T cells tagged posts

Scientists discover role immune system’s T cells play in regulating fat and muscle loss during infection in mice. Scientists discovered that 1) the wasting response to T. brucei infection in mice occurs in two phases, each regulated by different immune cells and 2) fat loss did not benefit the fight against infection, but muscle loss did. The findings inform the development of more effective therapeutics that spare people from wasting and increase our understanding of how wasting influences survival and morbidity across infections, cancers, chronic illnesses, and more.

Although infections can present with many different symptoms, one common symptom is the loss of fat and muscle, a proc...

When you need a bit of motivation, it often has to come from within. New research suggests cancer-fighting immune cells have found a way to do just that.

Scientists at University of California San Diego have discovered a property of T cells that could inspire new anti-tumor therapeutics. Through a previously undescribed form of cell auto-signaling, T cells were shown to activate themselves in peripheral tissues, fueling their ability to attack tumors.

The study, published in Immunity, was led by study first author and postdoctoral fellow Yunlong Zhao, Ph.D., and co-senior authors Enfu Hui, Ph.D., professor in the School of Biological Sciences at UC San Diego and Jack D. Bui, MD, Ph.D...

University of Virginia Health neuroscientists have discovered a potential way to disrupt the chronic inflammation responsible for multiple sclerosis.

UVA’s new study identifies a vital contributor to the hyperactive autoimmune response and neuroinflammation that are the hallmarks of MS. Blocking this lynchpin in a research model of MS alleviated the inflammation, giving researchers a prime target in developing new treatments for multiple sclerosis and other autoimmune diseases.

The research was conducted by Andrea Merchak, a doctoral candidate in neuroscience, and her colleagues in the lab of Alban Gaultier of the University of Virginia School of Medicine’s Department of Neuroscience and its Ce...

Medical science has not yet been able to explain why the Epstein-Barr virus triggers infectious mononucleosis (IM) in some people with initial infections and not in others. But now, a research team led by Elisabeth Puchhammer-Stöckl, head of the Center for Virology at MedUni Vienna, has identified a specific immune response to the virus as the cause, and as a potential target for the development of vaccines. The findings were recently published in the American Society of Hematology’s journal Blood.

Proliferation of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) in humans is normally combated by T cells as part of an antiviral immune response. By means of this important mechanism, certain EBV components (peptides) are presented to the T cells by a specific1LA-E molecules on EBV-infected cells.

A ...