The Immunology Podcast: Recent Episodes
The Immunology Podcast
A podcast featuring conversations with immunologists from around the globe. Brought to by STEMCELL Technologies.
Guest:Dr. Pere Santamaria is a Professor at the Cumming School of Medicine at the University of Calgary and Group Leader at the Barcelona Institute. He discusses how his lab studies the mechanisms underlying autoimmune diseases, with a focus on regulatory T cell biology and antigen-specific immune tolerance. He also explains how his team developed a nanomedicine platform that reprograms autoreactive T cells into regulatory cells, offering a targeted approach to treating autoimmune disorders without suppressing normal immune function, and shares the challenges of translating this technology from the lab to the clinic.
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The Immunology Science Round UpMaternal Vaccine Against GBS – A Phase I/II trial shows that a maternal hexavalent Group B Streptococcus vaccine is safe and elicits robust antibody responses in both mothers and infants.
Decoding Treg Differentiation – TCR specificity and antigen presentation context determine regulatory T cell differentiation and phenotype, providing a framework for antigen-specific immune tolerance.
A Microbiota–Autoimmunity Axis – Disrupted dendritic cell development promotes gut dysbiosis that drives inflammatory dendritic cell expansion and systemic autoimmunity.
Programming Regulatory T Cells – TCR specificity and antigen presentation context determine regulatory T cell differentiation and phenotype, providing a framework for antigen-specific immune tolerance.
Image courtesy of Dr. Pere Santamaria.
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Guest:Dr. Brian Brown is a Professor at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. He discusses how his lab develops innovative technologies to study the immune system and advance new therapeutics, from T cell engineering to mRNA-based medicines. He also explores how microRNA-guided targeting can improve the precision of mRNA therapeutics, how different tissues shape immune responses, and the importance of effective science communication.
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The Immunology Science Round UpSindbis in Cerebrospinal Fluid – Scientists have found evidence that Sindbis virus can invade the human central nervous system and cause neurological disease.
A Skin–Lung Reflex – Activation of sensory neurons in the skin suppresses allergic airway inflammation through a vagus nerve–mediated neuroimmune reflex.
Microbiome Enhances Cancer Immunity – Gut bacteria promote anti-tumor immunity by converting tryptophan into indoles that enhance immune responses and inhibit melanoma growth.
Macrophages Drive Healthy Aging – Restoring macrophage clearance of senescent neutrophils reverses age-related decline across multiple organs in mice by blocking EP2 signaling.
Image courtesy of Dr. Brian Brown
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Guest:Dr. Andrew Hogan is a Professor and Principal Investigator of the Obesity Immunology Research Group at Maynooth University. He discusses how obesity drives chronic inflammation and immune dysfunction, increasing the risk of diseases such as diabetes and cancer, while highlighting the immune system’s role in disease progression. He also explains how GLP-1 therapies improve both metabolism and immune function, offering new insights into obesity treatment.
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The Immunology Science Round UpInnate Immunity Predicts Symptoms – Stronger innate immune responses predisposed people to influenza symptoms while also promoting antiviral immune activation.
Broad HIV Neutralization #1 – A novel HIV immunogen induced broadly neutralizing antibodies in macaques, providing a promising blueprint for HIV vaccine development.
Broad HIV Neutralization #2 – A germline-targeting vaccine induced broadly neutralizing HIV antibodies in nonhuman primates.
CAR-T Targets Glioblastoma – A dual-targeting CAR-T therapy achieved durable glioblastoma control in preclinical models.
Image courtesy of Dr. Andrew Hogan
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Guest:Dr. Marco Orecchioni is an Assistant Professor at Augusta University. He discusses how olfactory receptors — best known for detecting smells — also function in innate immune cells such as macrophages, where they help sense chemical cues in the tissue environment. He highlights how these receptors regulate inflammation, metabolism, and immune cell behavior in diseases such as atherosclerosis, and explores their potential as novel therapeutic targets.
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The Immunology Science Round UpOrigins of Tumor Macrophages – Tumor-associated myeloid cells arise from distinct circulating monocyte clones with pre-programmed differentiation fates.
DDX6 Restrains Tumor Immunity – DDX6 suppresses dsRNA-driven innate immunity by limiting RNA editing.
Antibody-Directed Xenophagy – TRIM21 directs antibody-bound pathogens into a newly identified autophagy pathway that promotes intracellular pathogen clearance.
RNA Warfare in Plant Immunity – A fungal long non-coding RNA suppresses rice immunity by sequestering a host microRNA.
Image courtesy of Dr. Marco Orecchioni.
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Guest:Dr. Shabaana Khader is a Professor and Chair of the Department of Microbiology at the University of Chicago. She discusses how the immune system responds to Mycobacterium tuberculosis, why tuberculosis remains one of the world’s deadliest infectious diseases, and the challenges of developing more effective vaccines. She highlights the role of lung-resident immunity, including Th17 responses and lymphoid structures, in controlling infection, and explains how advances in our understanding of host–pathogen interactions are guiding the design of next-generation TB vaccines.
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The Immunology Science Round UpPersonalized HPV Cancer Vaccine – A multifunctional nanovaccine combining HPV antigens, tumor membranes, and bacterial adjuvants generates durable anti-tumor immunity against HPV-associated cervical cancer.
HIV Rewires T Cell Identity – HIV can reprogram infected CD4+ T cells into CD8+ T cells, revealing a previously unrecognized component of the viral reservoir.
Decoding Acute Pancreatitis – A single-cell atlas of severe acute pancreatitis identifies a TNF-α–driven immune-endothelial circuit that causes microvascular failure and disease progression.
Discovery of Ruptoblasts – A newly discovered cell type, the ruptoblast, protects planarians through an explosive cytotoxic mechanism termed ruptosis.
Image courtesy of Dr. Shabaana Khader
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Guest:Dr. Samuel Nobs is an Assistant Professor and Group Leader at the Institute for Research in Biomedicine in Switzerland. He discusses how microbes in the lungs and gut may shape respiratory immunity and influence susceptibility to infections and chronic lung diseases. He highlights his lab’s work to uncover the mechanisms behind these interactions using microbiome analysis and advanced experimental models.
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The Immunology Science Round UpRabbit Immunity Evolves – Wild rabbits rapidly evolved resistance to myxoma virus through changes in highly diverse MHC immune genes.
Antifungal Receptors Improve Vaccines – Targeting antifungal immune receptors with a mannan-based adjuvant boosts the strength, durability, and variant coverage of mRNA vaccine responses.
Mapping Tumor Macrophage Diversity – Scientists have revealed how diverse tumor-associated macrophage subtypes promote tumor growth, immune suppression, and metastasis through interactions within the tumor microenvironment.
Dietary Soy Shapes Immunity – Dietary soy shapes the gut microbiome to boost IgA-mediated immunity and enhance protection against intestinal infection in early life.
Image courtesy of Dr. Samuel Nobs.
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Guest:Dr. Tullia Bruno is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. She discusses how B cells and tertiary lymphoid structures shape anti-tumor immunity within solid tumors, challenging the traditional T cell–centric view of cancer immunology. She highlights how these immune niches influence responses to immunotherapy, the importance of spatial organization within the tumor microenvironment, and emerging strategies to therapeutically induce tertiary lymphoid structures to improve cancer treatment.
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The Immunology Science Round UpFeeding Boosts T Cell Immunity – Postprandial metabolism enhances T cell fitness and improves effector and CAR-T cell function through chylomicron-driven metabolic reprogramming.
Chemokines Control T Cell Priming – CCR7 signaling limits CD8+ T cell interactions with dendritic cells to preserve effective effector and memory responses.
Helminths Boost Offspring Immunity – Maternal helminth-driven microbiome changes protect offspring from respiratory viruses through the metabolite indole-3-propionic acid.
Enhancing CAR T Persistence – CAR-modified stem-cell memory T cells show improved persistence, expansion, and anti-tumor responses compared to standard CAR T cells.
Image courtesy of Dr. Tullia Bruno.
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Guest:Dr. Alfred Singer is a Senior Investigator at the National Cancer Institute Center for Cancer Research. He discusses his pioneering work on thymus development and T cell differentiation, including how T cells are selected to become CD4 helper or CD8 cytotoxic cells through MHC-restricted signaling. He shares the evolution of key concepts in the field, such as the “kinetic signaling” model of lineage commitment, and offers insights into T cell receptor signaling, regulatory T cell development, and the complexities of immune cell fate decisions.
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The Immunology Science Round UpCEACAM6 Enables Viral Entry – Bat alphacoronavirus enters human cells via CEACAM6, revealing potential for zoonotic transmission.
Cross-Dressing Drives T Cell Priming – mRNA vaccines activate CD8+ T cells through redundant dendritic cell pathways and cross-dressing mechanisms.
Unlocking NK Antitumor Responses – Removing tumor Tregs unleashes NK cell responses to control cancers, including MHC I–deficient tumors.
RUNX1 Controls Immune Aging – A single-cell immune aging clock identifies RUNX1 as a key regulator of T cell senescence and rejuvenation.
Image courtesy of Dr. Alfred Singer
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In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists, in Boston. We spoke with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting, including why they attended, the most memorable science they encountered, and their experiences in Boston.
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Guest:This special episode was recorded in front of a live audience at IMMUNOLOGY2026 in Boston. Brenda and Jason sit down with Dr. Charles Sentman, Director of the Center for Synthetic Immunity at Dartmouth College, and Dr. Giulia Escobar, Director of Pre-Clinical Research at Massachusetts General Hospital, to explore new strategies aimed at overcoming the unique challenges of treating solid tumors. They focus on real-world challenges in CAR T and NK cell therapies, including barriers to treating solid tumors, manufacturing and accessibility hurdles, and emerging applications beyond oncology, such as autoimmunity and neurodegenerative disease.
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Image courtesy of [Drs. Charles Sentman and Giulia Escobar]
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Guest:In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Boston, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the last of five special episodes from the meeting. Jason and Brenda discuss highlights from sessions on advances in translational immunology, including immune-targeting strategies for autoimmune disease, as well as new insights into emerging technologies to map T cell receptor specificity.
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Guest:In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Boston, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting. Jason and Brenda discuss highlights from talks about immunometabolic dysfunction in disease and neuroimmune interactions in inflammation and allergy.
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Guest:In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Boston, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights from sessions on obesity, immunometabolism, microbiome-driven immunity, antigen presentation, and new immunotherapy strategies.
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Guest:In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Boston, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting. Jason and Brenda cover new insights into microbiome–immune interactions, including bacterial influences on cancer and inflammatory disease, as well as advances in mucosal and early-life immunity.
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Guest:In April 2026, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2026, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Boston, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights including advances in high-throughput proteomics and multi-omics integration for understanding immune regulation, as well as new insights into respiratory and mucosal immunology.
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Guest:Dr. Amanda Lund is an Associate Professor at the NYU Grossman School of Medicine. She discusses how the lymphatic vasculature serves as a critical and dynamic interface between tissues and the immune system, challenging the traditional view of lymphatics as passive conduits. She highlights how lymphatic vessels actively regulate immune responses by controlling fluid flow, antigen transport, and cell migration during infection and cancer, and explores their emerging roles in shaping immunity and tissue biology.
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The Immunology Science Round UpMHC I Shapes CD4 Immunity– MHC class I unexpectedly regulates CD4+ T cell cytotoxicity by protecting target cells from ferroptosis.
Re-Emergence of Oropouche Virus – Scientists have mapped the resurgence and long-term burden of Oropouche virus, revealing widespread infection across Latin America.
Scalable In Vivo T Cell Engineering – A new in vivo CRISPR-based system enables precise, stable generation of CAR T cells.
Gut–Brain Axis in Autoimmunity – Intestinal epithelial cells initiate autoimmune neuroinflammation via TH17 cell responses that migrate to the central nervous system.
Image courtesy of Dr. Amanda Lund.
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Guest:Dr. Mansour Haeryfar is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology & Immunology at Western University. The Haeryfar Lab is dedicated to advancing our understanding of both conventional and innate-like invariant T cell responses in health and disease. Their research focuses on mucosal-associated invariant T (MAIT) cells, with particular emphasis on exploring their therapeutic potential across a range of conditions.
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The Immunology Science Round UpImmune Imprinting Limits Flu Protection – Early flu infections imprint the immune system, biasing later responses and reducing effectiveness against new strains.
Maternal Immunity Protects Newborns – Newborns with E. coli sepsis lack protective maternal antibodies, and maternal priming can provide protection.
Building the Anti-Carbohydrate Repertoire – Anti-carbohydrate antibodies develop after birth into a diverse, antigen-shaped B cell repertoire.
Engineering Better CAR T Responses – CAR T resistance to checkpoint therapy can be overcome by restoring c-Jun alongside PD-L1 blockade.
Image courtesy of Dr. Mansour Haeryfar.
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Guest:Dr. Daniel Peeper is a Professor in Functional Oncogenomics at VU University Amsterdam, heading the Department of Molecular Oncology & Immunology and chairing the Research Faculty Council Board at the Netherlands Cancer Institute. His lab employs function-based, genome-wide screens and other advanced technologies to develop concepts for rational combinatorial cancer treatment, targeting both cancer and immune cells more effectively.
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The Immunology Science Round UpGenomic Insights into EBV – Researchers used genome sequencing data to identify genetic and lifestyle factors linked to control of persistent Epstein–Barr virus (EBV) infection and its association with autoimmune diseases.
Cholinergic Control of B Cells – Acetylcholine signaling in germinal center B cells helps regulate their selection and differentiation to shape high-affinity antibody responses.
Targeting Persistent HIV Clones – Persistent HIV reservoir T cell clones resist immune clearance but remain vulnerable to sustained cytotoxic T cell pressure.
