immunology

A newly identified group of viruses may help suppress eukaryotes’ immune response and promote tolerance of endosymbiotic bacteria.

An accumulation of T cells and astrocytes in postmortem brain tissue hints at possible autoimmune origins for many cases of autism.

Recent work in humans and mice highlights how exposure to environmental microbes helps protect against allergies and other inflammatory diseases.

A T cell discovery, “hachimoji” DNA, a new species of human, and mounting fears of espionage rounded off the list this year.

To advance the possibility of off-the-shelf cardiac cell therapies, scientists devise an engineered cardiac stem cell that avoids stimulating a detrimental immune attack.

The low-carb, high-fat diet increases the presence of gamma-delta T cells in the animals’ lungs, improving a mucus barrier against the virus.

Many dominant T cell variants decline during pregnancy and reappear afterward, possibly explaining why relapses of the autoimmune disease are less common when women are expecting.

Two studies present biological evidence that measles infections in unvaccinated children wipe out immune memories of other pathogens, putting the kids at risk of other deadly diseases.

The move will allow the Belgium-headquartered biopharmaceutical giant to boost its work on treatments for rare diseases.

Small RNAs called piRNAs provide a first line of defense against the viruses.

See neutrophil extracellular traps in antibacterial action.

While neutrophil extracellular traps help guard the body from infection, they also can contribute to a range of diseases.

Extracellular webs expelled by neutrophils trap invading pathogens, but these newly discovered structures also have ties to autoimmunity and cancer.

Meet some of the people featured in the October 2019 issue of The Scientist.

The 2019 Lasker medical and research awards celebrate advances in scientists’ understanding of T and B cells, Herceptin antibodies for treating breast cancer, and vaccine coverage around the globe.

Antibiotics disrupt the immune response to the influenza vaccine in people who haven’t recently had exposure to the virus or immunization.

Researchers find evidence of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), sticky clumps of DNA and protein extruded by neutrophils, holding gallstones together.

Scientists spent five years reconstructing what is now the oldest HIV-1 genome yet recovered.

The company Cell Vault offers to hold consumers’ T cells for later use, but scientists suggest the service would benefit very few users.

The Johns Hopkins University researcher’s work helped solidify the link between human papillomavirus and cervical cancer, leading to the approval of the HPV vaccine in 2006.