Little has been known to date about how the immune system's natural killer (NK) cells detect which cells have been infected with SARS-CoV-2. An international team of scientist led by researchers from Karolinska Institutet in Sweden now shows that NK cells respond to a certain peptide on the surface of infected cells.
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New study finds COVID-19 vaccination boosts mental health along with immunity
Getting vaccinated for COVID-19 measurably improved the psychological well-being of participants in the Understanding Coronavirus in America study, a large longitudinal look at the impact of the pandemic on individuals in the United States. Vaccination was associated with declines in distress and perceived risks of infection, hospitalization, and death.
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Antibodies improve in quality for months after COVID-19 vaccination
For at least six months after COVID-19 vaccination, antibodies produced by immune cells become steadily more formidable and more precisely targeted against the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a study of the antibody response to the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.
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Promising molecule for treatment of COVID-19
Uppsala researchers have succeeded in designing a molecule that inhibits the replication of coronaviruses and that has great potential for development into a drug suitable for treating COVID-19. The molecule is effective against both the new variant and previously identified coronaviruses. The article has been published in the Journal of the American Chemical Society.
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Scientists identified vulnerable site on multiple coronaviruses
The COVID-causing virus SARS-CoV-2 harbors a vulnerable site at the base of its spike protein that is found also on closely related coronaviruses, according to a new study from Scripps Research. The discovery, published in Science Translational Medicine, could inform the design of broad-acting vaccines and antibody therapies capable of stopping future coronavirus pandemics.
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Suppressing the spread of tumors
Why some patients develop metastases and others do not is largely unclear. Researchers around ISTA professor Daria Siekhaus are now contributing to a better understanding of the process in certain types of cancer. They took a close look at the role of a protein called MFSD1 - the mammalian relative of a protein they had previously identified as affecting cell migration in fruit flies.
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With personalized medicine, a shelved cancer drug could get another shot
A study by Virginia Commonwealth University Massey Cancer Center researchers published in today's print edition of Molecular Cancer Therapeutics shows that triplatin is effective against triple negative breast cancer, which is the most aggressive form of breast cancer and has few targeted therapies.
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