T Cell Engagers in Autoimmunity – CD19×CD3 and BCMA×CD3 T cell engagers improved disease outcomes in patients with treatment-refractory antisynthetase syndrome and systemic sclerosis.
Image courtesy of Daniel Peeper
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Guest:Dr. Ido Amit is a Principal Investigator and the Eden and Steven Romick Professorial Chair at the Weizmann Institute of Science. His lab is at the forefront of developing and applying cutting-edge single-cell genomics technologies alongside advanced computational approaches. By integrating these innovative tools in both animal models and human studies, his team uncovers the immune regulatory mechanisms and pathways that shape health and disease.
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The Immunology Science Round UpModified RNA Prevents Autoimmunity – Researchers show that modified RNA from our own cells naturally blocks TLR7 and TLR8, preventing harmful immune activation.
Oncolytic Virus Boosts T Cells – In glioblastoma patients, a single virus treatment helped the immune system attack the tumor.
Rewiring the Immune System During Food Scarcity – When food is scarce, stress hormones rebalance the immune system to fight infection while conserving glucose and preserving immune memory.
Regulating Bystander T Cells – IL-4 can dial down how strongly memory CD8+ T cells respond to infection without direct antigen stimulation.
Image courtesy of Dr. Ido Amit
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Guest:Dr. Sharon Lewin is the Director of the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity, where her team studies HIV. She talks about the current landscape in HIV research and treatments, and how new therapies could target latent viral reservoirs.
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The Immunology Science Round UpImmunosurveillance in the Skin: A neuro-epithelial axis can tune regional immunosurveillance against melanoma.
B Cells in Aging: B cells contributed to the age-related reduction of naive CD4 T cells.
The Gut–Brain Axis in Parkinson’s: Muscularis macrophages, housekeepers of intestinal homeostasis, modulate α-synuclein pathology and neurodegeneration in models of Parkinson’s disease.
How IL-2 Signaling Regulates Inflammation: IL-2 signaling promotes the generation of IL-10pos age-associated B cells, with implications for autoimmunity and inflammation.
Image courtesy of Dr. Sharon Lewin
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Guest:Dr. Rafi Ahmed is a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Director of the Emory Vaccine Center at Emory University. He talks about his early work on memory T cells and its applications in autoimmune diseases and cancer.
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The Immunology Round UpCAR T Therapy for Hemolytic Anemia: CD19 CAR T cells resulted in sustained remission in patients with multirefractory autoimmune hemolytic anemia. (3:05)
How Epstein-Barr Virus and Genetics Drive Multiple Sclerosis: A new study provides a new mechanistic link for how the environmental and genetic risk factors may contribute jointly to multiple sclerosis. (8:30)
Autoantigens in Multiple Sclerosis: EBNA1 CD4+ T cells can target the multiple sclerosis autoantigen anoctamin-2, establishing a link between Epstein-Barr infection and neuroinflammation. (18:45)
Microbiota-Induced T Cell Plasticity: Molecular mimicry between a gut commensal and a tumor antigen can boost the efficacy of immune checkpoint blockade therapy and restrain tumor growth. (26:00)
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Guests:Dr. Ulrich von Andrian is the Mallinckrodt Professor of Immunopathology at Harvard Medical School and President of the American Association of Immunologists (AAI). Dr. Shekhar Pasare is Professor and Director of the Division of Immunobiology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center. He is also the Program Committee Chair for the AAI’s annual meetings. They discuss the upcoming IMMUNOLOGY2026 meeting taking place April 15-19 in Boston. They cover highlights of the program including the Presidential Symposium, special sessions, and opportunities for trainees. (42:30)
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The Immunology Science Round UpPsoriatic Arthritis – A two-step process involving skin-derived myeloid precursors and joint-resident fibroblasts orchestrates the spread of inflammation from the skin to the joints. (6:15)
Chemotherapy and Cardiac-Resident Macrophages – DNA-damaging chemotherapy can reshape cardiac macrophage ontogeny. (13:50)
Dendritic Cell Cross-Presentation – Neoantigen cross-presentation by Type 1 conventional dendritic cells can determine the immune visibility of the tumor mutational landscape. (26:00)
T Cell Cross-Reactivity – Co-receptor switching generates super selective T cells that reduce the risk of lethal off-target cross-reactivity. (32:20)
Images courtesy of Drs. Ulrich von Andrian and Shekhar Pasare
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Guest:Dr. Jayne Danska is a Senior Scientist, Genetics and Genome Biology at the Hospital for Sick Children Research Institute. She is also Associate Chief of Research, Faculty Development and Diversity, and Professor at the University of Toronto. Her research focuses on the microbiome in type 1 diabetes. She discusses insights from longitudinal human studies and mouse models. (40:00)
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The Immunology Round UpVaccination for Anaphylaxis – A vaccine against IgE protected against anaphylaxis in a mouse model. (2:53)
How RSV Can Lead to Asthma – Researchers identified maternal allergy and neonatal RSV infection as converging Fc receptor-dependent risk factors for asthma. (9:50)
Antigen Presentation for MAIT Cell Immunity – Macrophages are key for MR1 antigen presentation and MAIT cell immunity. (20:30)
HIV Remission after Stem Cell Transplantation – After an allogeneic stem cell transplant, a patient discontinued antiretroviral therapy and sustained HIV remission for over six years. (27:00)
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Guest:Dr. Ana Anderson is currently the Albert H. Coons Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School, Senior Scientist at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Institute Member of the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, and Core Faculty Member of the Gene Lay Institute of Immunology and Inflammation. She talks about her research on immune regulation in cancer and enhancing anti-tumor immunity. (38:33)
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The Immunology Round UpCAR Tregs for Atherosclerosis: Anti-oxidized low-density lipoprotein CAR Tregs reduce atherosclerotic plaque formation in mouse models. (2:20)
Tumor-Reactive T Cells: Tumor-reactive CD8+ T cells can be isolated and expanded from clinical samples. (14:24)
Harnessing Myeloid and Lymphoid Synergy for Immunotherapy: Myeloid-targeted immunocytokines and natural killer/T cell enhancers show potential for treating solid cancers. (18:50)
Subcutaneous Fat Affects Intestinal Aging: Subcutaneous white adipose tissue dysfunction triggers aging-like intestinal dysfunctions in mouse models. (32:40)
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Guest:Dr. George Robinson is a Principal Research Fellow at University College London, where his lab focuses on juvenile-onset systemic lupus erythematosus. He discusses current approaches to diagnosis and treatment, as well as the role of sex differences in autoimmunity. (31:20)
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The Immunology Round UpLong-Term Allergies: Allergy-associated IgE plasma cells exhibit limited accrual in the bone marrow, and instead reside in other tissues for extended periods. (3:40)
Oral Immunotherapy for Peanut Allergy: Peanut oral immunotherapy reshapes T cell responses, suppressing allergy-associated type 2 helper T cells and boosting cytotoxic type 1 helper T cells, offering clues to long-term tolerance. (9:00)
Neuroprotective Microglia in Alzheimer’s Disease: The protective function of microglia is governed by the transcription factor PU.1, which becomes downregulated following microglial contact with amyloid plaques. (18:09)
Autoimmunity in ALS: Researchers showed that ALS is associated with recognition of the C9orf72 antigen and mapped the specific epitopes that are recognized. (23:20)
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Guest:Dr. Camila Coelho is a Principal Investigator at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, where her lab studies emerging pathogens. She talks about her lab’s work on mpox and other viruses, her approach to mentorship, and how her MBA education helps her in science. (36:00)
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The Immunology Round UpEpigenetic Programming of T Cells – Researchers developed an all-RNA platform for efficient, durable and multiplexed epigenetic programming in primary human T cells. (3:57)
Converting Conventional T Cells to Tregs – Using a combination of cytokines and pharmacological approaches, conventional effector T cells can be converted into functional and stable Tregs. (9:40)
A Host–Pathogen Arms Race – E. coli uses the effector NleL to suppress epithelial extrusion, which aids in bacterial spread. (23:06)
Lactation and Lowered Breast Cancer Risk – Parity induces an accumulation of CD8+ T cells in breast tissue, which reduced tumor growth and increased immune cell infiltration in a mouse model. (28:13)
Image courtesy of Dr. Camila Coelho
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Guest:Professor Matteo Iannacone is Director of the Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, Professor of Pathology, and Head of the Dynamics of Immune Responses laboratory at Vita-Salute San Raffaele University. His work centers on understanding the generation of dysfunctional adaptive immune cells in chronic hepatitis B virus infection and developing new strategies to reprogram them into functional cells endowed with potent antiviral activity.
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The Immunology Science Round UpThe Cells That Keep Immunity in Check – Brenda reviews Dr. Shimon Sakaguchi’s seminal study demonstrating that a population of T cells expressing the IL-2 receptor α chain acts to maintain self-tolerance by suppressing other T cells.
The Gene That Controls Immune Balance – Brenda reviews Dr. Mary Brunkow and Dr. Fred Ramsdell’s work identifying FOXP3 as the gene disrupted in a fatal lymphoproliferation syndrome in the “scurfy” mouse, pointing to FOXP3 as a master regulator of regulatory T cells.
Zap70 and the Treg Cell Repertoire – Age-dependent Zap70 expression regulates negative selection and thymic Treg cell development.
T Cell Exhaustion Driven by Protein Stress – Researchers show that proteotoxic stress, induced by protein aggregation, is not merely a consequence, but a driver of the exhausted T cell state.
Image courtesy of Professor Matteo Iannacone.
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Guest:Dr. Robin Orozco is an Assistant Professor at the University of Kansas, where her lab studies how specific allelic variants affect immune responses. She talks about what we can learn from mouse models and the role of PTPN22 in antiviral immunity. (36:48)
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The Immunology Round UpSkin Infections and Food Allergy – Scientists unraveled mechanisms by which S. aureus skin colonization can aggravate food allergy in atopic dermatitis. (3:10)
Cytotoxic T Cell Dynamics – Nuclear polarization represents a key step during cytotoxic T cell-mediated killing. (11:55)
CRISPR-Boosted CAR T Therapies – Researchers discovered, validated, and biologically characterized CRISPR-boosted CAR T cells that outperform standard CAR T cells. (18:36)
CAR T Cells in Myeloma – New findings reveal differing effects of gene perturbation on CAR T cells and highlight a promising target to generate highly effective CAR T cells for multiple myeloma. (26:40)
Image courtesy of Dr. Robin Orozco
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Guest:Dr. Harikesh Wong is an Assistant Professor at the Ragon Institute and MIT, where his lab studies the design principles of the immune system. He talks about how Tregs constrain conventional T cell responses during infection, and advanced fluorescence microscopy techniques to study immune responses. (38:11)
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The Immunology Science Round UpImmunometabolism in HIV – Immunometabolic defects in colon-resident CD8+ T cells in people with HIV lead to intestinal epithelial apoptosis and disruption of intestinal barrier integrity. (2:50)
T Cell Dysfunction in Tumors – Mitochondria or telomeric reactive oxygen species induce DNA damage responses driving T cell dysfunction. (9:15)
Microglia-Astrocyte Crosstalk – Microglia-derived Wnts drive astrocytes to reduce their association with synapses. (22:00)
Monocyte-Derived Macrophages in Tumors – Researchers identified myeloid progenitor programs that fuel pro-tumorigenic monocyte-derived macrophages. (28:45)
Image courtesy of Dr. Harikesh Wong
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Guest:Dr. Eric Vivier is a Professor of Immunology at Aix-Marseille Université and the Centre d’Immunologie de Marseille-Luminy. He is also an awardee of the European Research Council and a member of the French Society of Immunology. In this special episode recorded at the IUIS 2025 Congress in Vienna, Dr. Vivier highlights the critical importance of investing in science, explores the responsibility of governments and other organizations in funding research, and reflects on the role science plays in society.
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The Immunology Science Round UpStrengthening CAR NK Cell Therapies – Scientists have found that natural killer (NK) cells become better at killing cancer cells after removal of key gene targets. (3:00)
Maternal Stress Triggers Infant Eczema – Offspring of stressed pregnant dams have dysregulated mast cells and skin-projecting neurons and quickly develop eczema in response to harmless mechanical friction. (8:55)
Suppressing Necroptosis-Induced Colitis – Researchers show that XBP1 and caspase-8 synergize to prevent colon inflammation. (17:07)
Reprograming T Cells through Cytokine Receptor Expansion – Scientists have leveraged synthetic cytokine receptor engineering to successfully rewire T cell fate decisions and amplify anti-cancer immunity. (24:25)
Image courtesy of Eric Vivier
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In August 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria. We chat with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting. They discuss the most memorable research presented and their experiences in Austria.
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Guest:Dr. Zwi Berneman is Emeritus Professor of Hematology at the University of Antwerp, and previously Head of the Division of Hematology at the Antwerp University Hospital. His basic and clinical research is focused on vaccination with immunogenic dendritic cells in cancer and with tolerogenic dendritic cells in multiple sclerosis. He talks about the history and development of dendritic cell vaccines and the work needed to make them more widely available to patients.
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Image courtesy of Dr. Zwi Berneman
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In 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the final of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on AI applications and CAR T therapy progress.
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In 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Jason and Brenda discuss sessions on cancer immunotherapy and neuroimmunology.
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In 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on CD4+ T cells in Hepatitis B infections and how amoebas make their way to the brain. They also cover research on the effects of antibiotics on immunotherapy, and what we can learn about allergies by comparing pet shop and lab mice.
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In 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason cover research on Lynch syndrome, dendritic cells, and the epigenome of regulatory T cells.
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In 2025, we attended the 19th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Vienna, Austria, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on colon cancer organoids and stable induced regulatory T cells. They also cover presentations from the IUIS Rising Star Awardees and Dr. Yasmine Belkaid’s talk on maternal physiology.
