Category Archives: Immunology

Use of antibiotics in farming ‘endangering human immune system’

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Study suggests antimicrobial used to promote livestock growth breeds bacteria more resistant to our natural defences

The blanket use of antibiotics in farming has led to the emergence of bacteria that are more resistant to the human immune system, scientists have warned.

The research suggests that the antimicrobial colistin, which was used for decades as a growth promoter on pig and chicken farms in China, resulted in the emergence of E coli strains that are more likely to evade our immune system’s first line of defence.

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First patients of pioneering CAR T-cell therapy ‘cured of cancer’

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Cancer-killing cells still present 10 years on, with results suggesting therapy is a cure for certain blood cancers

Two of the first human patients to be treated with a revolutionary therapy that engineers immune cells to target specific types of cancer still possess cancer-killing cells a decade later with no sign of their illness returning.

The finding suggests CAR T-cell therapy constitutes a “cure” for certain blood cancers, although adapting it to treat solid tumours is proving more challenging.

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What does appearance of Omicron variant mean for the double-vaccinated?

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We find out how much protection Covid vaccines may offer amid speculation new variant could be more resistant

The emergence of Omicron has prompted widespread speculation that it may be more resistant to Covid-19 vaccines than existing variants, including Delta. But what does that mean for the average double-vaccinated person?

All the vaccines currently available in the UK work by training the immune system against the coronavirus spike protein – the key it uses to infect cells by binding to the ACE2 receptor. Omicron possesses more than 30 mutations in this protein, including 10 in the so-called “receptor-binding domain” (RBD) – the specific part that latches on to this receptor. Delta has two RBD mutations.

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Science YouTuber Philipp Dettmer: ‘Getting cancer was super-interesting’

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The online star with 15 million subscribers on demystifying everything from black holes to the immune system, the trouble with anti-vaxxers, and what his cancer taught him

Skim Philipp Dettmer’s CV and you’d have to say he was an improbable candidate to become one of the world’s foremost science communicators. The 35-year-old from Munich dropped out of high school in Germany aged 15. He eventually did a history degree, and only became involved in science through his interest in infographics. This led, in 2013, to him creating Kurzgesagt (AKA “In a nutshell”), one of the most popular science channels on YouTube. The platform’s irreverent, kaleidoscopic videos – stripped-back guides to everything from black holes to Covid – have more than 15 million subscribers and have clocked up almost 1.5bn views.

Dettmer has now written a book about the human immune system, which has intrigued him for more than a decade. Everyone has an opinion on theirs – whether it’s good or not up to much; how best to “boost” it – but it can be a struggle to understand how it works. In Immune: A Journey into the Mysterious System That Keeps You Alive, Dettmer uses eye-catching graphics and simple language to untangle the strange, compelling, sometimes grisly methods our bodies use to defend us from disease.

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Is Europe’s Covid wave coming here – or is Britain ahead of the curve?

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Analysis: many experts believe that the continent is only now tackling a Delta variant surge that arrived in the UK some time ago

Once again the UK and Europe are heading in opposite directions. While Covid-19 cases in Britain have been declining, those in France, Germany, Austria and several other countries have risen dramatically in recent weeks. A fourth pandemic wave threatens to break over these nations, raising the prospect of renewed lockdowns there.

This raises a critically important question: is the UK likely to follow suit in a few weeks, or will Europe’s rising numbers peak and start to decline, as they have been doing in Britain? Will Europe follow us or will we follow Europe?

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Without Covid-19 jab, ‘reinfection may occur every 16 months’

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Reports grow of repeat infection as experts warn prevalence among school pupils puts older people at risk

As Covid-19 infections surge in England, people are increasingly reporting catching Sars-CoV-2 for a second or even third time.

New analysis has suggested that unvaccinated individuals should expect to be reinfected with Covid-19 every 16 months, on average.

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Vaccinologist Barbie: Prof Sarah Gilbert honoured with a doll

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Co-creator of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab hopes it will inspire young girls to enter Stem careers

Prof Sarah Gilbert has had quite a year. The co-creator of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab has been made a dame, been given an emotional standing ovation at Wimbledon – and now a Barbie doll has been made in her honour.

Gilbert, who led the development of the Covid vaccine at Oxford University, said she initially found the gesture “very strange” but hoped it would inspire young girls to work in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (Stem).

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Age, sex, vaccine dose, chronic illness – insight into risk factors for severe Covid is growing

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A look at the demographics as 18.5 million people in the UK fall into the heightened risk category

About 18.5 million individuals, or 24.4% of the UK population, are at increased risk of developing severe Covid because of underlying health conditions. It is well known that older people are at high risk, but the understanding of all the risk factors is incomplete. Experts say that this knowledge needs to develop at speed to support policy and planning given that social restrictions will end in England on 19 July.

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Vaccine inequality: how rich countries cut Covid deaths as poorer fall behind

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Developed countries are seeing the benefits of quickly vaccinating their populations, but concerns remain about the unequal share of global vaccine supplies

New analysis by the Guardian has confirmed that a speedy Covid vaccination campaign pays off when it comes to escaping the worst of the pandemic.

As the chart below shows, countries such as Israel, the UK and the US have all seen deaths decline as vaccination coverage extended to the most vulnerable in their societies.

