Tag Archive for 'Immune cell'

An illustration of an adult male woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) navigates a mountain pass in Arctic Alaska, 17,100 years ago. Image credit: James Havens / University of Alaska Museum of the North.

Woolly Mammoths Carried Highly Evolved Genes Related to Hair, Skin, Fat Metabolism, and Immunity

Apr 10, 2023 by News Staff

In new research, scientists analyzed 23 ancient genomes of woolly mammoths (Mammuthus primigenius), including one of the oldest known specimens at 700,000...

Duan et al. identified a mechanism of intestinal Th17 cell differentiation that emerges from an intestinal epithelial cell-associated an unfolded protein response. Image credit: Duan et al., doi: 10.1016/j.immuni.2023.02.018.

Xanthine Plays Important Role in Gut Health, New Study Suggests

Mar 15, 2023 by News Staff

Xanthine, which is found in coffee, tea and chocolate, may play a role in the generation of interleukin-17-producing T helper (Th17) cells, an important...

Caffeic and chlorogenic acids are commonly found phenolic acids in plant-derived foods and beverages; their corresponding adducts with an amino acid called cysteine have been detected in coffee-containing beverages. Image credit: StockSnap.

Coffee With Milk Have Anti-Inflammatory Effect, New Study Says

Jan 30, 2023 by News Staff

A combination of proteins and antioxidants doubles the anti-inflammatory properties in immune cells, according to a new paper published in the Journal...

Scanning electron micrograph of an HIV-infected H9 T cell. Image credit: NIAID.

Second HIV Patient Naturally Achieved ‘Sterilizing Cure of Infection,’ Researchers Say

Nov 19, 2021 by News Staff

A 30-year-old woman from the city of Esperanza, Argentina — the so-called Esperanza Patient — appears to be the second person whose immune...

Snyder et al. show that distinct populations of phagocytic cells in cauliflower corals (Pocillopora damicornis) and starlet sea anemones (Nematostella vectensis) engulf bacteria, fungal antigens, and beads. The image shows a cauliflower coral cell challenged with Staphylococcus aureus. Yellow arrow shows an internalized, pH-activated Staphylococcus aureus particle that fluoresces bright green at a low pH. White arrows indicate the cocci bacterial particles. Staphylococcus aureus particles are fluorescent after the fusion of the bacteria with the lysolitic vesicle, which leads to lowered pH. Scale bar - 10 μm. Image credit: Snyder et al., doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.662803.

Marine Biologists Find Live Immune Cells in Corals and Sea Anemones

Aug 19, 2021 by News Staff

Corals and sea anemones have at least two populations of immune cells and that these specialized cells make up about 3% of the total cell population, according...

Genomic analyses of wildtype and TET-deficient Treg cells, and iTreg cells treated with the TET activator vitamin C, show that TET proteins are essential for the maintenance of Treg signatures and IL-2/STAT5 signaling. Image credit: Yue et al., doi: 10.15252/embr.202152716.

Vitamin C is Key Ingredient for Immune Cell Function, Study Shows

Jul 22, 2021 by News Staff

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) help control inflammation and autoimmunity in the body. These cells are so important that scientists are working to generate...

Diet-induced obesity results in Paneth cell dysfunction in humans and mice. Image credit: Liu et al., doi: 10.1016/j.chom.2021.04.004.

Western Diet Causes Damage to Immune Cells in Gut, Study Shows

May 19, 2021 by News Staff

Paneth cells, immune cells in the gastrointestinal epithelia, modulate innate immunity and infection. In Crohn’s disease, genetic mutations together...

Scanning electron micrograph of a human T cell. Image credit: NIAID.

Biologists Discover New Type of T Cell

Mar 26, 2021 by News Staff

Biologists have analyzed T cells from the gray short-tailed opossum (Monodelphis domestica) and uncovered a previously unknown lineage, called γµ T cells,...

Ginger is known to have anti-inflammatory and anti-oxidative effects, and has traditionally been used as an herbal supplement in the treatment of various chronic diseases. Image credit: Joseph Mucira.

Ginger-Derived Compound May Help Prevent Lupus and Antiphospholipid Syndrome

Jan 7, 2021 by News Staff

In a study published in the journal JCI Insight, 6-gingerol, the most abundant bioactive compound of ginger root, lowered autoantibody production and helped...

Eating 200 g of blueberries every day for a month can lead to an improvement in blood vessel function and a decrease in systolic blood pressure in healthy people. Image credit: Free-Photos.

Blueberry Compound Could Help Treat Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Sep 30, 2020 by News Staff

Pterostilbene, a resveratrol-related polyphenolic compound found in blueberries, has strong immunosuppressive properties, according to a study published...