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Guest:Dr. Daniel Goodman is an Assistant Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, where his lab researches high-throughput approaches to engineer the immune system. He talks about new technologies for immune cell engineering, and methods for screening and developing CAR T therapies. (47:30)
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The Immunology Science Round UpRespiratory Infections and Breast Cancer – A study in mice shows that respiratory viruses can cause the proliferation of dormant disseminated cancer cells. (5:00)
Early-Life HIV Antibodies – AAV-vectored delivery of HIV-1 broadly neutralizing antibodies led to long-term protection in infant rhesus macaques. (11:55)
Obesity and Immunity – Researchers compared the effects of high-fat diets derived from animal and plant fat sources on tumor growth in obese mice. (22:25)
Lithium Deficiency in Alzheimer’s Disease – Scientists showed that endogenous lithium contributes to cognitive preservation during aging. (32:37)
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Guest:Dr. Tamara Tilburgs is an Assistant Professor in the University of Cincinnati Department of Pediatrics, where her research focuses on immune tolerance during pregnancy. She talks about the immune paradox in trophoblast cells and how placental inflammation can lead to pregnancy complications. She also discusses CD8+ T cell responses at the maternal-fetal interface. (43:03)
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The Immunology Round UpNon-Antibiotics and Enteropathogens – Non-antibiotic drugs from a wide range of therapeutic classes can alter the ability of gut commensals to resist invasion by enteropathogens. (1:38)
Medications and the Gut Microbiome – An analysis of prescription medications shows that several non-antibiotic drugs, such as the heart medication digoxin, can increase the risk of gastrointestinal infections. (7:20)
Sex Dimorphism in Immune Responses – Fine-tuning of type 2 immune responses may explain why females are more susceptible to allergies. (15:00)
Transposable Elements in Tregs – Researchers identified DNA methylation, chromatin accessibility, and gene expression programs that govern the tissue adaptation of human skin Treg cells. (28:10)
Image courtesy of Dr. Tamara Tilburgs
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Guest:Dr. Johnathan Canton is an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, where his lab uses advanced microscopy techniques to study dendritic cells, macrophages, and innate immunity. He talks about his career journey from studying tropical parasites to investigating phagocytes. He also discusses using advanced microscopy techniques, studying the mechanisms of dendritic cell cross-presentation, and running a farm in Belize. (35:55)
Featured Products and Resources:* Check out the program for IUIS 2025! * The STEMdiff Monocyte Kit generates millions of monocytes that are ready for downstream assays, or further development into macrophages or dendritic cells.
The Immunology Round UpArmored CAR T Cells – A CRISPR knock-in strategy can engineer CAR T cells that secrete proinflammatory cytokines directly within a tumor without causing toxicity. (2:15)
Immune Invasion in Lung Cancer – Organoid immune co-cultures enable identifying immune evasion at subclonal resolution. (7:55)
Chromatin Remodeling in Chronic Inflammation – Researchers identified a mechanism that separates the chronic and acute inflammation responses. (19:00)
Reversing CD8⁺ T Cell Dysfunction – Scientists identified IL-27 as a tractable immunotherapeutic target in chronic hepatitis B virus infection. (25:40)
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Guest:Dr. Mahima Swamy is a Program Leader at the University of Dundee, where her lab studies immune homeostasis in the intestinal epithelium. She talks about intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes and the role of LRRK2 in Parkinson’s and Crohn’s disease.
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The Immunology Science Round UpFungal Meningitis in Mammals – Researchers examined Cryptococcus neoformans phenotypes and identified factors that drive mammalian virulence.
γδ T cell Receptor Activation – Using cryoelectron microscopy, researchers identified an MHC-independent antigen presentation mechanism distinct from αβ T cells.
Fungal Pulmonary Fibrosis – The Dectin-1-Raf1 axis is a key regulator of pulmonary fibrosis and a promising therapeutic target for fibrotic diseases.
Early-Life Fructose Exposure – High-fructose treatment of mouse and human microglia suppresses phagocytosis capacity.
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Guest:Dr. Rizwan Romee is a Oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute and Associate Professor at Harvard Medical School, where his research focuses on genetically manipulating NK cells to enhance their anti-tumor function. He talks about advances and challenges in engineering NK cells for cancer therapy. He also discusses using E. coli to deliver immune-activating cytokines to tumors. (37:31)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IUIS 2025! * Enter to win a personalized lab coat!
The Immunology Science Round UpThe Y Chromosome in Cancer – Loss of the Y chromosome in tumor and T cells worsens survival. (5:00)
Boosting CD8 T Cell Responses – Cytokine-adjuvanted mRNA-lipid nanoparticles can enhance immune response to vaccination. (11:40)
Bacterial Antitumor Immunotherapy – Intratumoral Listeria monocytogenes can either enhance or inhibit tumor progression. (21:30)
NK Cell Signaling – CAR activation and IL-15 signaling rapidly induce CREM upregulation in NK cells. (28:20)
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Guest:Dr. Arthur Mortha is an Associate Professor at the University of Toronto. His research focuses on innate lymphoid cells and their interactions with microbes. He talks about ILCs and how the gut microbiome can affect respiratory disease. (37:44)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IUIS 2025! * Enter to win a personalized lab coat!
The Immunology Round UpSerotonin and Antitumor Immunity – Serotonin transporter acts as an immune checkpoint restricting CD8 T cell antitumor immunity. (3:35)
T Cells in the Brain – CD4 T cells reside in the brain at steady state and are concentrated in the subfornical organ. (8:40)
Bat Antiviral Immunity – A new organoid platform reveals key features of bat epithelial antiviral immunity that may inform therapeutic strategies. (22:30)
Acetylcholine in the Thymus – Cholinergic signaling regulates immune cell development through thymic negative selection. (27:00)
Image courtesy of Dr. Arthur Mortha
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists, in Honolulu. We chat with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting. They discuss their reasons for attending, the most memorable research, and their experiences in Hawaiʻi.
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This special episode was recorded in front of a live audience at IMMUNOLOGY2025 in Honolulu. In this conversation, hosted by Dr. Nicole Quinn, Brenda and Jason share what they’ve learned from recording over 100 episodes of the Immunology Podcast. They talk about how the field has evolved during the past four years, the importance of making science and scientists accessible, and predictions for emerging areas of research.
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the final of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on lymphatic immunophysiology and how opioids drive immunosuppression in cancer.
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, where we recorded daily episodes highlighting key developments from the previous 24 hours. This is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting. In this episode, Brenda and Jason discuss how macrophages contribute to lung tissue repair and influence hormone activity, as well as the mechanisms linking MHC-II abnormalities to autoimmune disease pathogenesis.
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights from sessions on mucosal immunology and the role of T cells in lactogenesis. They also talk about γδ CAR T cells and veterinary immunology — from sharks to elephants.
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights from sessions on tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte and T-cell receptor therapies, unconventional functions of Tregs, and advances in single-cell RNA sequencing.
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In May 2025, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2025, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Honolulu, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights from talks including immune responses to bacterial infections, p53 reactivation for cancer therapy, and the mechanisms that lead to celiac disease.
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Guest:Dr. Henrique Veiga-Fernandes is a Full Investigator and Group Leader at the Champalimaud Foundation. He talks about interactions between the nervous and immune systems and how ILC2s regulate blood glucose levels. (43:00)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria.
The Immunology Science Round UpAcetylcholine Receptor in Autoimmunity – Researchers used cryoelectron microscopy to determine the high-resolution structures of the human adult AChR in different functional states. (5:20)
Skin Damage and Immune Responses – Acute and chronic inflammation in the skin of mice can initiate humoral immune responses to bystander antigens in the gut. (12:35)
Gut Microbes and Th17 Cells – A. faecalis outer membrane vesicles promote intestinal Th17 cell generation. (23:15)
Sex Differences in Pain Sensing – Depleting Tregs cells localized to the meninges of the central nervous system increased the responses of female, but not male, mice to mechanical pain stimuli. (32:00)
Image courtesy of Dr. Henrique Veiga-Fernandes
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Guest:Dr. Monika Wolkers is a Group Leader at the Sanquin Blood Supply Foundation and an Associate Professor at the University of Amsterdam. Her research focuses on RNA-binding proteins and how they affect T cell function. She talks about γδ T cells in immunotherapy, targeting pediatric tumors, and how a sabbatical led her to study RNA-binding proteins. (46:50)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria.
The Immunology Science Round UpMacrophages in Liver Regeneration – Glutamate supports liver regeneration by stabilizing HIF1α in bone-marrow-derived macrophages. (4:33)
A High-Salt Diet and Depression – A high-salt diet induces depression-like behavior symptoms in mice. (15:30)
A New Broad-Spectrum Antibiotic – The lasso peptide antibiotic lariocidin inhibits the bacterial ribosome. (29:10)
Boosting Antigen Cross-Presentation with STING – Researchers developed a new vaccine technology that stimulates CD8+ T cells and shows promise in mouse models of cancer and SARS-CoV-2 infection. (36:45)
Image courtesy of Dr. Monika Wolkers
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Guests:Dr. Stephen Jameson is the President of the American Association of Immunologists, and LMP Professor and Harry Kay Chairman’s Fund Professor in Experimental Pathology at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities. Dr. Bonnie Dittel is the Dr. Gilbert C. White II Endowed Faculty Chair at Versiti Blood Research Institute and Editor-in-Chief of ImmunoHorizons. In this episode, they talk about the upcoming IMMUNOLOGY2025 meeting in Honolulu, Hawaii from May 3-7, 2025. They discuss the highlights of the program, including the President’s Symposium and special sessions for new members. (36:07)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria.
The Immunology Science Round UpH5N1 Antibody Responses – Older adults have partial immunity to H5N1 due to exposure to similar influenza strains earlier in life. (4:00)
Macrophages in Kidney Disease – Macrophage RGMb promotes kidney disease by increasing macrophage infiltration. (8:50)
Spatial Transcriptomics of Liver Cancer – A new spatial immune scoring system predicts the risk of recurrence of hepatocellular carcinoma. (18:20)
Neutrophils in the Skin – A population of neutrophils build extracellular matrix rings around wounds. (25:10)
Image courtesy of Drs. Stephen Jameson and Bonnie Dittel
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Guest:Dr. Peter Doherty is Laureate Professor at the University of Melbourne. He and Dr. Rolf Zinkernagel, the co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, discovered how T cells recognize their target antigens in combination with major histocompatibility complex proteins. Beyond this, Dr. Doherty has made significant contributions to studying viral immunity, with a strong focus on how the immune system responds to influenza and other respiratory viruses.
In this episode, he talks about beginning his career as a veterinarian studying sheep and his seminal discoveries on the mechanisms of T cell antigen recognition. He also discusses his ventures into science communication. (38:08)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria.
The Immunology Science Round UpMicrobes on the International Space Station – Researchers generated a 3D map of the microbes and metabolites on surfaces of the International Space Station. (3:40)
T Cell Specificity During Infection – Self-peptide-specific Treg cells promote self-nonself discrimination during infection. (9:15)
Skin Pathogens in Nursing Homes – Scientists investigated the genomic epidemiology of the multidrug-resistant Candida auris in a nursing home. (23:40)
Metabolic Recycling – Phagocytosed bacteria can serve as an alternative nutrient source for macrophages. (29:14)
Image courtesy of Dr. Peter Doherty
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Guest:Dr. Luke O’Neill is a Professor and Chair of Biochemistry at Trinity College Dublin, where his research group is focused on exploring the molecular basis of inflammation. His lab endeavors to provide a better understanding of the metabolic regulation of immune cell function and the innate immune system, with the aim of developing novel therapies to treat inflammatory diseases.
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria.
The Immunology Science Round UpA Phage Counter-Defense – An orphan antitoxin counter-defense element has been discovered in phages that can overcome a bacterial toxin-antitoxin phage defense system. (5:40)
Pathogenic Memory T Cells – Researchers uncover a pathogenic subset of CD8+ memory T-cells that promote tissue inflammation. (14:05)
The Role of Macrophages in Graft-Versus-Host Disease – Scientists show that IL-34 reprograms macrophages to mitigate gastrointestinal complications in GVHD. (23:41)
A New Treatment Path for Nerve Damage – Research suggests that macrophages may play a protective role in preventing neuropathy from developing. (30:19)
Image courtesy of Dr. Luke O’Neill
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Guests:Dr. Wilfried Ellmeier is a Co-Chair of the Scientific Planning Committee at the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS) and Professor of Immunobiology and Head of the Institute of Immunology at the Medical University of Vienna. Dr. Laurence Zitvogel is a Keynote Speaker at IUIS 2025 and a Professor and Group Leader at Gustave Roussy. Dr. Dan Littman is also a Keynote Speaker at IUIS 2025 and Professor of Cell Biology and Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Professor of Molecular Immunology at NYU Langone. This episode features a discussion on the upcoming IUIS 2025 Congress taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria. They talk about what to expect at the meeting, highlights from this year’s program, and where to explore in Vienna. (42:25)
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2025, taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii. * IUIS 2025 is taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria!
The Immunology Science Round UpAn African Microbiome Atlas – A cross-sectional gut microbiome study sampled 1,801 women from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. (3:33)
Understanding Transplant Rejection – Inducing tolerance to immunodominant indirect CD4+ T cells prolongs graft survival. (7:38)
SARS-CoV-2 Evolution – A modeling approach predicts SARS-CoV-2 variant dynamics on the basis of immunity and cross-neutralization. (25:00)
Tregs in the Meninges – Meningeal Tregs are a multifaceted safeguard of brain homeostasis at steady state. (31:01)
Images courtesy of Drs. Wilfried Ellmeier, Laurence Zitvogel, and Dan Littman
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Guest:Dr. Erica Saphire is President and CEO of La Jolla Institute. Her research explains, at the molecular level, how and viruses are pathogenic and provides the roadmap for medical defense. She talks about the capabilities of cryo-electron microscopy and how it can help illuminate the mechanisms of measles viral fusion. She also discusses her role leading La Jolla Institute. (36:45)
Featured Products and Resources:* IMMUNOLOGY2025 is happening May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii! * Submit your abstract for IUIS 2025 by February 11th!
