Tumor cells typically alter their energy metabolism and increase glucose uptake to support their rapid division and spread. This limits glucose availability for immune cells and therefore dampens the body’s anti-cancer immune response. By searching for proteins that both regulate the metabolism of cancer cells and affect immune cells in tumors, a team led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) recently identified a potential target for therapies that could simultaneously drain tumors of energy and boost the immune response against them.

For the research, which is published in Cancer Discovery, Keith T. Flaherty, MD, the director of Clinical Research at the MGH Cancer Center and a professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School, and his colleagues developed a new computational tool called BipotentR that can identify targets that block immune activation and also stimulate a second user-defined pathway (in this case, metabolism). When applied to gene expression data from patients with cancer who were treated with immunotherapy, as well as from cell lines and animal models, the tool identified 38 cancer cell–specific immune-metabolic regulators.

Artificial intelligence techniques showed that the activity level of these regulators in tumors predicted patients’ outcomes after receiving immunotherapy. The topmost identified regulator, ESRRA (Estrogen Related Receptor Alpha), was activated in immunotherapy-resistant tumors of many types. Inhibiting ESRAA killed tumors by suppressing energy metabolism and activating two immune mechanisms involving different types of immune cells.The scientists also demonstrated that BipotentR can be applied to other survival mechanisms used by cancer cells, such as their ability to promote blood vessel formation to increase their blood supply. Therefore, BipotentR, available at http://bipotentr.dfci.harvard.edu, provides a resource for discovering single drugs that can act through one cancer-related pathway while simultaneously stimulating an immune response.

Source: https://www.massgeneral.org/
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https://www.thebrighterside.news/

The astonishing success of COVID-19 vaccines may signal a breakthrough in disease prevention technology. Moderna is developing influenza and HIV vaccines using mRNA technology, the backbone of its effective COVID-19 vaccine. The biotech company is expected to launch phase 1 trials for its mRNA flu and HIV vaccines this year. If successful, mRNA may offer a silver lining to the decades-long fight against HIV, influenza, and other autoimmune diseases. Traditional vaccines often introduce a weakened or inactive virus to one’s body. In contrast, mRNA technology uses genetic blueprints, which build proteins to train the immune system to fight off the virus. Since mRNA teaches the body to recognize a virus, it can be effective against multiple strains or variants as opposed to just one.

“The mRNA platform makes it easy to develop vaccines against variants because it just requires an update to the coding sequences in the mRNA that code for the variant,”  said Rajesh Gandhi, MD, an infectious diseases physician at Massachusetts General Hospital and chair of HIV Medicine association.

Future mRNA vaccines have the potential to ward off multiple diseases with one shot, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).  Current mRNA vaccines, as demonstrated in their use against COVID-19, already appear to be less susceptible to new variants. “Based on its success in protecting against COVID-19, I am hopeful that mRNA technology will revolutionize our ability to develop vaccines against other pathogens, like HIV and influenza,” Gandhi says.

An approved mRNA flu vaccine could be administered every other year rather than annually, explained virologist Andrew Pekosz, PhD. This is because mRNA accounts for variants and produces a stronger and longer-lasting immune response than that of the current flu vaccine, he says. The influenza vaccine is similar to the COVID-19 vaccine because the viruses have similar characteristics and necessary treatments, according to Pekosz.

However, a potential concern lies in the level of public immunity prior to receiving a vaccine. Since the flu has been around since the early 1900s, an mRNA vaccine could potentially boost older or less effective antibody responses rather than targeting current strains, Pekosz adds. “There’s no way to answer that question except to do some clinical trials, and see what the results tell us”.

Source: https://www.verywellhealth.com/

Researchers say it’s the first real look at exactly what types of “red flags” the human body uses to enlist the help of T cells—killers the immune system sends out to destroy infected cells. Until now, COVID vaccines have focused on activating a different type of immune cell, B cells, which are responsible for creating antibodies. Developing vaccines to activate the other arm of the immune system—the T cells—could dramatically increase immunity against coronavirus, and importantly, its variants.

As reported in the journal Cell, the researchers say current vaccines might lack some important bits of viral material capable of triggering a holistic immune response in the human body.

“Companies should reevaluate their vaccine designs,” says Mohsan Saeed, a virologist at Boston University’s National Emerging Infectious Diseases Laboratories (NEIDL) and co-corresponding author of the paper.

Saeed, an assistant professor of biochemistry at the School of Medicine, performed experiments on human cells infected with coronavirus. He isolated and identified those missing pieces of SARS-CoV-2 proteins inside one of the NEIDL’s Biosafety Level 3 (BSL-3) labs.

“This was a big undertaking because many research techniques are difficult to adapt for high containment levels [such as BSL-3],” Saeed says. “The overall coronavirus research pipeline we’ve created at the NEIDL, and the support of our entire NEIDL team, has helped us along the way.”

Saeed got involved when computational geneticists Pardis Sabeti and Shira Weingarten-Gabbay contacted him. They hoped to identify fragments of SARS-CoV-2 that activate the immune system’s T cells.

