Group A Streptococcal infections tagged posts

Immune molecule IL-1beta (the “hot spots” shown here) senses bacterial infections. Credit: UC San Diego Health

Patient data reveals crucial role IL-1beta in sensing streptococcal infections. Rheumatoid arthritis patients taking medications that inhibit interleukin-1beta, a molecule that stimulates the immune system, are 300 times more likely to experience invasive Group A Streptococcal infections than patients not on the drug, according to University of California San Diego School of Medicine researchers. Their study also uncovers a critical new role for IL-1beta as the body’s independent early warning system for bacterial infections.

“The more we know about each step in the body’s immune response to bacterial infections, the better equipped we are to design more personalized, targeted the...