The Immunology Science Round UpILC2s in Pancreatic Cancer – IL-33 induced tertiary lymphoid structures in a mouse model of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. (4:35)
Precursors of Exhausted T Cells – Precursor T cells with at least two distinct phenotypes are preemptively generated regardless of infection outcome. (9:10)
T Cells in Chronic Infections – A population of stem-like CD8+ T cells can adapt their differentiation trajectory to either an acute or chronic viral infection. (10:45)
ILC2 Migration in the Gut – Researchers identified a role for immune cells in regulating blood glucose levels in mice. (29:13)
Image courtesy of Dr. Erica Saphire
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Guest:Dr. Nicole Quinn is the Director of Brand and Scientific Communications at STEMCELL Technologies, where as part of her role, she develops and oversees programs that help scientists keep current with the latest scientific advances and innovations in their field. In this episode, she discusses the upcoming second season of the Lab Coats & Life Podcast, which aims to help scientists thrive by keeping listeners informed about useful soft skills and relevant trends in the scientific community. She talks about her role as a co-host, what she’s learned about podcasting, key takeaways from conversations about science mentorship, and what to expect in Season 2. (38:33)
Featured Products and Resources:* Late-breaking abstract submission for IMMUNOLOGY2025 closes on January 21st. * Submit your abstract for IUIS 2025 by January 30th.
The Immunology Science Round UpThe Aging Mouse Immune System – Researchers delineated the landscape of cell-type-specific transcriptomic changes associated with normal aging in mouse brains. (3:00)
Neoepitopes for Adoptive T Cell Therapy – Conventional T cell therapy can benefit from targeting tryptophan to phenylalanine neoepitopes. (9:16)
Gut Microbiota and Lung Disease – A commensal protozoan tunes pulmonary immunity via a gut-operated lung immune network. (20:25)
Lymphocyte Migration – Inflamed lymph nodes switch CCR7 ligand mediating lymphocyte recruitment from CCL21 to CCL19. (28:35)
Image courtesy of Dr. Nicole Quinn
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Guest:Dr. Gail Bishop is a Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Iowa, where her lab studies the molecular mechanisms underlying lymphocyte activation and tolerance. She talks about TRAF signaling, the NFκB pathway, and effects on B and T lymphocytes. She also discusses her role as Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Immunology.
Featured Products and Resources:* Registration is open for IMMUNOLOGY2025! * The 19th International Congress of Immunology to be held in Vienna from August 17-22, 2025!
The Immunology Science Round UpPyroptotic Cell Corpses – Cells assemble filopodia before cell rupture to serve as a posthumous mark for a cell that has died by gasdermin-induced pyroptosis.
Engineering Synthetic T Cell Receptors – T-Switch identifies therapeutic TCR variants with enhanced potency and specificity.
Macrophages in Muscle – Macrophages in muscle spindles express the machinery for synthesizing and releasing glutamate.
Synthetic Suppressor T Cells – Researchers engineered human T cells to make a synthetic receptor that recognized overactive T cells.
Image courtesy of Dr. Gail Bishop
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Guest:Dr. Lili Yang is a Professor of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her research centers on deciphering the molecular mechanisms regulating anti-cancer immune responses, exploiting knowledge to develop novel immunotherapies for treating cancer, and translating these new cancer immunotherapies from bench to bedside. She talks about engineering off-the-shelf immunotherapies to fight cancer and generating CAR-NKT cells from hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. She also discusses the role of serotonin and how SSRIs can affect cancer therapy efficacy.
Featured Products and Resources:* Registration for IMMUNOLOGY2025 opens December 10! * The 19th International Congress of Immunology to be held in Vienna from August 17-22, 2025!
The Immunology Science Round UpPreventing Apoptosis – Apoptosis inhibition by NLRP3 activators is due to their effects on mitochondria rather than inflammasome activation.
SARS-CoV-2 Spike Proteins in the Brain – SARS-CoV-2 spike protein persists in the skull-meninges-brain axis in COVID-19 patients.
CAR T to Protect Transplanted Beta Cells – hPSCs and Tregs can be co-engineered to protect hPSC-derived cells from immune rejection upon transplantation.
Endogenous Retrovirus Antibodies – An antibody produced by endogenous retrovirus-reactive B cells recognized glycans of a broad range of enveloped viruses.
Image courtesy of Dr. Lili Yang
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Guest:Dr. Rahul Roychoudhuri is a Professor of Cancer Immunology at the University of Cambridge (Department of Pathology) and Director (Non-Clinical) of the CRUK Cambridge Centre Training Programme. His lab studies immunoregulatory mechanisms in inflammation and cancer. He talks about enhancing cell therapy with new payloads and targeting cancer cells during metastasis.
Featured Products and Resources:* IMMUNOLOGY2025 is happening May 3-7 in Honolulu, Hawaii! * The 19th International Congress of Immunology is being held August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria!
The Immunology Science Round UpColonizing the Human Microbiome – Researchers identified a phylogenetically distinct group of microbiome-associated, viroid-like RNAs.
Immune Privilege of the Central Nervous System – Regulatory self-peptides bind to MCH II molecules at the central nervous system border.
Heart Attacks and Sleep – Monocytes are recruited to the brain after myocardial infarction to augment sleep and promote healing.
The Circadian Rhythm in Immune Homeostasis – IL-17-producing γδ T cells rely on the molecular clock to maintain adipose tissue homeostasis.
Image courtesy of Dr. Rahul Roychoudhuri
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Guest:Dr. Pascal Meier is a Professor and Group Leader at the Institute of Cancer Research in London, England. His group investigates the complex relationship between cell death, immunity, and tumorigenesis. Particularly, they are focused on the role of cell death and inflammation in adaptation to tissue stress, treatment resistance, and tumour surveillance.
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The Immunology Science Round Up:New Potential for Cancer Immunotherapy – Researchers have identified a new type of immune cell called stem-like CD4 T cells that play an important role in anti-tumor immunity.
An Improved Treg Therapy – Human OX40 ligand-specific CAR-Tregs may be a potent cellular therapy to control allo- and autoimmune diseases.
Chronic Inflammation Worsens Heart Failure – Blocking the molecular signals between inflammation-causing immune cells and fibroblasts can prevent fibrosis.
Programmable Bacteria – Scientists have engineered a strain of bacteria to express cytokine IFN-γ within the tumor core.
Image courtesy of Dr. Pascal Meier
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Guest:Dr. Marcelo Hill is the Head of the Laboratory of Immunoregulation and Inflammation at the Institut Pasteur de Montevideo. He is also the Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of ARDAN ImmunoPharma. His research focuses on immune regulation in cancer, and how T cells respond to immunotherapy in melanoma. He talks about improving immunotherapy efficacy by activating the inflammasome, and how he is pushing this research towards the clinic by collaborating with industry and creating a spin-off company.
He is then joined by Drs. Marion Brunck and María Julia Lamberti, who discuss the upcoming meeting of the Latin American and Caribbean Association of Immunology, taking place November 4-8 in Buenos Aires. They discuss the challenges and opportunities in the Latin American immunology community, and how this conference aims to promote collaborations and empower early-career researchers.
Featured Products and Resources:* IMMUNOLOGY2025 is taking place May 3-7 in Honolulu. Submit your abstract now! * The 19th International Congress of Immunology will be held in Vienna from August 17-22, 2025.
The Immunology Round UpStaphylococcus aureus Biofilm – Scientists studied tissue microenvironments in models of S. aureus craniotomy and prosthetic joint infections.
T Helper Cell Differentiation – Researchers found that RAMP3 has a cell-intrinsic role in TH1 cell fate determination.
Probiotic Immunotherapy – Researchers used E. coli to deliver neoepitopes that drive T cell-mediated anticancer immunity.
Microglia in Alzheimer’s Pathology – APOE internalization is regulated by cholesterol metabolism in microglia.
Image courtesy of Dr. Marcelo Hill
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Guests:Dr. JoAnne Flynn is a Professor of Microbiology and Molecular Genetics at the University of Pittsburgh and Dr. Stephen Hedrick is Chancellor’s Associates Chair VII Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of California, San Diego. They talk about the American Association of Immunologists’ Immunology Explained campaign, which aims to explain the science of the immune system to the general public. They also discuss their efforts to educate legislators about the value of immunology research and promote childhood vaccination.
Featured Products and Resources:* Submit your abstract for IMMUNOLOGY2025! * Read interviews from immunologists.
The Immunology Science Round UpPostnatal T Cell Development – Spatial multiomics show sex differences in early postnatal T cell development.
Organ-Specific Tissue Residency – Retinoic acid is a fundamental component of the host-environment interaction that directs immunosurveillance in tissues.
A Pan-Sarbecovirus Antibody – Scientists identified an antibody that competes with ACE2 and neutralizes several SARS-CoV-2 variants.
NK Cells in RSV – An altered NK cell immunophenotype is associated with severe RSV disease in young children.
Images courtesy of Drs. JoAnne Flynn and Stephen Hedrick
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Guest:Dr. Theresa Alenghat is a Professor in the Immunobiology Division and the Margaret K. Hostetter Chair at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, University of Cincinnati. Her lab investigates mechanisms underlying the host-microbiota relationship, and how this regulation affects intestinal immunity and inflammatory bowel disease. She discusses how butyrate affects tuft cells in the intestine.
Featured Products and Resources:* Submit your abstract for IMMUNOLOGY2025! * Add Intestinal Organoids to Your Research with IntestiCult.
The Immunology Round UpAncient Cheese – Researchers retrieved DNA from ancient kefir cheese to study how human-microbial interactions contribute to the adaptation of domesticated lactobacilli.
Mitochondrial Movement – Mitochondrial transfer augments CD8+ T cell mitochondria mass and metabolic fitness.
CAR T Atlas – Scientists generated a single-cell atlas of pre-infusion CAR T cells and found that elevated type 2 functionality is associated with remission of leukemia.
NAD+ Reconstitution – A unique immune evasion strategy allows viruses to rebuild molecules depleted by the host’s defense system.
Image courtesy of Dr. Theresa Alenghat
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Guest:Dr. Roslyn Kemp is a Professor of Immunology at the University of Otago. Her research focuses on T cells as mediators of anti-tumor immunity and inflammation. She discusses using organoids to model inflammatory bowel disease and collecting immune cell signatures in cancer. She also talks about writing a book to demystify science research and careers.
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The Immunology Science Round UpExtending Responses after HIV Treatment – IL-10 and PD-1 blockade controlled viral rebound of SIV in rhesus macaques during analytical treatment interruption.
Autoreactive T Cells in Lupus – Neoself-antigen presentation by MHC-II plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of systemic lupus erythematosus.
Bison Bile Salt Hydrolase – Researchers determined the molecular structure of a bile salt hydrolase from the bison microbiome.
How Gender-Affirming Hormone Therapy Affects Immunity – Testosterone in trans men alters a cross-regulation axis involving IFN-I and TNF.
Image courtesy of Dr. Roslyn Kemp
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Guest:Dr. Wayne Juang is a Field Application Scientist, Immunology at STEMCELL Technologies. In his current role, he works with researchers to help optimize and troubleshoot their experiments. He discusses his path to industry and his motivation to pursue an MBA.
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The Immunology Round UpTNF Mutations and Tuberculosis – Two relatives who lack working copies of the TNF gene experienced recurrent bouts of tuberculosis, but are unaffected by other pathogens.
Fibrin and Clotting in COVID-19 – Fibrin drives inflammation and neuropathology in SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Salt in Tumors – Sodium chloride in enhances the activation state and effector functions of human CD8+ T cells.
Fatal Respiratory Infections – Researchers identified oleoyl-ACP hydrolase as an early driver of several severe respiratory diseases.
Image courtesy of STEMCELL Technologies
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Guest:Dr. Kipp Weiskopf is a Valhalla Fellow at the Whitehead Institute. His research focuses on unlocking the therapeutic potential of macrophages for the benefit of cancer patients. He talks about the role of macrophages in the tumor environment and how targeting the CD47/SIRPα axis can induce phagocytosis of cancer cells. He also discusses starting spin-off companies to advance cancer therapies.
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The Immunology Round UpOrganoids with an Immune Compartment – Researchers generated human intestinal immuno-organoids to investigate intestinal inflammation triggered by cancer-targeting biologics in patients.
Gene Repression in Tregs – The transcription factor Ikaros binds to Foxp3 to inhibit the expression of target genes in Tregs.
γδ T-Cell Antigen Receptor Structure – Scientists used cryo-electron microscopy to determine the structure of of the T-cell receptor found on the surface of γδ T cells.
Autoimmune Organ Damage – Tissue-resident NKp46+ innate lymphoid cells are crucial signal amplifiers of disease-associated macrophage expansion and epithelial cell injury in lupus nephritis.
Image courtesy of Dr. Kipp Weiskopf
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Guest:Dr. Adrian Erlebacher is a Professor in the Department of Laboratory Medicine at the University of California, San Francisco. His lab studies how the developmental properties of a tissue influence its ability to mount a successful immune response. He talks about immune tolerance in pregnancy and how the maternal–fetal interface affects pregnancy outcomes.
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The Immunology Science Round UpImmune Cells in the Skull – The glioblastoma-linked immune-cell niche in the human skull provides an unanticipated resource and concept of acute tumor reactivity in the proximal bone marrow.
Nasal Vaccine Reactions – Nasal vaccination induces B cell expansion in the subepithelial dome of nasal-associated lymphoid tissues.
