Immunology and Microbiology

17 open-access papers in Immunology and Microbiology, free to watch.

3:15

Urine complement-related proteins in IgA nephropathy and IgA vasculitis nephritis, possible biomarkers of disease activity

Mazdak Sanaei Nurmi, Laura Pérez‐Alós, Peter Garred, Bengt Fellström, Katja Gabrysch, Sigrid Lundberg

A kidney biopsy gives doctors a snapshot of damage, but it carries risks. This study asks whether urine can reveal something more useful: whether kidney disease is active now, or quietly leaving lasting scars. A urine sample may carry two different signals in IgA kidney disease: PTX-3 and MBL may point to active proliferative lesions, while C4c may point toward chronic damage and future decline.

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4:36

Effectiveness and Safety of the MVA–BN Vaccine against Mpox in At-Risk Individuals in the United States (USMVAc)

Soowoo Back, Bethany Knox, Ciara Coakley, Nicolas Deltour, Emmanuelle Jacquot, Hanaya Raad, Elizabeth M. Garry

Mpox seemed to fade from the headlines, but the risk did not disappear. In U.S. health records, people who received both recommended vaccine doses had far less mpox than similar unvaccinated people. In a small real-world US cohort, two doses of the MVA–BN vaccine were associated with eighty-nine percent effectiveness against mpox. But the same study also shows why that impressive number needs careful interpretation.

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4:31

KDM3A Ablation Activates Endogenous Retrovirus Expression to Stimulate Antitumor Immunity in Gastric Cancer

Jiabin Zheng, Huolun Feng, Jiatong Lin, Jianlong Zhou, Zhihui Xi, Yucheng Zhang, Fa Ling, Yongfeng Liu, Junjiang Wang, Tieying Hou, Fan Xing, Yong Li

Some stomach tumors are difficult for immune treatments to see. This study found that quieting one gene can make tumor cells sound an internal alarm, drawing stronger immune attacks and helping treatment work better. What if disabling one epigenetic regulator could make tumor cells behave as though they were infected by a virus? This study links KDM3A removal to endogenous retroviruses, interferon signaling, and stronger immunotherapy responses in gastric cancer.

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3:19

Antibiotic resistance, bacterial transmission and improved prediction of bacterial infection in patients with antibody deficiency

Sylvia Rofael, Clara Leboreiro-Babe, Mehmet Davrandi, Alexandra L Kondratiuk, Leanne Cleaver, Naseem Ahmed, Claire Atkinson, Timothy D. McHugh, David M. Lowe

For people whose immune defenses are already weakened, antibiotics can be lifesaving. But this study finds that the bacteria living in their airways may already resist many of those drugs, and may even pass resistance between patients. Patients with antibody deficiency face frequent respiratory infections, but the antibiotics intended to protect them may also help select widespread resistance. This study traces that resistance and tests a possible way to guide treatment.

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4:00

Rabies vaccinations at the rural–urban divide: successes and barriers to dog rabies vaccination programs from a rural and urban campaign in Zambia

Ricky Chazya, Chilufya Mulenga, Andrew D. Gibson, Frederic Lohr, Cassandra Boutelle, Sarah Bonaparte, Oline Sinywibulula, Gareth J. Thomas, Patricia Bwalya, George Dautu, Linous Munsimbwe, Geoffrey Muuka, Luke Gamble, Ryan M. Wallace, Michelle A. Waltenburg

A rabies campaign can succeed in a rural community yet fall short in a city, not because people do not care, but because the distance to one vaccination point can decide which dogs are protected. A rabies campaign can vaccinate thousands of dogs and still miss the herd-immunity target. In Zambia, the biggest obstacle was not simply vaccine supply, it was where dogs lived, how far owners had to travel, and whether communities knew the campaign was happening.

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