Extreme heat is overwhelming honey bees’ ability to keep their hives cool, leading to population declines. Honey bees are able to carefully manage the temperature inside their hives, but new research shows that extreme summer heat can overwhelm this ability. A study published in Ecological and Evolutionary Physiology found that prolonged high temperatures can disrupt […]
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Heat Waves Are Overwhelming Honey Bee Hives – Science News
Helping alveolar macrophages live to fight another day during viral pneumonia – Research
Alveolar macrophages (AMs) help defend the lungs against infection, but during pneumonia many alveolar macrophages die. In this issue of the JCI, Malainou et al. explored the mechanism underpinning AM death during viral pneumonia and its effect on the outcomes of bacterial superinfection, a secondary infection that occurs before the first infection is cleared. In mouse models of influenza A infection, recruited neutrophils secreted TNF superfamily member 14 (TNFSF14), and AMs increased expression of the TNFSF14 receptors TNFSFR14 and type I transmembrane lymphotoxin β receptor (LTβR). TNFSF14 signaling via the LTβR was sufficient to cause AM apoptosis. TNFSF14 deficiency or blockade preserved AMs during influenza infection and diminished bacterial burdens and mouse mortality during pneumococcal superinfection. The adoptive transfer of AMs decreased the severity of pneumococcal superinfections, if those AMs lacked the LTβR. Thus, preserving AMs by interrupting TNFRSF14-LTβR interactions can make virus-infected lungs less susceptible to severe bacterial superinfection.
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Proteotranscriptomic Dissection of Breast Cancer T Cell States Identifies CD103+ Tfh-derived Cytotoxic Cells Linked to Immunotherapy Response – Research
While cancer immunotherapies have primarily focused on activation of cytotoxic CD8 cells, CD4 T cell activity is also associated with survival and immunotherapeutic response in numerous cancers. We applied integrated single-cell RNA sequencing and multiplexed protein epitope profiling to breast cancer samples to resolve the complexity of immune cell states within the tumor microenvironment. This approach enhanced phenotypic resolution, identifying three distinct states within the CD4 T follicular helper-like (Tfh) cell cluster. A CXCR4high progenitor state gave rise to two differentiated states: an IGFL2high subset resembling conventional Tfh cells and localised to B cell-rich lymphoid aggregates, and a CD103+ subset, exhibiting features of tissue residency, exhaustion, and cytotoxicity, which co-localised with tumor foci. CD103+ Tfh-like cells were found to interact with CXCL10+ macrophages through production of CCL chemokines and CSF1. A higher CD103+ Tfh to IGFL2high Tfh ratio, together with the selective clonal expansion of the CD103+ subset, was strongly associated with improved tumour immunity and superior responses to anti-PD-1 checkpoint blockade, surpassing the predictive value of exhausted CD8 T cells. These findings integrate Tfh and CD4 with cytotoxic potential in breast cancer, offering new insight into anti-tumor immunity and response to checkpoint blockade.
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A Strange State of Matter Behaves Very Differently Under Even Weak Magnetism – Science News
An Auburn University study finds that magnetic fields can guide electrons in plasma much like traffic signals, giving researchers new ways to control how dust particles form. Picture a glowing cloud that looks like a neon sign, except it holds countless microscopic dust particles suspended in space rather than raindrops. This unusual state of matter […]
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BACH2 regulates T cell lineage state to enhance CAR T cell function – Immunology Research
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Continuum architecture dynamics of vesicle tethering in exocytosis – Research
Data from complementary imaging techniques were integrated into a model that resolves the dynamic exocyst ensemble and membrane architecture during exocytosis, an essential cellular pathway. Sec18 mediates the rate of exocytosis by disassembling the exocyst higher-order structure after vesicle fusion.
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Assistant Professor/Lecturer in Nursing (Clinical Skills and Simulation-Based Education) x 2 (Permanent) – (Jobs/Scholarships)
Maynooth University, National University of Ireland Maynooth – School of Nursing<br />Salary: €42,099 to €102,539 – please see advert
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Associate Dean Research and Innovation – (Jobs/Scholarships)
De Montfort University<br />Salary: £76,240 to £129,119
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Scientists Find Way to Turn Tumor-Protecting Cells Into Cancer Killers – Science News
A new cancer therapy wakes up immune cells inside tumors and turns them against cancer. Tumors contain immune cells called macrophages that are naturally capable of attacking cancer. However, the tumor environment blocks these cells from functioning properly, preventing them from mounting an effective defense. Researchers at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology […]
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Segmented filamentous bacteria in the gut protect against secondary bacterial infections in the lung – Immunology Research
Respiratory viruses can substantially weaken immune responses and enhance the risk of secondary bacterial infections. These can be fatal — for example, during the 1918 influenza pandemic, bacterial pneumonia was the main cause of mortality. Susceptibility to secondary infections is partially due to a depletion of alveolar macrophages (AMs), which is a common feature of viral respiratory infections. In 2024, Gewirtz and colleagues showed that segmented filamentous bacteria (SFB) in the gut can protect AMs against virus-induced depletion and enhance their antiviral function. Now, the same group has found that SFB epigenetically and metabolically reprogram AMs, which provides protection against virus-induced depletion and also enhances their antibacterial function.
This applied across all age ranges (in humans, susceptibility to secondary infections increases with age), and protection started in infancy, with mothers transferring SFB to their offspring, probably via coprophagy.
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