What Triggers Ramsay Hunt Syndrome? Treatment, Symptoms & Recovery
Ramsay Hunt syndrome may be triggered by conditions that weaken the immune system, such as COVID-19 or the shingles virus. Ramsay Hunt syndrome (RHS) is caused by the reactivation of the varicella zoster virus in the facial nerve. In most individuals, the varicella zoster virus may stay dormant by immune system activity. What specifically triggers […]
Solid tumors use a type of T cell as a shield against immune attack
An unexpected trick in cancer’s playbook may fool an important component of our immune systems into knocking down our natural defenses against solid tumors. Scientists at Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center say this newfound vulnerability involves a misuse of a type of T cell, part of a large family of blood cells that are essential to […]
New knowledge on lymphoid cell maturity could lead to more effective IBD therapies
A research group at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden has analysed how certain immune cells known as innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) develop into mature cells that play a part in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). The findings could pave the way for more effective treatments against IBD, a disease that causes considerable suffering and that is linked […]
What Drives Post-COVID Cognitive Changes?
New research released today suggested that an over-stimulated immune system — possibly triggered by ongoing vascular injury and repair — may be behind persistent post-COVID cognitive changes. In preliminary work that will be presented at the American Academy of Neurology annual meeting, researchers led by Joanna Hellmuth, MD, MHS, of the University of California San […]
More Evidence Hybrid Immunity Confers Highest Level of COVID Protection
Hybrid immunity from a COVID-19 infection plus a vaccine provided an immune boost against symptomatic disease, as well as severe outcomes, Brazilian researchers found. Among people who survived a COVID infection from Feb. 24, 2020 to Nov. 11, 2021, vaccine effectiveness against symptomatic disease at least 14 days after series completion was 44.0% (95% CI […]
Immune cells produce chemical messenger that prevents heart disease–related inflammation
The immune system’s white blood cells, which are produced in the bone marrow, mostly help to defend against bacteria and injury, but sometimes they can turn against the body — for example, in cardiovascular disease, their inflammatory aggression can harm arteries and the heart. New research in Nature Immunology that was led by investigators at […]
Study shows how bioactive substance inhibits important receptor: Results raise hope for new drugs against cancer and brain diseases
The A2A receptor regulates how vigorously the innate immune system attacks diseased cells. Researchers at the University of Bonn have now been able to show for the first time how an important inhibitor binds to the receptor. In the future, the results will facilitate the targeted search for molecules that give the innate immune system […]
Discovery of new immune process that regulates inflammation in human fat may help manage obesity
Irish and German scientists have just identified how specific immune cells can work together in fat to cause inflammation that leads to weight gain and obesity. Their work pinpoints new avenues to exploit the regulation of that inflammation in fat tissue, thereby suggesting new ways to manage obesity [Wednesday 9th March 2022]. There is a […]
COVID Vax Response Still Impaired in Some MS Patients After Third Shot
Immune response was attenuated after a third COVID-19 vaccine dose for multiple sclerosis (MS) patients taking certain disease-modifying treatments, interim data from a longitudinal study showed. Two weeks after a third shot, many MS patients on anti-CD20 drugs and sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) receptor modulators still had significantly reduced total spike and receptor-binding domain (RBD) antibody responses, […]
What Does HIV Do to a Person? Symptoms & Stages
Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks and weakens the immune system, impairing the body’s ability to fight diseases and infections Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) attacks and weakens the immune system, impairing the body’s ability to fight diseases and infections. Without a healthy, functioning immune system, a person may become vulnerable to infections that can then lead […]