Vitamin D has a clear role in regulating the immune/inflammatory response and association studies have demonstrated a link between vitamin D deficiency and autoimmune diseases. However, supplementation is complicated by the lack of universal agreement about the levels that are ‘normal’ and ‘deficient’, says Professor Martin Hewison. [embedded content] Vitamin D acts in both the innate and adaptive arms of […]
Recent studies suggest that vitamin D has a much broader role in the human body than its well-documented effects on calcium homeostasis and bone metabolism. It has a role in normal immune function and could play a part in autoimmune disease. IMI spoke to Martin Hewison, Professor of molecular endocrinology at the University of Birmingham, to find out more. [embedded […]
Type I interferon (IFN) is a powerful immune activator that is present at high levels in the majority of patients with lupus, an autoimmune disease. In Arthritis & Rheumatology, researchers report positive results from the first placebo-controlled long-term trial of anifrolumab—a human monoclonal antibody that targets the type I IFN receptor—in patients with lupus. In the long-term extension trial of two […]
Though the COVID-19 pandemic provided a brief respite, influenza virus is back in circulation and, as usual, poses a special danger to people over the age of 65. But why are older people more susceptible to the flu? New research from the U-M Medical School, published in Nature Communications, offers clues. The study, led by first author Judy Chen, a Ph.D. […]
Starting antiretroviral treatment (ART) early in the course of HIV infection when the immune system is stronger results in better long-term health outcomes compared with delaying ART, according to findings presented today at the IDWeek Conference in Washington, D.C. The findings are based on an extended follow-up of participants in the National Institutes of Health-funded Strategic Timing of Antiretroviral Treatment […]
Researchers reported a 20 percent advantage in the two-year overall survival rate for subjects with advanced melanoma and a mutation in the BRAF gene, specifically a BRAF V600 mutation, who were initially treated with immunotherapy (72 percent survival rate) compared with subjects initially treated with targeted therapies (52 percent survival rate). The findings from the DREAMseq trial were published on September 28, 2022 in […]
Supporting actors sometimes steal the show. In a new study published today in Cell, researchers headed by Prof. Ido Amit at the Weizmann Institute of Science have shown that supporting cells called fibroblasts, long viewed as uniform background players, are in fact extremely varied and vital. A subset of these cells, according to the study, may lie at the origins of […]
Scientists have identified a protein known as sulfatase-2 that plays a critical role in the damage caused by rheumatoid arthritis. A chronic disease in which the immune system attacks the body’s own joint tissues, rheumatoid arthritis affects an estimated 1.5 million Americans. Published in the journal Cellular & Molecular Immunology, the discovery sheds new light on the molecular processes that drive […]
New study data shows that the immuno-oncology drug, atezolizumab (pronounced a” te zoe liz’ ue mab, marketed as Tecentriq) is a safe and effective treatment for stage IB-IIIB non-small cell lung cancer patients prior to lung cancer surgery, according to a new study led by researchers with The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center – Arthur G. James Cancer Hospital and […]
A University of Cincinnati study found administering an immunotherapy drug before surgery for oral cavity cancer did not lead to increased rates of complications during and after surgery. The findings were published Aug. 25 in the journal JAMA Otolaryngology — Head & Neck Surgery. Alice Tang, MD, first author on the study, said the research built upon previous findings led by […]
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