current vaccines offer treatment but fail to halt transmission of the bacteria that cause the disease.
Hepatitis E viruses (HEV) typically cause liver infections. They can, however, also infect other organs and cause neurological disorders. Little is yet known about how this process works. A research team has now developed a cell model to...
A new drug strategy that regulates the tumor immune microenvironment may transform a tumor that resists immunotherapy into a susceptible one, according to a new study.
Recent advances in bladder cancer treatments may offer hope of curative care to more patients, including those with high-risk localized, muscle-invasive disease, according to a new editorial.
Researchers have tested a novel therapeutic concept to treat virus-induced lung failure in patients with severe COVID-19 in a phase 2 clinical trial. The approach may also be applicable to other infections.
An FDA-approved vaccine for smallpox and mpox is effective but causes side effects. The other requires multiple doses. An experimental single-dose vaccine uses the horsepox virus to harness the benefits of both strategies.
Why do some people develop severe flu symptoms? A study points the finger at an unsung portion of the antibodies our immune systems generate to fend off invading pathogens.
These miniature immune system models -- known as human immune organoids -- mimic the real-life environment where immune cells learn to recognize and attack harmful invaders and respond to vaccines. Not only are these organoids powerful...
Glioblastoma is the most common kind of malignant brain tumor in adults. So far, no treatment has been able to make this aggressive tumor permanently disappear. The tumor cells are too varied, and the microenvironment is too...
Immune cells are capable of detecting infections just like a sniffer dog, using special sensors known as Toll-like receptors, or TLRs for short. But what signals activate TLRs, and what is the relationship between the scale and nature of...
Current guidelines recommend that pregnant people receive a vaccine against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) -- which typically causes mild, cold-like symptoms in most adults but can be deadly for infants -- during weeks 32-36 of...
Researchers have developed a new form of precision medicine, an antibody, with the potential to treat several types of cancer. Researchers have managed to combine three different functions in the antibody, which together strongly amplify...
Prostate cancer is the second most common cancer in men worldwide. Researchers have investigated a new strategy for the development of treatment options that not only slow tumor growth, but also stimulate the immune system to combat...
Researchers have discovered that SARS-CoV-2 hijacks three important host proteins that dampen the activity of the complement system, a key component of early antiviral immunity. This significantly impairs viral clearance which may affect...
Researchers have identified a possible way to make glioblastoma cells vulnerable to different types of immunotherapy. The strategy, which they demonstrated in cells in the lab, forces brain cancer cells to display targets for the immune...
Increased capabilities for genomic surveillance have offered new insights into global viral evolution. Seasonal flu showed a 'remarkable' bounce back to pre-pandemic levels once international air travel resumed. Regions with fewer...
The CRISPR tool is capable of repairing the genetic defect responsible for the immune disease chronic granulomatous disease. However, researchers have now shown that there is a risk of inadvertently introducing other defects.
A team of bioengineers has developed a mathematical model that clarifies why interleukin-12 (IL-12) -- a potent immune-boosting protein that holds promise for cancer treatment -- loses effectiveness over time when used as an...
Some patients being treated with immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of cancer immunotherapy, develop a dangerous form of heart inflammation called myocarditis. Researchers have now uncovered the immune basis of this inflammation. The...
Along with defending against pathogens, the body's innate immune system helps to protect the stability of our genomes in unexpected ways -- ways that have important implications for the development of cancer, researchers are discovering.
Researchers employed analysis tools and machine learning algorithms to identify two genes linked to rheumatoid arthritis and osteoporosis that could serve as diagnostic tools and potential targets for treatments. Drawing from a large...
Scientists have long suspected the keto diet might be able to calm an overactive immune system and help some people with diseases like multiple sclerosis. Now, they have reason to believe it could be true. Scientists have discovered that...
A new study has found a surprising link between high levels of methylmalonic acid and the weakening of CD8+ T cells, shedding light on potential pathways through which aging may promote lung cancer progression.
As critical responders, macrophages can perceive helpful biotechnology as threats. If not created with the right materials or mechanical forces, these devices can trigger an immune response that can cause inflammation, scar tissue or...
Researchers combined advanced imaging techniques with a computational method to probe how immune cells interact with each other, revealing that the interactions between immune cells in the vicinity of breast cancer or melanoma can be...
Researchers have discovered a way that ovarian cancer tumors manipulate their environment to resist immunotherapy and identified a drug target that could overcome that resistance. The study used a cutting-edge spatial genomics technology...
A new analysis has revealed detailed 3D maps of the internal structures of multiple tumor types. These cancer atlases reveal how different tumor cells -- and the cells of a tumor's surrounding environment -- are organized, in 3D, and how...
Researchers have found a process by which the brain guards against attack by the immune system. In mice with multiple sclerosis, such 'guardian' proteins that train the immune system were drastically depleted, and replenishing them...
A new study sheds light on how the blood-borne parasite that causes African sleeping sickness in humans and related diseases in cattle and other animals establishes long-term infections in hosts. Using a mouse model, the researchers...