“The emergence of viral variants, an active area of research in my lab, is a major concern for vaccine development,” says Sabeti, a leader in the Broad Institute’s Infectious Disease and Microbiome Program. She is also a Harvard University professor of systems biology.

“We swung into full action right away because my laboratory had [already] generated human cell lines that could be readily infected with SARS-CoV-2,” Saeed says. The group’s efforts were spearheaded by two members of the Saeed lab: Da-Yuan Chen, a postdoctoral associate, and Hasahn Conway, a lab technician.

Source:  https://www.futurity.org/

Researchers from Cleveland Clinic’s Global Center for Pathogen Research & Human Health have developed a promising new COVID-19 vaccine candidate that utilizes nanotechnology and has shown strong efficacy in preclinical disease models.

According to new findings published in mBio, the vaccine produced potent neutralizing antibodies among preclinical models and also prevented infection and disease symptoms in the face of exposure to SARS-CoV-2 (the virus that causes COVID-19). An additional reason for the vaccine candidate’s early appeal is that it may be thermostable, which would make it easier to transport and store than currently authorized COVID-19 vaccines.

“Our vaccine candidate delivers antigens to trigger an immune response via nanoparticles engineered from ferritin–a protein found in almost all living organisms,” said Jae Jung, PhD, director of the Global Center for Human Health & Pathogen Research and co-senior author on the study. “This protein is an attractive biomaterial for vaccine and drug delivery for many reasons, including that it does not require strict temperature control.”

Added Dokyun (Leo) Kim, a graduate student in Dr. Jung’s lab and co-first author on the study, “This would dramatically ease shipping and storage constraints, which are challenges we’re currently experiencing in national distribution efforts. It would also be beneficial for distribution to developing countries.”

Other benefits of the protein nanoparticles include minimizing cellular damage and providing stronger immunity at lower doses than traditional protein subunit vaccines against other viruses, like influenza.

The team’s vaccine uses the ferritin nanoparticles to deliver tiny, weakened fragments from the region of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein that selectively binds to the human entry point for the virus (this fragment is called the receptor-binding domain, or RBD). When the SARS-CoV-2 RBD binds with the human protein called ACE2 (angiotensin-converting enzyme 2), the virus can enter host cells and begin to replicate.

The researchers tested their vaccine candidate on a ferret model of COVID-19, which reflects the human immune response and disease development better than other preclinical models. Dr. Jung, a foremost authority in virology and virus-induced cancers, previously developed the world’s first COVID-19 ferret model–a discovery that has significantly advanced research into SARS-CoV-2 infection and transmission.

Source: https://www.lerner.ccf.org/
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https://www.eurekalert.org/

The DxTerity COVID-19 Saliva at-Home Collection Kit detects the presence of the virus but does not confirm immunity or detect antibodies. DxTerity‘s molecular-based PCR test received approval from the Food and Drug Administration last month. The test differs from the quicker and less expensive antigen tests, which use a nasal swab or throat swab to detect the virus.

A single COVID-19 testing kit is listed for $110, and a 10-pack bundle is available for $1,000.

Test takers must spit into a tube provided by the kit. The saliva sample is then inserted into a plastic bag and packed back into the box for shipment to one of DxTerity‘s laboratories certified by the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments. Customers are also granted prepaid express return shipping with the test and should expect to receive results within 24 to 72 hours of sample receipt at the laboratory. DxTerity’s test is currently the only COVID-19 testing kit on Amazon.

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“We have demonstrated the reliability and quality of our COVID-19 testing solution with big business and now we want to expand access to customers at home and small businesses,” said Bob Terbrueggen, founder and CEO of DxTerity, when he first announced the collaboration with the company last month. “Amazon is the perfect partner for expanding access to millions of U.S. customers.”

The test may not be valid for all travel purposes because sample collection is unsupervised, according to the product description. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends saliva specimens should be collected under supervision.

Amazon joins other retail giants in offering at-home COVID-19 saliva tests. Costco offers both regular and those approved for travel requirements to Hawaii, Bermuda and some other destinations for $129.99 and $139.99, respectively. However, the test has several dozen one-star reviews, with most complaining about delayed shipping and poor customer service from provider AZOVA.

Source: https://eu.usatoday.com/

For epidemiologists, the COVID-19 pandemic has greatly intensified their long-standing nightmare about another virus: the emergence of a new and deadly strain of flu. A universal flu vaccine, effective against any strain of the influenza virus that can infect humans, could protect us from this peril, but progress has been slow. A novel concept for one universal vaccine candidate has now passed its first test in a small clinical trial, its developers report today in Nature Medicine.

Seasonal flu vaccines induce antibodies against the “head” (slate) of the influenza surface protein hemagglutinin, but a new universal vaccine triggers antibodies (fragments of them shown in gray) that bind to the stalk (light blue) portion

“This is an important paper,” says Aubree Gordon, an epidemiologist at the University of Michigan School of Public Health who studies influenza transmission and vaccines.