Airway Microbiota Across the Lifespan – Lifestyle factors are related to oral microbiota and environment is related to nasopharyngeal microbiota.
Tregs in the Gut – Researchers used a chemogenetic screen to reveal functional neuroimmune interactions in the gut.
Image courtesy of Dr. Adrian Erlebacher
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Guest:Dr. Jeffrey Rathmell is the Cornelius Vanderbilt Professor of Immunobiology at the Vanderbilt Center for Immunobiology. His research focuses on T cell metabolism in cancer. He talks about what T cells use for fuel and his work on fatty acid synthesis. He also discusses the ‘obesity paradox’ in cancer immunotherapy and his favorite parts of being a scientist and professor.
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The Immunology Round UpA Humanized Mouse Model – A new humanized mouse mounts specific and mature antibody and autoantibody responses.
IL-11 Signaling in Aging – Inhibiting IL-11 extends the healthspan and lifespan of mice.
Sphinganine Synthesis in Macrophages – Sphinganine biosynthesis is a checkpoint for macrophage pattern recognition in mouse models of sepsis and melanoma.
Brain-Muscle Signaling – Researchers identified a brain-to-muscle signaling axis in Drosophila that regulates muscle performance.
Image courtesy of Dr. Jeffrey Rathmell
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Guest:Dr. Shana Kelley is the President of the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Chicago and the Neena B. Schwartz Professor of Chemistry and Biomedical Engineering at Northwestern University. The Kelley research group works in a variety of areas spanning bio analytical technology development and has pioneered new methods for tracking molecular and cellular analytes with unprecedented sensitivity. She talks about developing DNA-based reagentless biosensors and commercializing new technologies.
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The Immunology Science Round UpTuberculosis Target Structure – Cryogenic electron microscopy structures of Mycobacterium tuberculosis ATP synthase sheds light on drug binding.
Toll-Like Receptor Signaling – Researchers engineered macrophages to delineate TLR pathway activities.
Onco-Fetal Immune Tolerance – Scientists cross-analyzed single-cell RNA sequencing data from human cancer types and the maternal-fetal interface to identify an onco-fetal immune tolerance checkpoint.
Tau Immunotherapy – Scientists loaded tau antibodies into micelles and administered them intranasally in mice.
Image courtesy of Dr. Shana Kelley
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Guest:Dr. Susan Kaech is a Professor and Director of the NOMIS Center for Immunobiology and Microbial Pathogenesis at the Salk Institute. Her lab aims to understand how memory T cells are produced during infection and vaccination, how they function, and why they can fail to induce long-term immunity, particularly during chronic disease or cancer. In this episode, she talks about her research on T cell exhaustion and neuroimmunology, as well as her path from genetics to immunology.
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The Immunology Round UpGlycan Breakdown and Bacterial Function – Researchers used a large-scale screen to identify enzyme systems that represent an underappreciated mode of glycan degradation.
Cancer Risk after CAR T Therapy– Only a small percentage of patients who receive CAR T therapies develop secondary cancers, and most are not directly linked to CAR T treatment.
CD8+ T Cells in Hepatitis B – Hepatocellular priming induces key co-signaling receptors in dysfunctional CD8+ T cells.
T Cell Aging – T cell epigenetic clocks measure replicative history and can continue to accumulate well-beyond organismal lifespan.
Image courtesy of Dr. Susan Kaech
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Guest:Dr. Priya Devarajan is an Assistant Professor at Stony Brook University. Her work focuses on immune memory and respiratory immunology. She talks about how aging affects the immune system and strategies to promote immune responses in the nose and lungs. She also discusses improving influenza vaccine responses and her experience interviewing for faculty positions.
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The Immunology Science Round Upγδ T Cells Across the Life Span – Antigenic exposures over childhood drive the functional evolution and tissue compartmentalization of γδ T cells.
Glucose Restriction and Viral Response – Glucose restriction is a physiological mechanism to bring the body into a heightened state of responsiveness to viral pathogens.
A Gene Desert Implicated in Autoimmunity – Researchers used functional genomics to identify a central regulator of human inflammatory macrophages.
Stripy T Cells – Some T cells within a population have nuclear envelope invaginations that concentrate cellular organelles.
Image courtesy of Dr. Priya Devarajan
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Guest:Dr. Erika Moore is an Assistant Professor in the Fischell Department of Bioengineering at the University of Maryland, where her lab is committed to engineering biomaterial models that harness the regenerative potential of the immune system. She talks about building biomaterials, rejuvenating macrophages, and treating lupus. She also discusses using the right cells in research and promoting financial literacy to make science careers more accessible.
Featured Products and Resources:* Explore scientific resources for your immunology research. * Differentiate human monocytes into macrophages with ImmunoCult-SF Macrophage Medium.
The Immunology Science Round UpHeart Failure – Bone marrow can carry an innate immune memory of cardiac stress that may exacerbate heart failure.
Epstein Barr and B Cells – Virus-orchestrated NAD biosynthesis is a druggable metabolic vulnerability of Epstein Barr virus-driven B cell transformations.
Microbiome Modulation in Pregnancy – Bacterial conversion of corticoids into progestins may affect host physiology, particularly in the context of pregnancy.
The Circadian Rhythm and Tumor Immunosuppression – Circadian gating of tumor immunosuppression informs the timing and efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors.
Image courtesy of Dr. Erika Moore
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Guest:Dr. Kellen Cavagnero is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, San Diego. His PhD work focused on how fibroblasts — a cell type thought to be immunologically inert — contribute to chronic inflammatory conditions and defense against pathogens. He talks about staph infections, antimicrobial resistance, and the types and roles of fibroblasts. He also discusses his work in science communication, including his podcast, Inflammatory Content.
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The Immunology Science Round UpMalaria Immunity – Scientists leveraged a human malaria infection study to investigate functional correlates of immunity.
CAR T Therapy for HIV – Anti-HIV-1 CAR-T cells armed with endogenic broadly neutralizing antibodies resulted in significant suppression of viral rebound in HIV patients.
Immunogenic Cell Death – Researchers generated a small-molecule proteolysis-targeting chimera that selectively degraded human and murine RIPK1.
Origins of Autoimmunity – NUDCD3 is required for healthy T and B cell development in humans.
Image courtesy of Dr. Kellen Cavagnero
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists, in Chicago. We spoke with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting, including their reasons for attending and the most memorable research presented.
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Guests:Dr. Jo Viney is the CEO, President, & Co-Founder and Dr. Ryan Peckner is the Director of Machine Learning & Computational Biology at Seismic Therapeutic. In this special episode recorded in front of a live audience at IMMUNOLOGY2024 in Chicago, they discuss artificial intelligence and its applications in drug discovery and protein engineering. They talk about its limitations, its role in clinical trials, and how scientists can leverage these tools to advance their careers.
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Images courtesy of Drs. Jo Viney and Ryan Peckner
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Chicago, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the final of five special episodes from the meeting, where Brenda and Jason talk about sessions including the dysfunction of exhaustive T cells enforced by MCT11-mediated lactate metabolism and extrafollicular differentiated B cells, presented by former podcast guest Dr. Frances Lund.
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Chicago, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting, where Brenda and Jason highlight discussions on tumor-infiltrating lymphocyte therapy, chaired by former podcast guest Dr. Kristin Anderson, as well as fueling T cell fate decision during infection with an initial focus on immunometabolism.
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Chicago, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason spotlight discussions on cellular responses of microbial and parasitic infection and the immunology of pregnancy with a focus on glycan regulation of fetomaternal tolerance.
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Chicago, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss highlights from sessions including microbial and environmental influences on the gut and recent breakthroughs in emerging therapeutic strategies for chronic inflammatory and fibrotic diseases.
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In May 2024, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2024, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Chicago, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Jason and Brenda highlight sessions on innate and innate-like cells and transplant immunology. Discussions include the role of hypothermia in protecting ventilator-induced lung damage and Siglec-E knockout in transplant rejection.
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Guest:Dr. Caleb Lareau is an Assistant Professor at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. His lab aims to understand how cells in our bodies adapt, expand, and evolve during the course of our lives, particularly in the immune system. He talks about cross-training in bioinformatics and immunology, and herpesvirus reactivation in CAR T cells.
Featured Products and Resources:* Check out the program for IMMUNOLOGY2024, happening May 3-7 in Chicago! * Attend a live show on artificial intelligence in immunology.
The Immunology Round UpBlocking Lung Injury in Influenza – Scientists developed an inhibitor to block necroptosis in severe influenza infections.
Germinal Center Memory B Cells – IL-4 signaling can regulate memory B cell selection.
Intestinal Barrier Defence – Citrobacter rodentium targets a subset of absorptive intestinal epithelial cells in the mid–distal colon, which stimulate T cells to produce sustained IL-22 signals to mitigate further spread of the pathogen.
Fast-Acting Glucocorticoids – The anti-inflammatory properties of glucocorticoids involve reprogramming of the mitochondrial metabolism of macrophages.
Image courtesy of Dr. Caleb Lareau
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Guest:Dr. Mitchell Kronenberg is a Professor and President Emeritus at La Jolla Institute for Immunology. His lab studies how innate-like T cells adapt to different tissue environments. He talks about his work on MAIT cells and mucosal immunology, as well as his time leading the Institute.
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The Immunology Science Round UpImmune System Regeneration – Depleting myeloid-biased HSCs in aged mice restores features of a more youthful immune system.
Gasdermin in Pyroptosis – Gasdermin D N-terminal domain palmitoylation controls gasdermin membrane localization and activation.
Antibody-Drug Conjugates for Cancer – Scientists developed an antibody–drug conjugate that could kill TRBC1+ cancer cells in vitro and cure human T cell cancers in mouse models.
Hemorrhagic Fever Cell Receptors – The low density lipoprotein receptor is a critical for the Crimean–Congo hemorrhagic fever virus to enter host cells.
Image courtesy of Dr. Mitchell Kronenberg
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Guest:Dr. Scott Canna is an Associate Professor of Pediatrics (Rheumatology), and Attending Physician, Pediatric Rheumatology and Immune Dysregulation at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. His group studies the mechanisms of immune dysregulation. He talks about auto- and hyperinflammatory diseases and the role of IL-18. He also discusses hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis and adapting therapies for children.
Featured Products and Resources:* Check out the program for IMMUNOLOGY2024! * Listen to the new Lab Coats & Life Podcast, featuring Brenda and Jason as co-hosts!
The Immunology Science Round UpMicrobial Metabolites in Infectious Diseases – Dietary tryptophan protects against gastrointestinal infection by activating the neurotransmitter receptor dopamine receptor D2.
T Cell Tolerance – Scientists used neural networks and hybrid mice to see how the transcription factor AIRE recognizes gene promoters.
Microbes in Immunotherapy – Lactobacillus johnsonii promotes the production of indole-3-propionic acid, which improves immune checkpoint blockade responsiveness.
Alzheimer’s Disease Microglia – Research suggests a link between genetic risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease and microglial lipid droplet accumulation.
Image courtesy of Dr. Scott Canna
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Guest:Dr. Neelika Malavige is the Head of Dengue Global Program and Scientific Affairs at the Drugs for Neglected Diseases Initiative and a Professor in the Department of Immunology and Molecular Medicine at the University of Sri Jayewardenepura. Her research focuses on dengue: its pathogenesis, vascular leak, immune correlates of protection, and biomarkers. She talks about the disease burden of dengue and her investigations into risk factors for severe disease. She also discusses her research on COVID-19 vaccines and the role of the microbiome in colon cancer, as well as how she’s working to grow research capabilities in Sri Lanka.
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2024, happening May 3 – 7 in Chicago! * Enter to win a free lab coat from the new Lab Coats & Life Podcast.
The Immunology Round UpSOX17 in Colorectal Cancer – Scientists used AKP organoids to demonstrate that SOX17 orchestrates immune evasion in the early steps of colon cancer.
Tregs in Tumor Immunity – Lactate uptake by Treg cells contributes to the efficacy of CTLA-4 blockade.
Astrocytes in Autoimmunity – Researchers identified astrocyte-derived heparin-binding EGF-like growth factor as a potential therapeutic target in multiple sclerosis.
αβ T Cell Development – By studying patients with pre-TCRα deficiency, scientists found that pre-TCRα may not be absolutely required for αβ T cell development in humans.
Image courtesy of Dr. Neelika Malavige
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Guest:Dr. James Allison is the Regental Professor and Chair of the Department of Immunology, Olga Keith Wiess Distinguished University Chair for Cancer Research, Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Research, Executive Director of the Immunotherapy Platform, and Director of the James P. Allison Institute at MD Anderson Cancer Center.
Dr. Allison has spent a distinguished career studying the regulation of T cell responses and developing strategies for cancer immunotherapy. He earned the 2018 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, which he shared with Dr. Tasuku Honjo, “for their discovery of cancer therapy by inhibition of negative immune regulation.” His current work seeks to improve immune checkpoint blockade therapies currently used by clinicians and identify new targets to unleash the immune system in order to eradicate cancer. He talks about the hunt for the T cell receptor and working to bring CTLA-4 blockade into the clinic. He also discusses what’s next for immunotherapy, including future investigations into myeloid cells, and playing the harmonica in a band.
Featured Products and Resources:* Register now for IMMUNOLOGY2024! * Enter to win a free lab coat and learn about mentorship in science.
The Immunology Science Round UpOvercoming Antibacterial Resistance – A new antibiotic targets multi-drug-resistant bacteria by binding to ribosomes.
Tregs in Visceral Adipose Tissue – Visceral adipose tissue harbors two distinct Treg cell populations: one enriched in males and one enriched in females.
How IL-23 Fuels Tumor Growth – A subset of Tregs are responsible for the tumor-promoting effect of IL-23.
