The COVID vaccine is out -- and no one needs it more than the elderly. But vaccines don't work as well in older people. A group at Oxford is trying to address this by adding a simple (but nasty-smelling) naturally-occurring chemical that makes damaged cells eat themselves.
immune system
Many people have a very legitimate question: "Should I get immunized with the coronavirus vaccine if I already had COVID?" The answer is yes.
Vaccines have advantages over natural infections. For one, they can be designed to focus the immune system against specific antigens that elicit better responses.
If Pfizer's coronavirus vaccine is successful, it will be the first-ever mRNA vaccine on the market. How is the vaccine made and how does it work?
It's now more than seven months into the pandemic in the U.S. and doctors and scientists have been trying pretty much everything -- with little to show for their efforts. Perhaps the most effort has gone into finding drugs to prevent the immune system meltdown caused by the virus. Here's another: Can a simple, safe, approved drug called phenylbutyric acid tread the line between under- and over-treatment of the immune system by reducing cell stress?
“You can think of the human immune system as an orchestra playing together and needing a co-ordinated performance from all the musicians and their instruments. It doesn’t make scientific sense to talk about antibodies or T-cells on their own.”
Roaming through your body is a group of specialized immune cells which act stealthily and authoritatively. They "ask" other body cells to show them identification ("papers please!"). If they fail to provide adequate ID those cells are killed on the spot. No questions asked. Scientists are now recruiting these cells to help in the fight against cancer.
You don't need to purchase an air purifier for your house. You have a built-in air purifier called the respiratory system.
Everyone knows by now that astronauts get more herpes outbreaks. Big deal. But did you ever consider what a game-changer this could be for those who might accidentally pick up a little contagion while seeking pleasure outside the marriage? No more "I got it from the toilet seat." Now you have a better excuse. Will you join this club, 62 miles up?
This flu season, one product is making its comeback: orange juice. Sales of OJ seem to have gotten a boost — after years of decline — due to consumers' fears of getting the dreaded illness.
But is dosing yourself with high amounts of Vitamin C warranted for this year's flu from hell?
Those with severe eczema can suffer mightily from itching, which leads to scratching, which makes it worse. Anti-inflammatory steroids are the go-to drugs (but they have many nasty, long-term side effects). But an antibody drug named Dupixent, just approved by the FDA, works very well. So now you may be able to give your fingernails a rest.
In an effort to understand how cow's milk allergies (CMA) form, an interdisciplinary team of scientists investigated if there's a link between certain kinds of sugars found in a mother's breast milk and the presence of CMA in her infant.