This high-resolution scanning electron microscope image shows an unusual tube-like structural form that is less than 1/100th the width of a human hair in size found in the Martian meteorite ALH84001. Image credit: NASA.

Immune System of Humans, Other Mammals Could Struggle to Fight Extraterrestrial Microorganisms

Jul 23, 2020 by News Staff

In a new study published in the journal Microorganisms, a team of researchers from the UK, the Netherlands and Germany tested how mammalian immune cells...

Air Force Tech Sgt. Joseph Anthony, medical technician with the 911th Aeromedical Staging Squadron, administers a vaccination to a member of the U.S. Army Reserve’s 336 Engineering Company Command and Control, Chemical Radiological and Nuclear Response Enterprise Team at the Pittsburgh International Airport Air Reserve Station, Pennsylvania, April 11, 2019. Image credit: Joshua J. Seybert, U.S. Air Force.

Live Attenuated Vaccines Could Protect against Most Severe COVID-19 Symptoms

Jun 22, 2020 by News Staff

Dr. Paul Fidel, Jr., from Louisiana State University Health – School of Dentistry and Professor Mairi Noverr from Tulane University School of Medicine...

Existing data from known coronaviruses can be used to predict which parts of SARS-CoV-2 are capable of activating the human immune system. Image credit: Grifoni et al.

Researchers Identify Targets for Effective Immune Responses to SARS-CoV-2 Coronavirus

Mar 12, 2020 by News Staff

Scientists from La Jolla Institute for Immunology, the J. Craig Venter Institute and the University of California, San Diego used existing data from known...

Immune cells count their neighbors before deciding whether or not the immune system should kick into high gear. Image credit: Northwestern University.

Immune Cells Congregate and Coordinate with Neighbors to Decide Whether to React: Study

Feb 13, 2020 by News Staff

Scientists have long known that immune cells migrate to the site of an infection, which individuals experience as inflammation. Now, a team of researchers...

Mycobacterium vaccae. Image credit: Christopher Lowry, University of Colorado, Boulder.

Novel Anti-Inflammatory Molecule Isolated from Soil-Dwelling Bacterium

Jun 19, 2019 by News Staff

About three decades after scientists coined the term ‘hygiene hypothesis’ to suggest that increased exposure to microorganisms could benefit health,...

tBHQ, at a dose relevant to human diet, impairs the primary and memory immune responses to influenza infection. Image credit: C. S. Goldsmith & A. Balish / CDC.

Widely-Used Food Additive E319 Impairs Immune Responses to Influenza Infection

Apr 8, 2019 by News Staff

A common food additive called tert-butylhydroquinone (E319) suppresses the immune response the body mounts when fighting the flu; it also reduces the effectiveness...

This diagram shows how the effects of Gαs-coupled agonists on T cells can be influenced by sleep or disease. Image credit: Dimitrov et al, doi: 10.1084/jem.20181169.

Study: Sleep Improves Ability of Human Immune Cells to Bind to Their Targets

Feb 18, 2019 by News Staff

A new study published online in the Journal of Experimental Medicine describes how sleep can fight off an infection, whereas other conditions, such as...

Fever is an evolutionarily conserved response in both endothermic and ectothermic species and confers survival benefits during infection and injury. Lin et al identify that the Hsp90-a4-integrin axis serves as a thermal sensory pathway that responds to fever to promote T cell trafficking and enhance immune surveillance during infection. Image credit: Lin et al, doi: 10.1016/j.immuni.2018.11.013.

Fever Helps Fight Off Infection by Altering Immune Cells

Jan 16, 2019 by News Staff

According to a study published in the journal Immunity, fever alters surface proteins on immune cells to make them better able to travel via blood vessels...

Plasma cells (PC) are found in the central nervous system of multiple sclerosis patients, yet their source and role in multiple sclerosis remains unclear. Rojas et al find that some PC in the central nervous system of mice with experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) originate in the gut and produce immunoglobulin A (IgA). Moreover, the researchers show that IgA + PC are dramatically reduced in the gut during EAE, and likewise, a reduction in IgA-bound fecal bacteria is seen in multiple sclerosis patients during disease relapse. Image credit: Rojas et al, doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2018.11.035.

Gut-Derived Immune Cells Reduce Brain Inflammation in Multiple Sclerosis

Jan 8, 2019 by News Staff

Studying mice and samples from multiple sclerosis patients, a research team led by University of Toronto scientists found that gut-derived immunoglobulin-A-(IgA)...

Lesional psoriatic skin. Image credit: Wu et al, doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0005227.

Compound Derived from Immune Cells Treats Psoriasis in Mice

May 8, 2018 by News Staff

A modified form of a compound called itaconate suppresses an inflammatory pathway that is overactive in many autoimmune diseases, suggesting that it may...