Smoking and the Immune System – Smoking affects adaptive immune responses for years after quitting.
Image courtesy of Dr. James Allison
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Guests:Dr. Akiko Iwasaki is the Sterling Professor of Immunobiology and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University and President of the American Association of Immunologists. Francisco Gomez-Rivera is an Immunology Program Graduate Student Candidate at the University of Michigan, and Dr. Jason (Swinburne) Augustine is a retired Research Microbiologist/Immunologist at the US Environmental Protection Agency. They talk about the upcoming IMMUNOLOGY2024 meeting in Chicago, Illinois from May 3-7, 2024. They discuss key sessions to attend, what they’re looking forward to at the meeting, and advice for attendees.
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The Immunology Science Round UpBacteria in Gastric Cancer – Streptococcus anginosus promotes gastric tumorigenesis via direct interactions with gastric epithelial cells.
CAR T Cells for Aging – Senolytic CAR T cells safely eliminate senescent cells in young animals.
Microbiota and Tuft Cell Biology – Microbiota calibrate type 2 immunity in the intestine by controlling tuft cell differentiation.
Sex Differences in Autoimmunity – Autoantibodies to the Xist ribonucleoprotein characterize female-biased autoimmune diseases.
Images courtesy of Dr. Akiko Iwasaki, Robert Lisak, Francisco Gomez-Rivera, and Dr. Jason (Swinburne) Augustine
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Guest:Dr. Dionna Williams is an Acting Associate Professor in the Department of Pharmacology & Chemical Biology at Emory University. Their research focuses on the effects of HIV infection on the brain. She talks about how HIV affects immune cells in the brain and how this can lead to neuropsychiatric symptoms. They also discuss therapeutic approaches, factors that affect how drugs can reach the brain, and moving their lab to Atlanta.
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The Immunology Round UpA Long Covid Blood Signature – Active Long Covid is accompanied by a blood protein signature marked by increased complement activation and thromboinflammation.
T Cells in Guillain–Barré Syndrome –Autoreactive T cells that target myelin antigens in the peripheral nerves are present in patients with the demyelinating form of Guillain–Barré syndrome.
A CAR-NK Cell Clinical Trial – Researchers identified features of donated cord blood associated with improved response to CAR-NK cell therapy for B cell malignancies.
Cas9-Packaging Enveloped Delivery Vehicles – Researchers developed an antibody-directed strategy for delivering genome engineering tools to specific cell types.
Image courtesy of Dr. Dionna Williams
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Guests:Dr. Akiko Iwasaki is the Sterling Professor of Immunobiology and Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology at Yale University and President of the American Association of Immunologists (AAI), and Dr. Aimee Bernard is an Assistant Professor of Immunology and Microbiology at the University of Colorado. Dr. Iwasaki has a very active presence on X, where she shares about COVID-19 research. Dr. Bernard is also active on social media through her TikTok account, and co-hosts a podcast, Help! Make It Make Sense.
In this episode, they discuss the importance of communicating science to the public and strategies for social media. They also talk about how the AAI is working to share immunology knowledge with non-scientists through Immunology Explained.
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The Immunology Round UpA New Antibiotic for Gram-Negative Bacteria – A mechanism of lipid transport inhibition has been identified for a class of peptide antibiotics effective against resistant Acinetobacter strains.
Treg Depletion As Cancer Treatment – Researchers examined the mechanism of Treg cell depletion failure using a mouse model of Treg cell–targeted immunotherapy.
Immunotherapy Resistance in Melanoma – Using single-cell, spatial multi-omics, scientists showed that the tumor microenvironment promotes the emergence of a complex melanoma transcriptomic landscape.
An Immune Dictionary of Cytokine Responses – Scientists created single-cell transcriptomic profiles of more than 17 immune cell types in response to each of 86 cytokines in mouse lymph nodes in vivo.
Images courtesy of Robert Lisak, YSM and Dr. Aimee Bernard
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS), in Cape Town, South Africa. We spoke with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting, including their reasons for attending and the most memorable research presented. They discuss their experiences in South Africa, the meeting’s focus on infectious diseases and equitable science, and sessions by Nobel laureates.
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Guest:Dr. David Gibb is an Assistant Professor at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center. His lab investigates inflammatory mechanisms in patients with sickle cell disease and lupus, focusing on mechanisms regulating immune responses to red blood cell antigens following transfusion.
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The Immunology Round UpRegulation of Lymphoid Cells – NOD1 functions in murine hematopoietic cells as a major regulator of both the generation and differentiation of lymphoid progenitors.
The Aging Immune System – Type 2 memory CD4+ and CD8+ T cells increase with age and can produce more IL-4.
Microglia in Cancer Metastasis – Microglia play a distinct pro-inflammatory and tumor-suppressive role in breast cancer brain metastasis.
MAIT Cells in Mice and Humans – Environment influences MAIT cell development and function.
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Cape Town, South Africa, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the final of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on integrins and ebola vaccine trials.
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Cape Town, South Africa, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on the HIV/AIDS epidemic and vaccination strategies to prepare for the next pandemic.
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Cape Town, South Africa, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss research on T cell exhaustion in chronic infections and sex differences in immune responses.
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Cape Town, South Africa, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss research on the microbiome, sepsis, and the aging immune system.
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In 2023, we attended the 18th International Congress of Immunology, hosted by the International Union of Immunological Societies, in Cape Town, South Africa, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the conference. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Brenda and Jason discuss the opening ceremony of the congress as well as sessions on tuberculosis, γδ T cell receptors, and cancer immunotherapy.
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Guest:Dr. Anjali Kusumbe is a Group Leader and Director of the Tissue Imaging Centre at Oxford University. Her lab studies vascular changes over time with the aim of treating diseases. She talks about light sheet microscopy techniques, the aging immune system, and finding lymphatic vessels in bone.
Featured Products and Resources:* IUIS 2023 is almost here! * Enter to win $500 USD towards a cell or gene therapy conference.
The Immunology Science Round UpHerpesvirus in CAR T Cell Therapy – A population of ‘super-expressor’ CAR T cells can contribute to the reactivation of latent human herpesvirus 6.
Autoantibodies in NF-κB2 Deficiency – Inborn errors of the alternative NF-κB pathway underlie the production of autoantibodies against type I interferons and predisposition to viral diseases.
A Rheumatoid Arthritis Atlas – Scientists built a single-cell atlas of rheumatoid arthritis synovial tissue.
Tregs After Exercise – Researchers identified Tregs as a key regulatory element that is activated in response to exercise and needed to support muscle adaptations.
Image courtesy of Dr. Anjali Kusumbe
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Guest:Dr. Sophia Liu is a Core Faculty Member and Early Independence Fellow at the Ragon Institute of Mass General, MIT, and Harvard. She enjoys creating new ways to measure temporally and spatially dynamic cell interactions and is particularly interested in studying T- and B-cell development. Her lab’s research focuses on immune cell interactions in tissues and dynamics across immune development and aging. She talks about the spatial mapping of T-cell receptors, what happens to the thymus during aging, and her experience starting a lab straight out of her PhD!
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The Immunology Science Round UpA Functional Coronavirus Receptor – Scientists identified a functional receptor for a coronavirus that causes the common cold.
Counting Immune Cells in the Human Body – An average individual’s immune system consists of approximately 1.8 trillion cells.
Gut Bacteria in Type 1 Diabetes – IgG2 antibodies against three gut microbial commensals are associated with time to diagnosis and clinical response to T cell-directed therapy for type 1 diabetes prevention.
Lymph Node Immune History – Tregs can form resident memory-like populations in lymph nodes after adaptive immune responses.
Image courtesy of Dr. Sophia Liu
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Guest:Dr. Siobhan Burns is a Professor of Translational Immunology at University College London. Her group studies the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms that give rise to primary immunodeficiency disorders. She talks about how genetic mutations affect immune function, and what inborn errors of immunity can teach us about general immunology.
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The Immunology Science Round UpA Cryptic Antigen in Influenza – Researchers identified a nonclassical MHC epitope that directs the T cell response against influenza.
Drug-Resistant Malaria Parasites – Scientists generated atovaquone-resistant malaria parasites and showed that they fail to transmit by mosquito.
Transplanting Genetically Modified Pig Kidneys into Monkeys – Scientists showed that preclinical studies of renal xenotransplantation could be successfully conducted in nonhuman primates.
Dendritic Cells to Reduce Immunosuppression After Liver Transplant – Liver transplant recipients who receive regulatory dendritic cells may require less immunosuppressive drugs.
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Guest:Dr. Peter Fecci is a Professor of Neurosurgery at Duke University and the Director of the Duke Center for Brain and Spine Metastasis. His research focuses on brain tumor immunology and immunotherapy, and T cell dysfunction in glioblastoma and other intracranial cancers. He talks about activating T cells to target brain tumors and his team’s work on targeting MHC-I-negative tumor cells.
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The Immunology Science Round UpA Universal Flu Vaccine Candidate – A group 2 hemagglutinin universal influenza virus vaccine candidate protects mice against group 2 influenza viruses.
Regulatory T Cells in Muscle Function – Exercise induces a highly functional and stable muscle Treg phenotype.
An Antiviral Drug and SARS-CoV-2 Mutations – Scientists identified a mutational spectrum from viruses in patients treated with molnupiravir.
Microbial Exposure and Allergic Inflammation – Increased microbial biodiversity in mice does not protect against allergic inflammation, in contrast to what would be predicted by the hygiene hypothesis.
Image courtesy of Dr. Peter Fecci
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Guest:Dr. Alice Long is an Associate Member and Principal Investigator at Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason, where her lab focuses on discovering how tolerance is lost in human autoimmunity and how therapy can restore tolerance.
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The Immunology Science Round UpInsights into B Cell Selection – Antigen-presenting autoreactive B cells play a crucial role in tolerizing T cells and suppressing tissue-specific autoimmune inflammation.
A New Perspective for IBD Management – Researchers discovered a polymorphism encoding a defective fusion protein that is correlated with inflammatory bowel disease severity.
A Neuropeptide in Type 2 Immunity – Scientists show that neuromedin U programs eosinophils to promote mucosal immunity of the small intestine.
Intestinal Antigen Recognition and Humoral Immunity – A new study shows that antigen receptor signaling and cell death resistance control intestinal humoral response zonation.
Image courtesy of Alice Long
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Dr. Kristin Anderson is an Assistant Professor at the University of Virginia, where her lab focuses on engineering T cells to overcome immune suppression in the tumor microenvironment. She talks about how her cancer diagnosis changed her career focus, strategies for targeting ovarian cancer, and her transition from postdoc to professor.
Guest:Dr. Vinod Blachandran is an Attending Surgeon and Lab Head at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. He talks about neoantigen vaccines for pancreatic cancer, what can be learned from a rare group of long-term survivors, and how surgeon-scientist mentors have influenced his career.
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The Immunology Science Round UpPlatelet Factors in Aging – Platelet factors transfer the benefits of young blood to the aging mouse brain.
Cellular Immunity in Influenza – Adaptive T cells protect against symptomatic influenza infection.
Interactions Between the Immune System and the Gut Microbiome – T cells in the gut repertoire recognize several bacterial strains from complex defined communities.
Aryl Hydrocarbon Receptor Signaling in Lung Endothelial Cells – Aryl hydrocarbon receptor and its ligands play an important part in protecting against tissue damage following viral pathogen infection in the lung.
Image courtesy of Dr. Vinod Balachandran
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Dr. Greg Delgoffe is an Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh. His lab studies the intersection of metabolism and immunity in cancer. He talks about the metabolism of immune cells in cancer and the effects of nutrients in the tumor microenvironment.
Dr. Daniel Streicker is a Professor of Viral Ecology at the University of Glasgow, where his lab investigates pathogen transmission between species. He talks about vampire bats as a reservoir for rabies and approaches to vaccination that could prevent transmission.
Dr. Jamie Spangler is an Assistant Professor at Johns Hopkins. Her lab implements a unique structure-based engineering approach to elucidate the determinants of protein activity and inform drug development. She talks about designing cytokine mimetics and how engineered cytokines could be used as therapeutics.
Dr. Laura Raff is Associate Director, Sales, Immunology and Dr. Ami Ashar-Patel is a Senior Account Manager, Immunology at STEMCELL Technologies. Dr. Raff has a PhD in Molecular Microbiology and Immunology from the University of Southern California and Dr. Ashar-Patel has a PhD in Biochemistry and Molecular Pharmacology from the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School. They talk about their career transitions from academia to industry and how they support scientists’ research endeavors in their current roles.
Dr. Alessandro Sette is a Center Head, Division Head, and Professor at the La Jolla Institute of Allergy and Immunology. His lab focuses on understanding the immune response, measuring immune activity, and developing disease intervention strategies against cancer, autoimmunity, allergy, and infectious diseases. He talks about bringing a biotech mindset back to academia, cross-reactive T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2, and compiling an immune-epitope database.
In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023™, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists, in Washington, DC. We spoke with delegates about their research and impressions of the meeting, including their reasons for attending, what they were most looking forward to, and the most memorable research presented.
Guest:Dr. Bana Jabri is the Sarah and Harold Lincoln Thompson Professor in the Department of Medicine and the Research Director of the Celiac Disease Center at the University of Chicago. Her research focuses on innate and mucosal immunity, particularly in celiac disease, autoimmune disorders, and inflammatory bowel disease. She talks about the mechanisms of celiac disease and new treatment options. She also discusses how the microbiome can affect immune responses in cancer.
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The Immunology Science Round UpCapsules to Study the Intestinal Environment – Scientists developed an ingestible device that collects samples from multiple regions of the human intestinal tract during digestion.
T Cell Receptor Affinity – Repetitive pathogen exposure leads to the dominant outgrowth of T cell clones with high T cell receptor affinity to the relevant pathogen-associated antigens.
