All articles tagged with #immunology
McGill researchers report that T cells can sense the stiffness of their surrounding tissue and use this mechanical information to bias their development into long-lasting tissue-resident memory cells, challenging the view that only biochemical cues guide immune memory and hinting at new approaches for autoimmune disease, cancer immunotherapy, and transplantation.
A study of 28 elderly participants, including centenarians and supercentenarians, found unusually high levels of CD4 cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CD4 CTLs) that rise with age (about 4% of T cells in 70–90-year-olds, ~10% in 100–109-year-olds, ~18% in 110+). These cells often show clonal expansion and carry receptors matching cancer-linked sequences, particularly lung cancer, suggesting a potential role in fighting cancer and contributing to healthy longevity—though causality is unproven and tissue-level actions are unknown.
Raised in an anti-vaccine evangelical home, Elisabeth (Liz) Marnik reversed course to become a Ph.D. immunologist who now leads The Evidence Collective, using personal storytelling and empathetic dialogue to counter vaccine misinformation and promote evidence-based public health.
A small phase 1 trial suggests oral fecal microbiota transplantation from healthy donors may increase peanut tolerance in some adults with peanut allergy (6 of 15 participants across two stages). Safety was acceptable, and mouse studies supported a gut-bacteria–driven mechanism involving RORγt+ regulatory T cells and bile acid metabolites. While encouraging, results are preliminary and not ready for clinical use; researchers aim to develop purified microbiome therapies (MTT) and conduct larger trials over the coming years. In the meantime, standard care—strict avoidance and an emergency allergy plan—remains essential.
FDA approved a new mRNA-based seasonal flu vaccine for adults 50+ on Aug. 5, 2026, illustrating mRNA’s promise to accelerate drug development beyond vaccines; but two hurdles remain: the short cellular half-life of about one day and impurities like double-stranded RNA that can provoke immune responses. Ongoing work aims to reduce immune activation and extend durability through pseudouridine-like RNA modifications, cleaner production, and optimized sequences, enabling non-vaccine uses such as CRISPR-Cas9 mRNA therapies (e.g., liver-targeted treatments for hereditary transthyretin amyloidosis) and paving the way for a new generation of safer, longer-lasting mRNA therapeutics in coming years.
In a small human trial, six of 15 peanut-allergic participants could tolerate more peanut after receiving a fecal transplant from healthy donors, with four months of follow-up showing up to 600 mg of peanut protein tolerated in most responders, suggesting that reshaping the gut microbiome could offer lasting allergy relief—though responses varied and more research is needed.
An international team led by the Medical University of Vienna report that Teclistamab, a cancer drug, drastically reduced antibodies against donor tissue in a dialysis-dependent patient with a zero probability of finding a compatible donor, enabling a successful kidney transplant after 31 weeks of therapy; the patient is thriving and the approach could shift transplant medicine, with broader studies planned to assess safety and applicability to other organ transplants.
A large-scale analysis of human lungs and lung-draining lymph nodes shows that tissue-resident memory T (TRM) cells in humans are durable and diverse, with many being pathogen-specific and persisting for months to years—contrary to the rapid attrition seen in mice. Using single-cell transcriptomics and TCR profiling, plus donor-matched and public TCR resources, the study imputes pathogen specificities to a substantial fraction of lung T cells and reveals prevalent CD4+ TRM responses to a broad range of respiratory viruses, bacteria, herpesviruses, and fungi. TRM clones largely persist in the lung independent of blood migration, and the LLN is unlikely to be the major reservoir for these cells. The work also notes intraindividual heterogeneity, with some pathogens generating both TRM-biased and non-TRM-biased clones. These findings have implications for vaccines aiming to bolster durable lung TRM-mediated protection and highlight differences between human and mouse TRM maintenance.
A Nature Metabolism study shows lipids in ovarian cancer ascites rewire T cell membranes and metabolism, notably 18:0–18:2 phosphatidylcholine, which impairs T cell activation by disrupting nanoscale TCR clustering in the immunological synapse. These lipids alter membrane order and TCR recycling, reducing activation at physiological concentrations; pre-activated T cells can overcome the barrier, pointing to strategies to improve adoptive T cell therapies for ovarian cancer.
A BuzzFeed health roundup collects 19 astonishing medical facts that med students say blew their minds, covering everything from direct outside-to-peritoneal pathways and pregnancies occurring with only one ovary and one fallopian tube on opposite sides, to neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), real-time cerebellar motor plan updates, and bone-marrow transplants as stem-cell reinfusions. The list also highlights the body’s cancer surveillance, amniotic-fluid origins, and other surprising bits of anatomy, physiology, and pharmacology, drawing on sources like StatPearls, PubMed, ASH, and WHO to showcase the awe-inspiring complexity of the human body.
Medical students share 19 astonishing facts about the human body, from surprising routes for sperm and rare pregnancy scenarios to immune defenses, real-time motor corrections by the cerebellum, how bone marrow transplants are performed via IV, and broader lessons like pattern recognition in drug action, inflammation as a driver of disease, and the vaccine-driven eradication of smallpox—proof of the body's extraordinary complexity.
A UCLA-led study found that creatine supports dendritic cells, which activate T cells to attack cancer. Creatine transport into cells increases energy (ATP); creatine deficiency impaired dendritic cell activity and T-cell responses in mice. In mice, daily creatine injections slowed tumor growth and boosted dendritic cell infiltration; in human cells, creatine enhanced dendritic cell activation and their ability to stimulate T cells against cancer targets. The researchers propose creatine could augment immunotherapies and improve dendritic cell–based vaccines, but caution that results are early and human effects are not yet proven; consult doctors before starting any supplement.
A Science Translational Medicine study reveals how Epstein-Barr virus triggers immune responses that contribute to inflammation and nervous system damage in multiple sclerosis, a finding that could lead to vaccines or antiviral therapies tailored to MS with fewer side effects than current immunosuppressants.
Researchers report a novel vaccine concept that trains the immune system to recognize a broad fentanyl drug class rather than a single molecule by using a redesigned hapten attached to a carrier protein. In mice, the modified vaccine produced antibodies that bound fentanyl and several dangerous analogs (carfentanil, acetylfentanyl, furanylfentanyl) while ignoring morphine and other opioids, shifted fentanyl away from the brain into the blood, and prevented respiratory depression following exposure, indicating strong protection against overdose. The approach is intended as a safety net rather than a cure for addiction and translation to humans remains to be tested; researchers also plan broader testing and clinical trials, and they released the work patent-free.
Researchers at the ISSCR 2026 meeting report a first-in-human approach using hypoimmune, allogeneic insulin-producing cells that may persist and function without lifelong immunosuppression, potentially moving cell replacement therapies for type 1 diabetes toward a functional cure; durability and scalability remain key questions.