Category Archives: Microorganisms

Balancing modern and ancient anti-viral immunity

Posted on 13 July 2020 by mmmbitesizescience

The human genome is stuffed full of ancient retrovirus genomes, a heritable legacy of ancestral infections. These pieces of DNA are dynamic elements, and can hop around the human genome and drive its ongoing diversification. Mostly, though, they are kept … Continue reading →

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Posted in Disease, Evolution, Health, Science, Virology, Viruses | Leave a comment

Using Viruses to Tune T Cell Functionality

Posted on 13 July 2020 by mmmbitesizescience

As we have learned more about the world of microbes, it’s become clear that it’s possible to use bacteria and viruses as treatments against disease. But although microbes often work incredibly well at protecting against infections or attacking tumours, we … Continue reading →

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Posted in Bacteria, Cancer Immunotherapy, Disease, Health, Immunology, Microorganisms, Oncolytic Virus, Personalised Medicine, Science, Vaccines, Virology, Viruses | Leave a comment

Parasite proves proficient at immune scooping

Posted on 13 July 2020 by mmmbitesizescience

As T cells bumble around our bodies, they are constantly on stand-by to recognise pathogenic target proteins. These pieces of protein are presented to T cells for inspection by other immune cells, known as antigen-presenting cells (APCs). The T cells … Continue reading →

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Posted in Disease, Immunology, Microorganisms, Parasites, Science | Leave a comment

Childhood obesity linked to poor vaccine protection

Posted on 13 July 2020 by mmmbitesizescience

Obese adults are at a greater risk of getting infected by – and dying from – influenza viruses like the pandemic H1N1. So, it’s probably very important for obese individuals to get their flu shot each year. Yet interesting research … Continue reading →

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Posted in Disease, Health, Immunology, Obesity, Science, Vaccines, Viruses | Leave a comment

Leaky oncolytic viruses linked to better anti-tumour outcomes

Posted on 13 July 2020 by mmmbitesizescience

There is currently a real push in the field of oncolytic virotherapy to create tightly cancer-targeted viruses that minimise side-effects in normal healthy tissues. Yet new research from North Carolina State University suggests that using a less stringently targeted virus … Continue reading →

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Posted in Oncolytic Virus, Science, Viruses | Leave a comment