Gut Bacterial Evolution Between Species – Analyses of metagenome-resolved genomes from humans and primate species reveal significant co-diversification of bacterial gut symbionts.
A Pancreatic Cancer Vaccine – Researchers synthesized mRNA neoantigen vaccines in real time from surgically resected pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma tumors.
Image courtesy of Dr. Bana Jabri
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In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Washington, DC, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the final of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason talk about sessions on mucosal immunity, emerging pathogens, and having a successful postdoctoral experience. Highlights include Dr. Isaac Chiu‘s talk on pain and mucus production in the gut, Dr. James Crowe‘s talk on monoclonal antibody discovery, and Dr. Amy Hartman’s talk on Rift Valley fever virus.
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In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Washington, DC, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the fourth of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason talk about micelles for drug delivery and how helminth infection affects susceptibility to SARS-CoV-2.
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In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Washington, DC, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the third of five special episodes from the meeting. Highlights include Dr. Anthony Fauci’s talk on the COVID-19 pandemic response and Dr. Doug Green’s talk on T cell activation. Jason and Brenda discuss sessions on immune responses in aging and obesity, and making better cancer vaccines.
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In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Washington, DC, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the second of five special episodes from the meeting. Brenda and Jason discuss sessions on peripheral neuroimmune interactions and tumor cellular therapy. Highlights include the President’s Address by Dr. Mark Davis and Dr. Barbara Rehermann’s presentation on wild mouse microbiota.
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In May 2023, we attended IMMUNOLOGY2023, the annual meeting of the American Association of Immunologists in Washington, DC, and recorded daily episodes discussing highlights of the previous 24 hours. Here is the first of five special episodes from the meeting, in which Jason and Brenda summarize symposia on B and T-helper cells, and metabolic and gut microbiota. They discuss antigenic imprinting, lupus immunophenotyping and sex differences, dengue vaccines, and cytomegalovirus research.
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Guest:Dr. Prasanna Jagannathan is an Assistant Professor of Medicine in Infectious Diseases and of Microbiology and Immunology at Stanford University. His research focuses on the mechanisms of clinical immunity to malaria. He talks about how repeated exposure to malaria can lead to tolerance without symptoms, promising vaccines and treatments to prevent reinfection, and the role of innate immune cells. He also discusses shifting from religious studies to teaching to medicine, and establishing long-term collaborations with researchers in Uganda.
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The Immunology Science Round UpBlocking Psoriasis Signaling with Methotrexate – Scientists identified SLC46A2 as an important target for anti-inflammatory intervention in the skin.
Tumor-Infiltrating Tregs – Researchers discovered and validated new master regulators of human tumor-infiltrating Tregs.
TH9 Cells and Allergic Inflammation – JAK inhibitors may be effective for allergic patients with TH9 cell expansion.
Gene Editing Primary Lymphocytes – Researchers used a CRISPR ribonucleoprotein mixed with an amphiphilic peptide to increase the yields of edited primary human lymphocytes.
Peptide-Assisted Genome Editing – Scientists demonstrated rapid and efficient editing of primary cells with low cellular toxicity and no significant transcriptional perturbation.
Image courtesy of Dr. Prasanna Jagannathan
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Guest:Dr. Joshua Brody is the Director of the Lymphoma Immunotherapy Program at the Tisch Cancer Institute at Mount Sinai. The Brody lab studies basic and applied tumor immunology for the development of cancer immunotherapies, particularly for lymphomas and melanomas. He talks about dendritic cells to improve oncolytic virus immunotherapy and in situ vaccination to improve PD-1 blockade responses.
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The Immunology Science Round UpEnhancing T Cell Immunity to SARS-CoV-2 Variants – A new mRNA vaccine component elicits non-spike T cell responses in mice while maintaining spike immunity.
Why Infants Are Protected from Pneumonia – Enhanced opsonophagocytosis by neonatal neutrophils improves protection against Streptococcus pneumoniae in early life.
Tertiary Lymphoid Structures and Lung Cancer Immunotherapy – Researchers identified endogenous retrovirus envelope glycoproteins as a dominant antitumor antibody target in lung cancer.
Engineered Bacteria As a Melanoma Vaccine – Scientists engineered a Staphylococcus epidermidis strain to express melanoma tumor antigens and tested their ability to drive antitumor immune responses.
Image courtesy of Dr. Joshua Brody
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Guest:Dr. Doug Green is the Peter C. Doherty Endowed Chair of Immunology at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. His research focuses on the central mechanisms of cell death, survival, and the immune response. He talks about what happens when cell death fails, the role of Myc, and setting up collaborations in science.
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The Immunology Science Round UpGut Bacteria and Social Avoidance – Colonic γδ T cells modulate behavioral vulnerability to chronic social stress via dectin-1 signaling.
Base Editing to Treat Severe Combined Immunodeficiency – Researchers used an adenine base editing strategy to restore CD3δ in autologous hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells.
FcμR–IgM Interaction – Scientists used crystallography and cryo-electron microscopy to study how FcμR recognizes different forms of IgM to regulate diverse immune responses.
Tissue-Resident Macrophage Differentiation – Researchers analyzed immune cells in the pleural cavity of C57BL/6 and BALB/c mice and found different responses to nematode infection.
Image courtesy of Dr. Doug Green
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Guests:Dr. Miriam Merad is the President & Scientific Programme Committee Co-Chair of the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS) and Dr. Mark Davis is the Scientific Programme Committee Chair. They talk about what to expect at the 2023 IUIS Congress being held November 27 – December 2 in Cape Town, South Africa. They discuss hosting the meeting in Africa, the importance of infectious disease research and international collaborations, and the highlights of this year’s program.
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The Immunology Science Round UpPD-L1 and Myeloid Signaling – PD-L1 promotes metastatic, but not primary, tumor growth via a cytotoxic T lymphocyte-dependent mechanism.
T Cell Responses to SARS-CoV-2 – Researchers used “spheromer” peptide MHC multimer reagents to analyze T cell responses to SARS-CoV-2 infection and vaccination.
ER Stress Promotes Th17 Differentiation – ER stress in intestinal epithelial cells drives gut Th17 differentiation.
How Sucralose Affects T Cells – High doses of sucralose in mice results in immunomodulatory effects by limiting T cell proliferation and T cell differentiation.deling and two melanoma patients.
Image courtesy of Drs. Miriam Merad and Mark Davis
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Guest:Dr. Clovis Palmer is an Assistant Professor at Tulane University. He talks about how HIV hijacks metabolic processes and the role of HIF-1α in HIV infection. He also discusses using non-human primates to study SARS-CoV-2 and other viruses.
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The Immunology Science Round UpBacterial Brain Invasion – Researchers identified a neuroimmune axis that exacerbates bacterial meningitis.
CAR T Signaling Domains – Scientists engineered a logic-gated intracellular network CAR to prevent on-target, off-tumor toxicity.
Cleaning Up After Apoptosis – Tingible body macrophages use cellular processes to search for and capture motile apoptotic cell fragments.
Autoimmunity in Down’s Syndrome – Researchers found high levels of cytokines in individuals with Down’s syndrome, which may contribute to autoimmune susceptibility.
Image courtesy of Dr. Clovis Palmer
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Guests:Dr. Mark Davis is the President of the American Association of Immunologists, and Drs. Shruti Naik and Daniel Mucida are chairing Major Symposia at the upcoming IMMUNOLOGY2023 meeting in Washington, DC, May 11-15. They discuss what to expect at IMMUNOLOGY2023 and the highlights of this year’s program.
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The Immunology Science Round UpTargeting Inflammatory Skin Diseases – Researchers identified IRAK4 as a central player in skin inflammation and demonstrate its inhibition as a therapeutic strategy.
CAR T for a Rare Disease – CD19 CAR T therapy successfully treated a patient with antisynthetase syndrome
T Cell Receptor Genes from Archaic Humans – A subset of T cell receptors were traced to Neanderthals in Eurasian populations.
Self-Reactive T Cell Receptors – Scientists identified a population of CD4+ T cells within the endogenous repertoire that exhibit hallmarks of overt self-reactivity.
Image courtesy of Drs. Mark Davis, Shruti Naik, and Daniel Mucida
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Guest:Dr. Hao Wu is the Asa and Patricia Springer Professor of Structural Biology at Harvard Medical School. Her lab focuses on the molecular and cellular mechanisms that govern the assembly, regulation, and therapeutic intervention of supramolecular complexes in innate immunity. She talks about cryo-electron microscopy and how her team used it to study the structures of the NLRP3 inflammasome disc, the B cell antigen receptor, and the Gasdermin D pore. She also discusses the role of AlphaFold in structural biology research.
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The Immunology Science Round UpGraft-Versus-Host Disease and the Microbiome – In graft-versus-host disease, pathogenic T cells disrupt the intestinal microbiome by altering ambient oxygen levels.
Extracellular Matrix Binding of Interferon-γ – Local interferon-γ retention protects organisms from systemic toxicity during prolonged immune stimulation.
Lipid Metabolism in T Cells – Phospholipid saturation drives effector T cell function.
Inhibiting Peanut Allergy – An inhibitor prevents antibody binding and mast cell activation in a humanized mouse model of peanut allergy.
Image courtesy of Dr. Hao Wu
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Guest:Dr. Caroline Sokol is a Principal Investigator at Massachusetts General Hospital and an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School. Her lab studies the innate immune control of allergic disease. She talks about the role of sensory neurons and dendritic cells in allergic responses and insights into allergies from her son’s first bee sting.
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The Immunology Science Round UpMicrobiome Transmission – Researchers identified microbiome transmission patterns from mother to infant and between cohabitating individuals.
Long-Lasting T Cells – By repeatedly immunizing generations of mice, scientists found that functional T cells can proliferate well beyond the lifespan of the organism.
Dietary Cholesterol and Humoral Immune Responses – Researchers revealed tissue-restricted modulation of IgA secretion by plasma cells that is centered around dietary cholesterol metabolites.
γδ T cells in Immunotherapy – γδ T cells contribute to the response to immune checkpoint blockade in patients with cancers with HLA class I defects.
Image courtesy of Dr. Caroline Sokol
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Guests:In this special episode, Brenda and Jason chat with Drs. Daylon James and Arun Sharma, the hosts of the Stem Cell Podcast. Recorded in-person and led by Dr. Nicole Quinn from STEMCELL Technologies, the four hosts discuss the impact that podcasting has had on their careers and how it can make science and scientists more accessible. They also talk about the future of science communication and advice for young scientists pursuing careers in academia and industry.
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Guest:Dr. Miriam Merad is a Professor of Cancer Immunology and Director of the Marc and Jennifer Lipschultz Precision Immunology Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. Her research focuses on dendritic cells and macrophages. She talks about tissue-resident macrophages in COVID-19 and cancer. She also discusses her new role as President of the International Union of Immunological Societies and bringing the international immunology community together at their upcoming meeting in South Africa.
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The Immunology Science Round UpNLRP3 Inflammasome Activation – Researchers used cryo-EM to identify the structure of the active NLRP3 inflammasome disk.
How the BCG Vaccine Induces Trained Immunity – The BCG vaccine triggers epigenetic modifications on alveolar macrophages via an intestinal microbiota-mediated pathway.
Immunotherapy for Type 1 Diabetes – Scientists examined the mechanism of action of low-dose interleukin-2 immunotherapy and identified a long-lived gene expression signature associated with potential anti-inflammatory effects.
pH Affects Interleukin-2 Anti-Tumor Activity – Researchers identified an interleukin-2 variant that retains its binding affinity in low pH environments.
Image courtesy of Dr. Miriam Merad
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Guest:Dr. Jie Sun is the Harrison Professor of Medicine at the University of Virginia. His lab studies respiratory immunology under homeostasis and disease conditions. He talks about how long COVID compares to other post-viral conditions, and his lab’s work investigating mucosal immunity from mRNA vaccines.
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The Immunology Science Round UpCardiac Autoimmunity – C-Met+ T cells are selectively increased in the circulation and in the myocardium of patients with inflammatory cardiomyopathies.
A Universal Flu Vaccine – Scientists developed an mRNA–lipid nanoparticle vaccine encoding hemagglutinin antigens from all 20 known influenza A virus subtypes and influenza B virus lineages.
mRNA Export Rates and Gene Expression – The nuclear export efficiency of innate immune mRNAs varies such that for many genes, only a small fraction of the newly synthesized pre-mRNA reaches the cytoplasm.
Dendritic Cells for Long-Term Tumor Control – Expanding cross-presenting dendritic cells enhances oncolytic virotherapy.
Image courtesy of Dr. Jie Sun
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Dr. Arthur Liesz is a Professor of Experimental Neurology at the University of Munich. The Liesz lab is interested in the interplay between the brain and the immune system after stroke. He talks about the inflammatory response to stroke, including T cell-modulated microglial activation. He also talks about stroke aftermath, including T cells that remain in the brain and the redistribution of function during recovery.
Dr. Vijay Kuchroo is the Samuel L. Wasserstrom Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School. His major research interests include the role of co-stimulation in autoimmune diseases, as well as cell surface molecules and regulatory factors that regulate the induction of T cell tolerance and dysfunction. He talks about the conditions necessary to differentiate Th17 cells and their role in autoimmunity. He also discusses his group's discovery of Tim-3, an inhibitor receptor on T cells which is now being exploited for cancer immunotherapy.
Guests: Dr. Kristin Patrick is an Assistant Professor and Dr. Robert Watson is an Associate Professor at Texas A&M University. Their joint lab investigates innate immune regulation during bacterial infection. They talk about gasdermin D and…
Dr. Henrique Borges da Silva is an Assistant Professor at the Mayo Clinic in Arizona. His main research focus is determining how extracellular ATP affects transcriptional, metabolic, and functional mechanisms of CD8+ T cells in response to viral infections and cancer. He talks about how extracellular nucleotides regulate the immune system, with a focus on extracellular ATP's effects on T cells.
