PRESS-NEWS.org - Press Release Distribution
PRESS RELEASES DISTRIBUTION

New study unveils the power of physical forces in enhancing T cell immune response

2024-08-14
(Press-News.org)

Study Title: Parsing digital or analog TCR performance through piconewton forces

Publication: Science Advances

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute authors: Aoi Akitsu, Kristine N. Brazin, Robert J. Mallis, Jonathan S. Duke-Cohan, Matthew A. Booker, Vincenzo Cinella, Jonathan Lee, Michael Y. Tolstorukov and Ellis L. Reinherz, MD

Summary:

Researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute investigate new features of T cell performance, delineating a class of digital cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTL) that are optimal in providing protection against virally infected or otherwise altered body cells, and by extension, most useful for immunotherapy. These digital performers are capable of recognizing and destroying altered cells expressing only a few copies of a target molecule. By leveraging these digital TCRs both for cancer vaccines and for cellular therapies, improvements in clinical outcomes of TCR-based therapies may result. The findings may also lead to new biomarkers for optimal adaptive immune recognition.

Significance:

Each T cell receptor (TCR) binds to a distinct peptide sitting in the groove of an MHC molecule (pMHC) arrayed on the surface of an antigen presenting cell. As motile T lymphocytes scan body tissues looking for aberrant cells including cancers in order to mediate their destruction, that detection and engagement places physical load on a single TCR-pMHC bond, tuning the TCR recognition of antigen in a highly specific manner. Yet at present, no force is applied when immuno-oncologists are testing performance of TCRs on T cells isolated from patients. That omission makes in vitro (i.e. in culture) measurement of TCR function unreliable as an in vivo proxy of T cell performance in the patient. This new understanding of TCR mechanobiology could lead to better immunotherapies, especially in targeting low-abundance tumor-specific antigens which are the most frequent type on cancer cells.

Funding:

This work was supported by NIH NIAID grants 1P01AI143565 and RO1 AI136301. 
 

Contact:  Nicole Oliverio, nicole_oliverio@dfci.harvard.edu

END



ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Researchers unveil mysteries of ancient Earth

Researchers unveil mysteries of ancient Earth
2024-08-14
A team of researchers has made strides in understanding the formation of massif-type anorthosites, enigmatic rocks that only formed during the middle part of Earth’s history. These plagioclase-rich igneous rock formations, which can cover areas as large as 42,000 square kilometers and host titanium ore deposits, have puzzled scientists for decades due to conflicting theories about their origins. A new study published in Science Advances on Aug. 14 highlights the intricate connections between Earth’s evolving ...

UNC-Chapel Hill launches the Institute for Risk Management and Insurance Innovation

2024-08-14
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill is launching the Institute for Risk Management and Insurance Innovation, a new interdisciplinary research and innovation hub that will leverage the expertise of faculty and students from various disciplines across campus to address complex challenges in risk management and insurance. “The institute will address the financial risks arising from a growing number of threats to our state and beyond, ranging from extreme weather to cybersecurity,” explains Vice Chancellor for Research Penny Gordon-Larsen. “UNC-Chapel Hill is a world leader in translating extreme environmental events into financial risk and now seeks to expand ...

Integrating positive psychology and autism: A roundtable

Integrating positive psychology and autism: A roundtable
2024-08-14
A new Roundtable Discussion in the peer-reviewed journal Autism in Adulthood explores how the two fields of positive psychology and autism might integrate and benefit each other, and the autism community at large. Click here to read the Roundtable. The Roundtable was co-moderated by Patricia Wright, PhD, MPH who is the Executive Director of Proof Positive: Autism Wellbeing Alliance, an organization committed to integrating autism services and the field of positive psychology and Rachel Moseley, ...

UC Irvine scientists create material that can take the temperature of nanoscale objects

2024-08-14
Irvine, Calif., Aug. 14, 2024 — University of California, Irvine scientists recently discovered a one-dimensional nanoscale material whose color changes as temperature changes. The team’s results appeared in Advanced Materials.    “We found that we can make really small and sensitive thermometers,” said Maxx Arguilla, UC Irvine professor of chemistry whose research group led the study. “It’s one of the most applied and translatable works to come out of our lab.”     Arguilla ...

Dark rituals: Understanding society's fascination with death and disaster

2024-08-14
Understanding why the popularity of organised events steeped in themes of death, disaster and suffering, such as the well-known Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead), Jack the Ripper Walking Tours and Remembrance Sunday, could be key to a deeper understanding of society, say researchers from the University of Surrey. In a study published by Annals of Tourism Research, researchers introduce a comprehensive framework to analyse these events, drawing from fields as diverse as thanatology (the scientific study of death and the practices associated with it), dark tourism, and collective memory ...