The influenza virus rapidly accumulates mutations and easily “reassorts,” or swaps, genes between strains, creating variants that can dodge any past immunity people had acquired naturally or from vaccines. That’s why a new flu vaccine must be developed each year. Existing flu vaccines contain weakened or inactivated influenza viruses with a mix of hemagglutinins (HAs), the proteins that stud their surfaces. These vaccines primarily aim to trigger antibody responses against HA’s top part, or head. Genetic changes in flu viruses rarely alter most of the head. But a small part of the head does reassort, or mutate, frequently, which allows new viral strains to dodge any immune memory and forces flu vaccinemakers to prepare new formulations each year, with updated HAs.
In the trial, 51 participants received the various vaccines and their antibodies were compared with those of 15 people who received placebos. A single shot of vaccine with chimeric HA inactivated viruses, the researchers report, “induced remarkably high antistalk antibody titers.”

Source: https://www.sciencemag.org/

Scientists at Thomas Jefferson University who are developing a cancer vaccine to prevent recurrences of gastric, pancreatic, esophageal, and colon cancers say they have added a component that would make the vaccine more effective. The change makes the vaccine less prone to being cleared by the immune system before it can generate immunity against the tumor components.

The preclinical studies pave the way for a Phase II clinical trial opening to patients this fall, according to Adam Snook, PhD, assistant professor in the department of pharmacology and experimental therapeutics and researcher at the NCI-Designated Sidney Kimmel Cancer Center (SKCC)—Jefferson Health.

“Our data show strong immune responses in mice that might otherwise clear the vaccine, and suggests this approach will be more effective in the human trials we are starting shortly,” he said. “Adenovirus serotype 5 (Ad5) is a commonly used viral vector for transient delivery of transgenes, primarily for vaccination against pathogen and tumor antigens. However, endemic infections with Ad5 produce virus-specific neutralizing antibodies (NAbs) that limit transgene delivery and constrain target-directed immunity following exposure to Ad5-based vaccines. 

“Indeed, clinical trials have revealed the limitations that virus-specific NAbs impose on the efficacy of Ad5-based vaccines. In that context, the emerging focus on immunological approaches targeting cancer self-antigens or neoepitopes underscores the unmet therapeutic need for more efficacious vaccine vectors.

“Here, we evaluated the ability of a chimeric adenoviral vector (Ad5.F35) derived from the capsid of Ad5 and fiber of the rare adenovirus serotype 35 (Ad35) to induce immune responses to the tumor-associated antigen guanylyl cyclase C (GUCY2C).

“In the absence of pre-existing immunity to Ad5, GUCY2C-specific T-cell responses and antitumor efficacy induced by Ad5.F35 were comparable to Ad5 in a mouse model of metastatic colorectal cancer. Furthermore, like Ad5, Ad5.F35 vector expressing GUCY2C was safe and produced no toxicity in tissues with, or without, GUCY2C expression. Importantly, this chimeric vector resisted neutralization in Ad5-immunized mice and by sera collected from patients with colorectal cancer naturally exposed to Ad5.

“These data suggest that Ad5.F35-based vaccines targeting GUCY2C, or other tumor or pathogen antigens, may produce clinically relevant immune responses in more (≥90%) patients compared with Ad5-based vaccines (~50%).”

Novavax announced Tuesday that its potential vaccine to prevent Covid-19 generated a promising immune response in an early stage clinical trial, but the biotech company’s stock fell briefly on concerns about its safety.

The phase one trial included 131 healthy participants between the ages 18 and 59 at two sites in Australia. Novavax said 106 participants received one of four dose levels of the potential vaccine, named NVX-CoV2373, with or without an adjuvant, which is an ingredient designed to enhance the immune response. The remaining 25 patients received a placebo. Participants received two doses of the potential vaccine via intramuscular injection approximately 21 days apart, the company reported. The vaccine produced neutralizing antibodies, which researchers believe are necessary to build immunity to the virus, and killer T-cells, the company said. Additionally, the neutralizing antibodies that were produced were higher than those seen in people who have recovered from Covid-19, Novavax underscored. The immune response was also stronger for those who had the adjuvant, the company said.

Novavax explained that the vaccine was well tolerated with no serious adverse events reported. Most patients reported tenderness and pain at the injection after the first dose, with some patients also reporting headaches, fatigue or muscle aches. Only one participant in the trial experienced a mild fever after a second dose, the company noted. Earlier media reports and analysts cited eight possible hospitalizations related to the study, but the company said no patients were hospitalized.

https://www.cnbc.com/

Abbott Laboratories’ antibody test for the new coronavirus is highly likely to correctly determine whether people have ever been infected with the fast-spreading virus, the company said, citing a U.S. study.

Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine report in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology  that Abbott‘s test had a specificity of 99.9% and a sensitivity of 100%, suggesting very few false positives and no false negatives.

Antibody tests can tell whether a person has ever been infected and are considered crucial in efforts to get Americans back to work safely as the presence of antibodies to the virus indicates possible immunity to future infection.

Abbott’s test was launched last month under the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s relaxed rules for some coronavirus tests, allowing their distribution before regulatory clearance. It has since received emergency use authorization from the FDA.

Abbott has already shipped more than 10 million antibody tests to hospitals and labs.

Source: bit.ly/2SKTVcQ
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https://www.reuters.com/