Explore more about: Immunoengineering

What if bacteria—which love to grow deep inside tumors—could guide cancer therapies directly to their target? NIH-funded researchers have engineered a bacterial strain to “light up” tumors so that reprogrammed T cells, drawn like a moth to a flame, can find and destroy them. Their preclinical treatment could potentially be effective against any solid tumor type.

Introducing medical devices — commonly made of materials such as titanium, silicone, or collagen — into our bodies can elicit a host of different immune responses. While some responses can harm our bodies, others can help heal them. A new study fills in a critical piece of the puzzle.

The gut microbiome can impact us in a variety of different ways, from our metabolism to our mood. Now, NIBIB-funded researchers are investigating if a fiber-based gel can restore beneficial microbes in the gut to enhance the efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors, a type of cancer immunotherapy treatment.

NIH researchers report that the prevalence of COVID-19 in the United States during spring and summer of 2020 far exceeded the known number of cases. For every diagnosed COVID-19 case in this time frame, the researchers estimate that there were 4.8 undiagnosed cases, representing an additional 16.8 million cases by July alone.

While immunotherapies work well for some cancers, others are immune-resistant and condemn patients to the severe side effects of long-term chemo treatment. A new cancer vaccine successfully treated immune-resistant breast cancer in mice, 100% of which survived a second injection of cancer cells, indicating long-term immunity with no side effects.

A team has developed a class of light-switchable, highly adaptable molecular tools with new capabilities to control cellular activities. The antibody-like proteins, called OptoBinders, have potential applications including protein purification, the improved production of biofuels, and new types of targeted cancer therapies.

A new study has begun recruiting at the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, to determine how many adults in the United States without a confirmed history of infection with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), have antibodies to the virus.

New research shows, a biodegradable nanoparticle acts like a Trojan horse, hiding an allergen in a friendly shell, to convince the immune system not to attack.

Researchers at MIT have engineered capsules that could protect insulin-producing cells, derived from stem cells, from being attacked by the immune system.

Minor variants of flu strains, which are not typically targeted in vaccines, carry a bigger viral punch than previously realized, a team of scientists has found. Its research, which examined samples from the 2009 flu pandemic in Hong Kong, shows that these minor strains are transmitted along with the major strains and can replicate and elude immunizations.