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Should England open up on 21 June? The factors Johnson must consider

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The prime minister has a host of problems to weigh up before deciding to remove all legal restrictions on social contact

The key issue is the extent to which infections of the Delta variant first detected in India will lead to hospitalisations and deaths. The problem is that it’s too early to say. Because of the lag between cases and admissions to hospital, many experts say a short delay could be a major benefit to understanding that relationship. “With the current knowledge about Delta, we can’t really predict the size of that wave,” said Anne Cori of Imperial College London’s modelling group. “Delaying the easing allows time to accumulate more evidence about the characteristics of Delta. And I hope in a few weeks, we would be in a better position to predict what the epidemic may look like in the next few weeks or months.”

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Call for ‘surge vaccinations’ as UK cases of India variant double

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Sources say government poised to approve jab for over-16s in worst-affected areas

Ministers are under growing pressure to deploy “surge vaccinations” in Covid hotspots, with some local authorities pushing to extend the offer of jabs to over-18s to stop the spread of a coronavirus variant.

Boris Johnson said he was anxious about the spread of the variant first detected in India, as cases more than doubled in a week.

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Add India to UK travel ban list to stop Covid variant, urges scientist

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Indian coronavirus variant has potential to ‘scupper’ lockdown easing, says professor of immunology

India should be placed on the UK’s “red list” for travel after the discovery of a new coronavirus variant, according to a leading scientist.

Prof Danny Altmann, from Imperial College London, said it was “mystifying” and “confounding” that those flying in from the country were not required to stay in a hotel.

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France and Germany’s Covid vaccination programmes pick up speed

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As daily inoculations hit record figures, warning comes of new delays

Vaccine rollouts in France and Germany have finally begun to pick up speed, after a slow start and problems with supplies and bureaucracy.

France continues to struggle to contain a third Covid-19 wave, but announced it had hit its 10 million inoculations target a week earlier than expected, while Germany doubled the number of vaccinations, administering a record 720,000 doses on Thursday after the rollout was extended to family doctors.

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Nelson urged mistress to give their baby girl ‘new’ smallpox vaccine

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Naval hero praises Jenner’s cowpox jab in a newly found love letter to Emma Hamilton, written as he prepared for war

He is best remembered as the one-armed hero who defeated Napoleon, rewrote the rules of naval warfare and died at sea, in battle, onboard HMS Victory.

Now, the “chance discovery” of a 220-year-old love letter from Admiral Horatio Nelson to Lady Emma Hamilton, his mistress, reveals how open-minded and ahead of his time the formidable captain was about a radical new scientific breakthrough: the smallpox vaccine. In the letter, dated July 1801, Nelson appears to advocate the use of the brand new vaccine on his own baby daughter.

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‘South Africa is going to get a third wave of coronavirus, even a fourth’

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Covid fatigue, super-spreader events and a virulent local variant of the virus put economy and healthcare in crisis

South Africa is struggling to contain a second wave of Covid-19 infections, fuelled by a virulent new local variant of the virus, “Covid fatigue” and a series of “super-spreader” events.

On Thursday health officials announced 844 deaths and 21,832 new cases in a 24-hour period, the worst toll yet. Experts believe the second wave has yet to reach its peak in the country of 60 million, and fear healthcare services in the country’s main economic and cultural hub may struggle to cope with the influx of patients.

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‘Autoantibodies’ may be driving severe Covid cases, study shows

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Scientists find aberrant immune system in patients with virus could also be cause of ‘long Covid’

Dramatic levels of “friendly fire” from the immune system may drive severe Covid-19 disease and leave patients with “long Covid” – when medical problems persist for a significant time after the virus has been beaten – scientists have said.

Researchers at Yale University found that Covid-19 patients had large numbers of misguided antibodies in their blood that targeted the organs, tissues and the immune system itself, rather than fighting off the invading virus.

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T-cell Covid immunity ‘present in adults six months after first infection’

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Study suggests white blood cell levels higher in people who had symptoms

Cellular (T-cell) immunity against the virus that causes Covid-19 is likely to be present within most adults six months after primary infection, with levels considerably higher in patients with symptoms, a study suggests.

The data offers another piece of the puzzle that could be key to understanding whether previous Sars-CoV-2 infections – the virus behind Covid-19 – can prevent reinfection, and if so, for how long.

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Pakistan polio fears as Covid-19 causes millions of children to miss vaccinations

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Officials voice concern as coronavirus halts annual programme in country already struggling against resurgence in cases

In April, almost 40 million children missed their polio drops in Pakistan after the cancellation of the nationwide vaccination campaign. 

Alongside Afghanistan, Pakistan is one of only two countries in the world where polio is still endemic. It was very close to becoming  polio free, with only 12 cases in 2018, but last year the number of cases rose to 147. In the same year, Pakistan was  accused of covering up the resurgence of the P2 strain of the virus, which was thought to have been eradicated in 2014. 

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Caesarean babies have different gut bacteria, microbiome study finds

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C-section babies pick up more hospital bacteria than those born vaginally, research shows

Babies born by caesarean section have different gut bacteria to those delivered vaginally, the most comprehensive study to date on the baby microbiome has found.

The study showed that babies born vaginally pick up most of their initial dose of bacteria from their mother, while C-section babies have more bugs linked to hospital environments, including strains that demonstrate antimicrobial resistance. The findings could explain the higher prevalence of asthma, allergies and other immune conditions in babies born by caesarean.

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