Human Immunology News 7.22 June 11, 2019 | |
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TOP STORYTumor-Associated Macrophages Exhibit Anti-Tumoral Properties in Sonic Hedgehog Medulloblastoma Researchers report an unexpected beneficial role of tumor-associated macrophages in Sonic Hedgehog medulloblastoma. In human patients, decreased macrophage number was correlated with significantly poorer outcome. [Nat Commun] Full Article | |
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PUBLICATIONS(Ranked by impact factor of the journal)To prospectively identify patients showing response to therapy, scientists stained peripheral blood samples of non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients treated with 2nd line nivolumab, as well as healthy controls, with multiplex flow cytometry. They enumerated 18 immune cell subsets and assessed expression for 28 T cell markers, which was followed by dimensionality reduction as well as rationale-based analyses. [J Immunother Cancer] Full Article Vitamin C Promotes the Proliferation and Effector Functions of Human γδ T Cells The authors investigated the effects of vitamin C and its more stable derivative, L-ascorbic acid 2-phosphate, on the proliferation and effector function of human γδ T cells stimulated with zoledronate or synthetic phosphoantigens. [Cell Mol Immunol] Abstract As anti-adeno-associated virus (AAV) T-cell responses are believed to influence transduction, investigators characterized anti-AAV T-cell responses using interleukin-2 and interferon-γ ELISpot assays, revealing a similar prevalence of interferon-γ responses against different serotypes that did not correlate with neutralizing antibodies. [Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev] Abstract | Full Article To better understand H7N9 pathogenesis in relation to monocyte cell death, the authors showed that extensive phosphorylation of mixed lineage kinase domain-like protein occurred concurrently with the activation of caspases-8, -9 and -3 in H7N9-infected monocytes at six hours post infection, indicating that apoptosis and necroptosis pathways were simultaneously activated. [Cell Death Dis] Full Article The RIG-I Pathway Is Involved in Peripheral T Cell Lymphopenia in Patients with Dermatomyositis Researchers determined retinoic acid-inducible gene I (RIG-I) expression in peripheral T lymphocytes and explored the correlation between RIG-I and T cell lymphopenia in dermatomyositis. [Arthritis Res Ther] Full Article Scientists showed that vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) can impair the migration capacity and immune function of mature dendritic cells (mDCs) through RhoA‐cofilin1 pathway mediated by the VEGF receptor 2 (VEGFR2), suggesting that impaired motility of mDCs by VEGF is one of the aspects of immune escape mechanisms of tumors. [Cancer Sci] Abstract Investigators report the outcomes and validation, using five different T-cell receptors (TCRs), of the use of CRISPR-Cas9 with non-virally delivered template DNA for the elimination of endogenous TCR chains and for the orthotopic placement of TCRs in human T cells. [Nat Biomed Eng] Abstract The authors determined lymphocyte subsets (B, T, NK, NKT, iNKT, dendritic cells, and regulatory T cells) in 68 newly diagnosed patients and 113 healthy donors. [Int J Hematol] Abstract Researchers report that a population of pro-inflammatory TRAV1-2+ CD8+ T cells were present in the airways and lungs of healthy individuals and were enriched in bronchoalveolar fluid of patients with active pulmonary tuberculosis. High-throughput T cell receptor analysis revealed oligoclonal expansions of canonical and donor-unique TRAV1-2+ mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT)-consistent TCRα sequences within this population. [Commun Biol] Full Article Subscribe to our sister publications: Immunology of Infectious Disease News & Immune Regulation News. | |
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REVIEWSImmune Cell Therapy for Hepatocellular Carcinoma The authors focus on hepatocellular carcinoma among other solid tumors and discuss the current status and future of immune cell therapy in cancer immunotherapy. [J Hematol Oncol] Full Article Visit our reviews page to see a complete list of reviews in the human immunology research field. | |
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INDUSTRY NEWSMerck to Acquire Tilos Therapeutics Merck announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Tilos Therapeutics, a privately held biopharmaceutical company developing therapeutics targeting the latent TGFβ complex for the treatment of cancer, fibrosis and autoimmune diseases. [Merck & Co., Inc.] Press Release Kiadis Pharma Completes Acquisition of Cytosen Therapeutics, Inc. Kiadis Pharma N.V. announced that it has closed the previously announced acquisition of CytoSen Therapeutics, Inc. [Kiadis Pharma N.V.] Press Release Allogene Therapeutics, Inc. announced that the FDA has cleared Allogene’s Investigational New Drug (IND) application for ALLO-715 in patients with relapsed/refractory multiple myeloma. [Allogene Therapeutics, Inc.] Press Release | |
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POLICY NEWSStem Cell Clinics Co-Opt Clinical-Trials Registry to Market Unproven Therapies, Critics Say On the one hand, the FDA issued a letter stating that what an Arizona distributor was selling as stem cell therapies were “unapproved” and posed “safety concerns.” On the other, a National Institutes of Health database — clinicaltrials.gov — went right on listing the same merchant’s studies, with a link to the company’s website and the word “Recruiting” displayed invitingly in green. [STAT News] Editorial Sudanese Academics Defiant as Revolution Turns Bloody Sudan’s universities are shut, flights have been suspended and the Internet remains almost entirely blocked after a brutal crackdown in which paramilitaries are thought to have killed some 100 pro-democracy protestors. But none of this has dented the resolve of the protestors, whose ranks include several prominent academics and whose demands include freeing universities from government influence. [Nature News] Editorial Wellcome Sanger Institute to Close Animal Facility The Wellcome Sanger Institute announced that it would be closing its animal facility, which provides mice, zebrafish, rats, and frogs to geneticists at the institute and internationally, reports Nature. The institute states that the closure is related to the growing use of cell lines and organoids, instead of animals. [The Scientist] Editorial
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EVENTSNEW World Vaccine Congress Europe Visit our events page to see a complete list of events in the community.
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JOB OPPORTUNITIESNEW Faculty Position – Immunology and Ion Channels (NYU Langone Health) NEW Scientific Manager – Immunology (MD Anderson Cancer Center) NEW Senior Research Assistant – Immunology (MD Anderson Cancer Center) Postdoctoral Fellow – Immunology (Boston University) PhD Position – Infection Biology/Mucosal Immunology (RWTH University Hospital) Postdoctoral Position – Immunology (KU Leuven) Postdoctoral Opportunities – Tumor Microenvironment/Immunology (Oregon Health & Science University) Postdoctoral Position – Immunology of Enteric Infections (University of Utah) Recruit Top Talent: Reach potential candidates by posting your organization’s career opportunities on the Connexon Creative Job Board at no cost.
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