The extraordinary breakthrough in how ‘killer’ CD8 + T cells – the body’s ‘army of hitmen’ tasked with taking out new viruses – retain memories of virus strains they encounter was published in the prestigious Nature Communications journal this week (May 13).
University of Melbourne’s Associate Professor Katherine Kedzierska explained how the Australia-Sino collaboration began during the first outbreak of the avian-derived H7N9 virus in China in 2013.
That contagion saw 99% of people infected hospitalised, with a 30% mortality rate. Patient zero was an elderly man who caught the virus from a chicken his wife asked him to buy at the local live bird market.
“We’d never seen anything like H7N9,” Associate Professor Kedzierska said. “The virus was infecting more people rapidly and nobody had immunity. Thankfully, we did manage to contain the virus but we knew we had come face-to-face with a potential pandemic that could kill millions of people around the world if the virus became able to spread between humans,” she said.
“After collecting samples from infected patients we found that people who couldn’t make these T cell flu assassins were dying. These findings lead to the potential of moving from vaccines for specific influenza strains toward developing a protection, which is based on T-cells,” she said.
“From the 30% mortality rate in China we knew the clock was ticking on the situation. Had the contagion spread broken out globally, we’re talking about a history-altering event on the Spanish Flu scale. As it turns out, boosting the T cell adaptive memory capacity is our way in,” Associate Prof Kedzierska said.
“Our extraordinary breakthrough could lead to the development of a vaccine component that can protect against all new influenza viruses, with the potential for future development of a one-off universal flu vaccine shot,” she said. “This work will also help clinicians to make early predictions of how well a patient’s immune system will respond to viruses so they can manage early interventions such as artificial ventilation more effectively, particularly in cases where the patient is at risk of dying.”
Read more: Memory code for flu-killing ‘assassin’ cells cracked in quest for one-shot flu ‘jab’ for life
The Latest on: Flu vaccine
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Flu vaccine” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Flu vaccine
- Launching an effective bird flu vaccine quickly could be tough, scientists warnon May 3, 2024 at 2:08 am
Federal health officials say the U.S. has the building blocks to make a vaccine to protect humans from bird flu, if needed. But experts warn we're nowhere near prepared for another pandemic.
- What’s Going Around: Seasonal allergies, strep throat, influenza, stomach viruses, COVIDon May 2, 2024 at 6:22 pm
Here’s our weekly round-up of what illnesses are spreading the most in Metro Detroit communities, according to our local doctors and hospitals.
- Montgomery County animal shelter closes due to dog with Canine Influenza Viruson May 2, 2024 at 1:30 pm
In a statement, MCASAC said that one dog had tested positive for Canine Influenza Virus (CIV), which experts say is highly contagious. The shelter said that 22 other dogs were showing CIV symptoms.
- USDA addresses studies evaluating avian influenza in beefon May 2, 2024 at 1:00 pm
To verify the safety of the meat supply in the context of H5N1, the USDA’s FSIS, APHIS, and Agricultural Research Service (ARS) are working on three separate beef safety studies related to avian ...
- New vaccine approach shows promise in targeting less variable region of influenza viruson May 2, 2024 at 12:53 pm
Duke researchers have opened a new avenue in the attack against influenza viruses by creating a vaccine that encourages the immune system to target a portion of the virus surface that is less variable ...
- CSL : Real-World Evidence Study Proves Effectiveness Of Cell-Based Quadrivalent Influenza Vaccineson May 2, 2024 at 7:42 am
(RTTNews) - CSL Seqirus, a subsidiary of CSL Ltd. (CSL.AX), Thursday said that a real-world evidence study shows that a cell-based quadrivalent influenza vaccine has been more effective than an ...
- Influenza Newson May 1, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Mar. 1, 2024 — Researchers have identified antibodies targeting a hard-to-spot region of the influenza virus, shedding light on the relatively unexplored 'dark side' of the neuraminidase (NA ...
- No More Yearly Flu Shots? Vaccine Mixed From 80,000 Proteins Could Be The Keyon May 1, 2024 at 5:00 pm
So far, it’s worked well in mice and ferrets – could we soon be looking at a human equivalent? Why do we need to get a flu vaccine every year? Seasonal flu is responsible for roughly half a million ...
- Universal Flu Vaccine May No Longer Be a Long Shoton May 1, 2024 at 5:00 pm
The search for a universal flu vaccine has been long and fraught with false starts and dead ends. For more than five years, Nicholas Heaton, PhD, associate professor of molecular genetics and ...
- Unlocking Lifetime Flu Protection: Duke’s Innovative Vaccine Strategyon May 1, 2024 at 11:00 am
Experimental vaccine targets portions of the flu virus that don’t change. Duke researchers have opened a new avenue in the attack against influenza viruses by creating a vaccine that encourages the ...
via Bing News