Authors: the ISBT COVID-19 Working Group School of Medicine Abstract Growing evidence suggests that ABO blood group may play a role in the immunopathogenesis of SARS-CoV-2 infection, with group O individuals less likely to test positive and group A conferring a higher susceptibility to infection and propensity to severe disease. The level of evidence supporting […]
Authors: Alberto Mantovani, M.D., and Mihai G. Netea, M.D. Innate immunity is mediated by different cell types and cell-associated or fluid-phase pattern-recognition molecules and plays a key role in tissue repair and resistance against pathogens.1 Exposure to selected vaccines, such as bacille Calmette–Guérin (BCG) or microbial components, can increase the baseline tone of innate immunity and trigger […]
People who have had mild illness develop antibody–producing cells that can last lifetime Authors: by Tamara Bhandari•May 24, 2021 Months after recovering from mild cases of COVID-19, people still have immune cells in their body pumping out antibodies against the virus that causes COVID-19, according to a study from researchers at Washington University School of Medicine […]
Authors: From the Office of the Chief Medical Officer, CDC COVID-19 Response, and the CDC Library, Atlanta GA. Intended for use by public health professionals responding to the COVID-19 pandemic. PEER-REVIEWED Safety, immunogenicity, and efficacy of the BNT162b2 COVID-19 vaccine in adolescents.external icon Frenck et al. NEJM (May 27, 2021). Key findings: Vaccine efficacy was 100% (95% CI 75.3%-100%) […]
Authors: Eric J. Kremer1,∗ Main Text Most of us might be surprised by the rudimentary scientific rationale prevalent in the field of vaccine research just 50 years ago. For over a century after Louis Pasteur’s vaccine against rabies, approaches usually consisted of inactivating a virus, injecting it, and seeing if it protected the host. Unlike […]
Authors: Markus Bosmann1,2,3,4,* The complement system is an integral part of innate immune defense. It consists of about 50 proteins in plasma, on cell surfaces, and inside host cells. The traditional view is that complement proteins guard the local extracellular spaces and systemic bloodstream against invading pathogens. Loss-of-function mutations resulting in terminal complement pathway deficiencies […]