Dr. Indira Mysorekar is a Professor of Medicine and Chief of Basic and Translational Research at Baylor College of Medicine. Her lab studies host–microbial interactions in the urinary bladder and the placenta. She discusses the role of the microbiome and the aging immune landscape in recurrent urinary tract infections. She also talks about her research on Zika and SARS-CoV-2 in the placenta.
Dr. Ruth Ley is Managing Director of the Max Planck Institute for Biology Tübingen and Director of the Department of Microbiome Science. Dr. Sara Clasen is a postdoctoral fellow in the same lab. Together, they're interested in the co-evolution of humans with their microbiomes. They use basic science to investigate the evolutionary history of gut microbes, how they have adapted to life inside humans, and how they affect human biology and health. More recently, they published a pre-print on the silent recognition of flagellins from human gut commensal bacteria by TLR5.
Dr. Leonardo Ferreira is an Assistant Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the Medical University of South Carolina. The Ferreira lab uses CARs and other engineered immune receptors to dissect how specificity, affinity, and signaling modulate the function of different T cells subsets in tolerance and immunity. He talks about how CAR Tregs could prevent transplant rejection and treat Type 1 diabetes. He also discusses mixing and matching immune cells, the freedom to pursue multiple ideas in academia, and science outreach in Bolivia
Dr. Karen Edelblum is an Assistant Professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School. She discusses γδ T cells and immune-epithelial cross-talk in inflammatory bowel disease. She also talks about intravital microscopy and decorating immunology-themed cakes!
Dr. Jonathan Kipnis is the BJC Investigator and Alan A. and Edith L. Wolff Distinguished Professor of Pathology and Immunology at Washington University in St. Louis. His lab investigates the complex interactions between the immune and nervous systems. He talks about immune activity and surveillance in the brain, and how T cell subsets affect brain function and behavior. He also discusses the brain's immune reservoir and his lab's work on cerebrospinal fluid-regulated immune cell mobilization.
Dr. Mark Kaplan is the Chair of the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at Indiana University School of Medicine. He is currently the Editor-In-Chief for the American Association of Immunologists' journal ImmunoHorizons. Much of Dr. Kaplan’s work has focused on understanding the function of transcription factors in the development of T helper cell subsets. He talks about the role of T helper 9 cells in lung inflammation and γδ T cells in wound healing. He also discusses ImmunoHorizons and how it provides a home for solid immunological research that may otherwise remain unpublished.
Dr. Laura Mackay is a Professor and Laboratory Head at the Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity at the University of Melbourne. She talks about her tissue-resident memory T cell research and her ongoing collaboration with Pfizer to identify and validate new targets for cancer therapy.
Guest: Dr. Mark Shlomchik is a UPMC Endowed and Distinguished Professor and Chair of the Department of Immunology at the University of Pittsburgh. He is also a Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of BlueSphere Bio,…
Dr. Hanover Matz is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Maryland, who recently completed his PhD under the supervision of Dr. Helen Dooley. He discusses why sharks may have evolved adaptive immune systems, the role of T cells, mucosal immunity, and antibodies, and working with sharks in the lab.
Dr. Michael Alonso is a Scientific Co-Founder, and Vice President of Immunology & Pharmacology at Bolt Biotherapeutics, a biotechnology company developing immunotherapies that activate myeloid cells. He discusses targeting tumors by covering them in "eat me" signals, considerations for moving drugs into the clinic, and building teams in biotech.
Dr. Alice Long is an Associate Member of the Center for Translational Immunology at Benaroya Research Institute at Virginia Mason. The Long lab is focused on understanding how tolerance is lost in autoimmunity, specifically as it related to type 1 diabetes. Dr. Long discusses the work she presented at the American Association of Immunologists’ annual meeting, IMMUNOLOGY2022, on CD8 T cell exhaustion and Treg modulation.
Dr. Shruti Naik is an Assistant Professor of Biological Sciences at New York University Langone Medical Center. She studies immunity in the epithelial tissues that line our body to understand how environmental stimuli collaborate with genetic factors to influence health and drive disease at these interfaces. She discusses the work she's presenting at the American Association of Immunologists' annual meeting, IMMUNOLOGY2022, on trained immunity and immune-epithelial crosstalk in tissue repair.
Dr. Gwendalyn Randolph is the Emil R. Unanue Distinguished Professor in the Department of Immunology and Pathology at Washington University in St. Louis. Research in her lab integrates the study of monocytes, monocyte-derived cells, and dendritic cells with vascular and lymphatic vessel biology. She discusses the work she's presenting at the American Association of Immunologists' annual meeting, IMMUNOLOGY2022, on the diversity, function, and mysteries of peritoneal macrophages.
Dr. Michael Rosenblum is a Professor of Dermatology at the University of California, San Francisco. His lab seeks to to understand how immune responses are regulated in tissues and how this knowledge can be exploited for therapeutic benefit. They are currently investigating how Tregs control immune responses in tissues, as well as their “alternative” functions. He talks about early-life inflammation and type 2 helper T cells in the skin, and how Tregs can be manipulated to target autoimmune diseases and cancer.
Dr. Gary Koretzky is President of the American Association of Immunologists, Vice Provost for Academic Integration at Cornell University, Professor of Medicine at Weill Cornell Medicine, and Director of the Cornell Center for Immunology. He talks about how he began his career in immunology, using science to guide Cornell's response to COVID-19, and what to expect at AAI's Immunology 2022 meeting taking place May 6-10th.
Dr. Florian Krammer is a Professor of Vaccinology at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai. His lab focuses on understanding broadly-reactive immune responses against the surface glycoproteins of RNA viruses such as influenza, with the goal to develop better vaccines and novel therapeutics. He talks about his lab's shift to COVID-19 research, strategies for vaccine development, and how we can prepare for future pandemics.
Dr. Andy Kokaji is a Senior Director of Immunology, and Dr. Hannah Lee is a Senior Director of Product Management, at STEMCELL Technologies. They discuss their career paths and how they develop and commercialize products to support scientists worldwide.
Dr. Jennifer Gommerman is a Professor of Immunology at the University of Toronto. Her team has uncovered a novel gut-brain axis that regulates neuroinflammation and is examining the role of B lymphocytes in Multiple Sclerosis (MS) patients and in animal models of MS. More recently, she has been studying the antibody response to SARS-CoV-2 in saliva samples from patients with COVID-19. She talks about the role of gut-derived plasma cells in multiple sclerosis, and how salivary immunoglobulin A can protect against breakthrough COVID-19 infections.
Dr. Caetano Reis e Sousa is the Assistant Research Director and Senior Group Leader at the Francis Crick Institute. His lab studies the molecular pathways that trigger dendritic cells into action. He talks about the mechanisms of dendritic cell cross-presentation, RNA interference, and dendritic cell progenitors in influenza.
Dr. Francesco Colucci is a Wellcome Investigator and Professor of Immunology at the University of Cambridge. His research focuses on natural killer (NK) and other innate lymphoid cells, as well as immunogenetics. He talks about uterine NK cells and their education, and falling in love with research as a physician.
Dr. Mihai Netea is a Professor of Experimental Medicine at Radboud University Nijmegen and a Professor of Immunometabolism at the University of Bonn. He discusses the mechanisms of trained immunity, transmission of immune traits across generations via epigenetics, and how some vaccines can enhance immunity to other pathogens.
Dr. De’Broski Herbert is an Associate Professor of Immunology at the University of Pennsylvania. The Herbert lab is exploring the immunoregulatory and regenerative mechanisms operating at the mucosal interface. He discusses his recent paper on IL-33 sources and secretion, his postdoctoral fellowship in South Africa, and the M1/M2 macrophage paradigm.
Dr. Keke Fairfax is an Associate Professor of Microbiology and Immunology and the Director of Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion at the University of Utah. Her lab uses helminth parasite Schistosoma mansoni as a tool to understand the consequences of IL-4 induced immuno-modulation. She explains how helminth infections can reduce the efficacy of childhood vaccinations, and how mentorship and networking can help minority scientists thrive in Utah.
Dr. Tri Phan is a Senior Research Fellow at the Garvan Institute of Medical Research and a Conjoint Professor at the University of New South Wales. He runs the Intravital Microscopy Lab, which aims to understand the checks and balances that control B cell responses. His team uses two-photon microscopy to image cells in live animals, including time-lapses of over 24 hours. He talks about the physics behind this type of microscopy and how it can image deep within tissues without destroying them. We also discuss his lab’s recent Cell paper on osteomorphs, a newly discovered cell type involved in osteoclast recycling in bone, and their work on memory B cells in lymph nodes.
Dr. Jenny Ting is the William R. Kenan Jr. Distinguished Professor of Genetics at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and served as the President of the American Association of Immunologists from 2020-2021. Her lab discovered the NLR protein family, and their recent research interests include oxidative phosphorylation in HIV, the role of AIM2 in autoimmunity, and microbes that can protect from radiation.
Dr. Dario Vignali is the Frank Dixon Chair in Cancer Immunology and Vice Chair and Professor of Immunology at University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine. His lab studies various aspects of T cell regulation, and recently generated a new mouse model to target conventional CD4 T cells.
Dr. Anil Bhushan is a Professor at the University of California, San Francisco School of Medicine and Co-Founder of Deciduous Therapeutics, an aging therapeutics company developing a novel class of immune-modulatory therapies. His lab focuses on understanding how the immune system senses and tunes its response to senescent cells in disease and aging and was one of the first to show the role of clearing senescent cells in models of type 1 diabetes.
Dr. Michael Burton is an Assistant Professor at the University of Texas in Dallas. His lab studies the complex interactions between the immune and nervous systems that lead to pain, depression, and sickness.
Dr. Frances Lund is the Charles H. McCauley Professor and Chair of the Department of Microbiology at the University of Alabama at Birmingham. Her lab showed that B cells not only make antibodies, but also produce cytokines that modulate the microenvironment. She currently studies the many roles of B cells, how to target B cells gone bad, and nasal vaccines for respiratory illnesses.
Dr. Jeffrey Bluestone is the CEO and President of Sonoma Biotherapeutics, a San Francisco and Seattle-based company leveraging the properties of regulatory T cells to create living cell therapies that restore the immune system back to its balanced, fully functioning state.
Dr. Christopher Klebanoff is an Principal Investigator and Attending Physician at the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. His research focuses on cell-based cancer immunotherapies, T cell receptors, and the therapeutic targeting of shared cancer neoantigens. Using single-cell sequencing, biophysical measurements of T cell receptor affinity, genetic engineering, and structural immunobiology, the Klebanoff lab aims to adapt adoptive T cell transfer for advanced solid tumors.
Dr. James Crowe is the Director of the Vanderbilt Vaccine Center. Their group uses a very broad array of techniques including molecular and cellular biology, state-of-the-art imaging and flow cytometry, bioinformatics, and bioengineering approaches to attack the scientific problems that are of interest to them: major human pathogens.
Dr. Marc Jenkins is a Regents and Distinguished McKnight University Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Director of the Center for Immunology at the University of Minnesota. Dr. Jenkins discovered that CD4+ T cells require CD28 as well as TCR to produce IL-2. The Jenkins lab is focused on the basic biology of CD4+ T lymphocytes.
Dr. Robyn Hall is a Research Scientist and Team Leader at the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO). She is a veterinary virologist whose research focuses on innovative and applied solutions for improving rabbit biocontrol using rabbit caliciviruses.
Dr. Isaac Chiu is an Assistant Professor of Immunology at Harvard Medical School, studying the role of the nervous system in mediating inflammation and host defense. Dr. Tiphaine Voisin is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Harvard Medical School, specializing in somato-sensation and neuro-immunology. They recently published a paper in PNAS on the role of the CysLT2R receptor in acute and chronic itch.
Dr. Daniela Thommen is a Group Leader at the Netherlands Cancer Institute. Her lab is interested in understanding how human cancers immunologically respond to treatment, and how such responses relate to the immunological makeup of a tumor.
Dr. Judy Lieberman is a Professor of Pediatrics at Harvard Medical School and holds an Endowed Chair in Cellular and Molecular Medicine at Boston Children’s Hospital. Dr. Caroline Junqueira is an Investigator at the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation and a visiting scientist at Harvard Medical School. Their recent research focuses on the role of γδ T cells in malaria.
Dr. Carl June is the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunology at the University of Pennsylvania, Director of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies at the Perelman School of Medicine, and Director of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy. Dr. Philipp Rommel is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the June lab. Together, they are interested in lymphocyte biology, with a major translational focus on ex vivo T-cell engineering for cancer and HIV cell-based therapies.
Dr. Bernardo Franklin is a Professor at the University of Bonn. His lab studies the role of innate immunity in sterile inflammation and in infectious diseases. More recently, their research has focused on blood platelets and their effects on innate immunity, systemic inflammation and cancer.
Drs. Mindy, Amy, and Kristen Engevik are sisters and immunologists. Mindy and Amy are Assistant Professors at the Medical University of South Carolina and Kristen is a Postdoctoral Fellow at Baylor College of Medicine.
Dr. Filipe Pereira is an Associate Professor at the Lund Stem Cell Center at Lund University. The Pereira lab studies how hematopoietic cell fate is specified, maintained, and eventually modified or reversed. Inspired by the fields of stem cell biology, immunology, and cancer, they use an interdisciplinary approach to mechanistically understand hematopoietic and immune cell identities and translate their findings into novel gene and cell therapies.
In March of 2021, the Immunology Podcast will be launching with the goal of creating an accessible, entertaining, and educational resource for scientists to keep current on the latest developments in immunology research. The hosts,…