Bacteria also defend themselves against pathogen attacks using mechanisms like those of the immune system. But if there is a system to repel an attack, it can also be dismantled. Scientists at the University of Southampton have described the components of Kiwa, a protein complex that blocks the entry of phage DNA, which are viruses that infect bacteria. They have also uncovered how Kiwa interacts with other bacterial defense strategies.

Formation Bio Inc. has licensed worldwide rights to Imidomics Inc.’s potentially first-in-class anti-CD226 monoclonal antibody (mAb). The program has received IND clearance and will be advanced by Formation Bio in autoimmune indications, starting with ulcerative colitis.

The autoimmune disorder systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) involves upregulation of IgD, and studies have shown that anti-IgD antibodies can alleviate the autoimmune disorder rheumatoid arthritis in mouse models. Building on this finding, researchers in Hefei and Changshu, China, have shown that interrupting the interaction between IgD and its receptor FcδR can reduce cytokine levels and phosphorylation of JAK2 and STAT3, suppressing the activation and proliferation of CD4+ T cells in SLE.

Researchers at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center found that autoantibodies targeting the exoproteome reshaped checkpoint inhibitor responses and opened new avenues to enhance immunotherapy. In the study published in the July 23, 2025, issue of Nature, the authors set out to address a long-standing question in cancer immunotherapy: why patients with the same type of cancer, treated with the same immunotherapy, can experience such drastically different outcomes.