16 Results
Switching to Vegan or Ketogenic Diet Rapidly Impacts Immune System
January 30, 2024
Researchers observed rapid and distinct immune system changes in a small study of people who switched to a vegan or a ketogenic (also called keto) diet. Scientists closely monitored various biological responses of people sequentially eating vegan and keto diets for two weeks, in random order. They found that the vegan diet prompted responses linked to innate immunity—the body’s non-specific first line of defense against pathogens—while the keto diet prompted responses associated with adaptive immunity—pathogen-specific immunity built through exposures in daily life and vaccination. Metabolic changes and shifts in the participants' microbiomes—communities of bacteria living in the gut—were also observed. More research is needed to determine if these changes are beneficial or detrimental and what effect they could have on nutritional interventions for diseases such as cancer or inflammatory conditions.
Statement: Antibody Reduces Allergic Reactions to Multiple Foods in NIH Trial
December 19, 2023
A monoclonal antibody treatment significantly increased the amounts of multiple common foods that food-allergic children and adolescents could consume without an allergic reaction, according to a planned interim analysis of an advanced clinical trial.
Study Reveals How Young Children’s Immune Systems Tame SARS-CoV-2
October 13, 2023
A study of infants and young children found those who acquired SARS-CoV-2 had a strong, sustained antibody response to the virus and high levels of inflammatory proteins in the nose but not in the blood. This immune response contrasts with that typically seen in adults with SARS-CoV-2 infection.
Severe COVID-19 May Lead to Long-Term Innate Immune System Changes
August 18, 2023
Severe COVID-19 may cause long-lasting alterations to the innate immune system, the first line of defense against pathogens, according to a small study funded by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, part of the National Institutes of Health. These changes may help explain why the disease can damage so many different organs and why some people with long COVID have high levels of inflammation throughout the body. The findings were published online today in the journal Cell.
Screening Newborns for Deadly Immune Disease Saves Lives
June 20, 2023
Introducing widespread screening of newborns for a deadly disease called severe combined immunodeficiency, or SCID, followed by early treatment boosted the five-year survival rate of children with the disorder from 73% before the advent of screening to 87% since, researchers report. Among children whose disease was suspected because of newborn screening rather than illness or family history, 92.5% survived five years or more after treatment.
NIH Researchers Uncover New Details on Rare Immune Disease
May 3, 2023
In an 11-year study, researchers at the National Institutes of Health have further characterized idiopathic CD4 lymphocytopenia (ICL), a rare immune deficiency that leaves people vulnerable to infectious diseases, autoimmune diseases and cancers. Researchers observed that people with the most severe cases of ICL had the highest risk of acquiring or developing several of the diseases associated with this immune deficiency. This study, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, was led by Irini Sereti M.D., M.H.S. and Andrea Lisco, M.D., Ph.D.
NIH Researchers Discover New Autoinflammatory Disease, Suggest Target for Potential Treatments
March 28, 2023
Scientists have identified an autoinflammatory disease caused by mutations in the LYN gene, an important regulator of immune responses in health and disease.
Monoclonal Antibody Improves Cat Allergen Immunotherapy
October 11, 2022
An experimental approach to enhancing a standard cat allergen immunotherapy, often called allergy shots, made it more effective and faster acting, and the benefits persisted for a year after treatment ended.
Food Allergy Is Associated with Lower Risk of SARS-CoV-2 Infection
June 1, 2022
A National Institutes of Health-funded study has found that people with food allergies are less likely to become infected with SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19, than people without them. In addition, while previous research identified obesity as a risk factor for severe COVID-19, the new study has identified obesity and high body mass index (BMI) as associated with increased risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection. In contrast, the study determined that asthma does not increase risk for SARS-CoV-2 infection.
NIH Launches Study of Extra COVID-19 Vaccine Dose in People with Autoimmune Disease
August 27, 2021
The National Institutes of Health has begun a clinical trial to assess the antibody response to an extra dose of an authorized or approved COVID-19 vaccine in people with autoimmune disease who did not respond to an original COVID-19 vaccine regimen. The trial also will investigate whether pausing immunosuppressive therapy for autoimmune disease improves the antibody response to an extra dose of a COVID-19 vaccine in this population.
NIH Scientists Describe “Multi-Kingdom Dialogue” Between Internal, External Microbiota
June 23, 2021
National Institutes of Health scientists and their collaborators have identified an internal communication network in mammals that may regulate tissue repair and inflammation, providing new insights on how diseases such as obesity and inflammatory skin disorders develop. The new research is published in Cell.
Gene Therapy Restores Immune Function in Children with Rare Immunodeficiency
May 11, 2021
An investigational gene therapy can safely restore the immune systems of infants and children who have a rare, life-threatening inherited immunodeficiency disorder, according to research supported in part by the National Institutes of Health.
NIH Statement on World Asthma Day 2021
May 5, 2021
On World Asthma Day, the National Institutes of Health reaffirms its commitment to research to improve the lives of people with asthma. More than 25 million people in the United States have asthma, including 5.1 million children, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This chronic lung disease can reduce quality of life, contributes to considerable emotional and financial stress, and is a major contributing factor to missed time from school and work.
COVID-19 Vaccine Responses to be Studied in People with Immune Deficits
April 23, 2021
A study assessing how people with immune system deficiencies or dysregulations respond to COVID-19 vaccination has begun enrolling participants at the National Institutes of Health Clinical Center in Bethesda, Maryland. The single-site study is led by researchers from the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID) and aims to enroll 500 people, 400 with primary or secondary immune system disorders and 100 without such conditions.
NIH Establishes New Childhood Asthma Clinical Research Network
April 23, 2021
The National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (NIAID), part of the National Institutes of Health, has awarded $10 million in first-year funding to establish a clinical research network called Childhood Asthma in Urban Settings (CAUSE). This nationwide network will conduct observational studies and clinical trials to improve understanding of asthma and develop treatment and prevention approaches tailored to children of low-income families living in urban communities. NIAID intends to provide approximately $70 million over seven years to support the CAUSE network.
NIH Study of Early Predictors, Mechanisms of Food Allergy and Eczema has Begun
March 19, 2021
A study to identify prenatal and early childhood markers of high risk for food allergy and atopic dermatitis, or eczema, as well as biological pathways that lead to these conditions, has begun. The observational study of children from birth to age 3 years will examine the origins of allergic disease by integrating interdisciplinary analyses of data from more than 260 biological and environmental samples and survey responses from each of 2,500 families.