Combining computational methods and experimental techniques to unlock floating offshore wind potential

Combining computational methods and experimental techniques to unlock floating offshore wind potential
2024-08-14
A collaboration between researchers from Johns Hopkins Whiting School of Engineering (WSE) and Portland State University (PSU) aims to help unlock the vast potential of floating offshore windfarms in the United States by improving understanding of wind-wave-turbine interactions, which if not accounted for properly, can greatly reduce the power output of a group of wind turbines. The project combines developing a new computational method for enhancing the accuracy of Large Eddy Simulations (LES) – a mathematical computer model that depicts the wind field within floating offshore windfarms, with advanced experimental ...

Twelve Ochsner Health hospitals recognized for efforts to improve outcomes for Americans with heart disease and stroke

2024-08-14
NEW ORLEANS, La. – Twelve Ochsner Health owned and affiliated hospitals are among the more than 3,000 nationwide that participate in the American Heart Association’s Get With The Guidelines® (GWTG) and other programs to improve outcomes for Americans who experience heart disease or stroke. Heart disease and stroke are the No. 1 and No. 5 causes of death in the United States, respectively. These health crises require swift and proven treatment to ensure the best outcomes for patients. The American Heart Association, celebrating 100 years of work to advance health and hope for everyone, everywhere, ...

Hydrometeorology and location affect hospitalizations for waterborne infectious diseases in the US

2024-08-14
An analysis of 12 years of data collected from over 500 hospitals in 25 different states shows that weather, geographic location, and urban or rural location all appear to influence hospitalizations for waterborne infectious diseases, according to a study published August 7, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS Water by Victoria Lynch and Jeffrey Shaman from Columbia University. Waterborne infectious diseases caused by bacteria, parasites, and viruses still affect over 7,000,000 people annually in the United States. Lynch and Shaman analyzed potential links between weather and hospitalizations for waterborne ...

Alzheimer’s cognitive decline predicted by patient’s age, sex, and irregular heart rhythm

Alzheimer’s cognitive decline predicted by patient’s age, sex, and irregular heart rhythm
2024-08-14
Older age, female sex, irregular heart rhythms, and daily activity levels can help to predict how much Alzheimer’s Disease patients’ cognitive function will decline, and how much they will depend on their caregivers over the next two years. The results suggest new ways to predict cognitive decline in patients, and that caregivers need to be considered in treatment plans. 'Liane Kaufmann from the Ernst von Bergmann Clinic in Potsdam, Germany, Josef Marksteiner from the General Hospital in Hall, Austria, and colleagues present these findings in the open access journal PLOS ...

Gender-sensitive job titles may affect women’s interest in job ads

Gender-sensitive job titles may affect women’s interest in job ads
2024-08-14
A new study suggests that the use of gender-sensitive language in the title of job advertisements may influence the level of interest demonstrated by female potential applicants. Dominik Hetjens of Technische Universität Dresden, Germany, and Stefan Hartmann of Heinrich-Heine-Universität Düsseldorf, Germany, present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on August 14, 2024. German is one of many languages in which every noun is grammatically masculine, feminine, or neutral. For instance, ...

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES:

Optical biosensor rapidly detects monkeypox virus

New drug targets for Alzheimer’s identified from cerebrospinal fluid

Neuro-oncology experts reveal how to use AI to improve brain cancer diagnosis, monitoring, treatment

Argonne to explore novel ways to fight cancer and transform vaccine discovery with over $21 million from ARPA-H

Firefighters exposed to chemicals linked with breast cancer

Addressing the rural mental health crisis via telehealth

Standardized autism screening during pediatric well visits identified more, younger children with high likelihood for autism diagnosis

Researchers shed light on skin tone bias in breast cancer imaging

Study finds humidity diminishes daytime cooling gains in urban green spaces

Tennessee RiverLine secures $500,000 Appalachian Regional Commission Grant for river experience planning and design standards

AI tool ‘sees’ cancer gene signatures in biopsy images

Answer ALS releases world's largest ALS patient-based iPSC and bio data repository

2024 Joseph A. Johnson Award Goes to Johns Hopkins University Assistant Professor Danielle Speller

Slow editing of protein blueprints leads to cell death

Industrial air pollution triggers ice formation in clouds, reducing cloud cover and boosting snowfall

Emerging alternatives to reduce animal testing show promise

Presenting Evo – a model for decoding and designing genetic sequences

Global plastic waste set to double by 2050, but new study offers blueprint for significant reductions

Industrial snow: Factories trigger local snowfall by freezing clouds

Backyard birds learn from their new neighbors when moving house

New study in Science finds that just four global policies could eliminate more than 90% of plastic waste and 30% of linked carbon emissions by 2050

Breakthrough in capturing 'hot' CO2 from industrial exhaust

New discovery enables gene therapy for muscular dystrophies, other disorders

Anti-anxiety and hallucination-like effects of psychedelics mediated by distinct neural circuits

How do microbiomes influence the study of life?

Plant roots change their growth pattern during ‘puberty’

Study outlines key role of national and EU policy to control emissions from German hydrogen economy

Beloved Disney classics convey an idealized image of fatherhood

Sensitive ceramics for soft robotics

Trends in hospitalizations and liver transplants associated with alcohol-induced liver disease

[Press-News.org] New study unveils the power of physical forces in enhancing T cell immune response