immune system

After testing positive for COVID-19, Diana Berrent established Survivor Corps, a grassroots clearinghouse for COVID-19 survivors interested in donating blood plasma to organizations developing therapies that might combat the disease.

Market For Blood Plasma From COVID-19 Survivors Heats Up

5:00am May 11, 2020

by JoNel Aleccia

As many firms and academic researchers vie for blood donations from survivors in hopes of isolating components for new treatments, one project is turning for help from 10,000 Orthodox Jewish women.

Health & Safety

Will Antibodies After COVID-19 Illness Prevent Reinfection?

7:15pm May 07, 2020

by Richard Harris

Scientists don't know whether people who have been exposed to the coronavirus will be immune for life, or if it can infect us again and again, like the common cold.

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KQED Deep Look delves into how the novel coronavirus attacks the lungs in this new video.

VIDEO: How The Novel Coronavirus Hijacks Our Defenses

4:19pm May 05, 2020

It's just a bit of genetic material wrapped in protein and fat. But the virus behind COVID-19 can wreak havoc deep inside human lungs when it triggers the immune system to go into overdrive.

Stanford medical student Thomas Koehnkz takes a blood sample from Alan Wessel of Mountain View, Calif., for a coronavirus antibody study.

Antibody Tests For Coronavirus Can Miss The Mark

11:02am April 15, 2020

by Richard Harris

Antibody tests to detect past exposure to the coronavirus will soon be everywhere. But even the best ones can provide wrong answers surprisingly often — and give false assurance.

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Health care workers assist a COVID-19 patient in Spain. Some evidence from Europe and China suggests an overzealous immune response may be contributing to the severe illness in some patients.

Health & Safety

Why Some COVID-19 Patients Crash: The Body's Immune System Might Be To Blame

10:12pm April 07, 2020

by Geoff Brumfiel

An overblown immune response could be killing a portion of the sick, and some doctors think that new treatments being tested could help at least some of those patients.

Being overweight or obese can diminish the effectiveness of a flu shot, researchers say.

Excess Weight Can Weaken The Flu Shot

2:34pm November 24, 2019

by Richard Harris

Scientists have come to realize that flu vaccines are less effective for people who are overweight or obese. Now researchers are trying to figure out why and hope to develop better vaccines.

A child is immunized against measles, mumps and rubella in Lyon, France.

Why The Measles Surge Could Open The Door To A Host Of Other Diseases

6:14pm September 05, 2019

by Nurith Aizenman

There's mounting evidence that the measles virus can erase our immunity to everything from influenza viruses to diarrheal disease.

Bacteria (purple) in the bloodstream can trigger sepsis, a life-threatening illness.

Health & Safety

Regulations That Mandate Sepsis Care Appear To Have Worked In New York

5:16pm July 16, 2019

by Richard Harris

Sepsis, the body's overreaction to infection, strikes more than a million Americans a year and kills more than 250,000. Evidence suggests that regulations can improve its diagnosis and patient care.

MMR — the modern combination vaccine against measles, mumps and rubella — provides stronger, longer-lasting protection against measles than the stand-alone measles vaccine typically given in the U.S. in the early 1960s.

Measles Shots Aren't Just For Kids: Many Adults Could Use A Booster Too

7:31pm April 29, 2019

by Allison Aubrey

With U.S. measles cases at record highs, doctors say adults who got vaccinated prior to 1968 should consider getting revaccinated to make sure they and their neighbors are protected.

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A color-enhanced scanning electron micrograph shows HIV particles (orange) infecting a T cell, one of the white blood cells that play a central role in the immune system.

Bone Marrow Transplant Renders Second Patient Free Of HIV

2:04pm March 05, 2019

by Richard Harris

British doctors report the apparent eradication of HIV from a patient who was undergoing treatment for cancer. It's only the second time this has been accomplished, despite many attempts.