A research consortium comprised of XL-protein GmbH, Wacker Chemie AG and Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU) will develop a novel long-acting immunosuppressive anti-CD40 antibody fragment for the selective suppression of organ rejection, in particular in the area of cardiac xenotransplantation.

Immunovant Inc. has announced a next-generation anti-FcRn, IMVT-1402, for autoimmune diseases. In animal studies, IMVT-1402 has shown deep IgG lowering, similar to the company's lead asset batoclimab, with no or minimal impact on albumin and low-density lipoprotein (LDL).

In a study comparing the antibody repertoire of individuals with severe myalgic encephalopathy/ chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) to that of healthy controls, the majority of individuals with CFS showed antibody responses to specific microbiome proteins. Such responses were largely absent in healthy controls, implicating immune reactions to the microbiome in the development of ME/CFS.

Pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) are by themselves not enough to set off a full innate immune response to viral infection. Instead, structural changes to the actin cytoskeleton primed the activation of RIG-I-like receptors (RLRs), a family of intracellular RNA sensors that detect many types of viral RNA. When primed RLRs then encountered viral RNA, they set off an innate immune response that led to the production of interferons.

A new vaccine that uses the native-like HIV-1 envelope (Env) trimer CH505 and a Toll-like receptor (TLR) 7/8 agonist adjuvant, successfully evaluated in macaques, generated potent polyclonal neutralizing antibodies (nAbs) and a high protection against the infection of the homologous simian-human immunodeficiency virus (SHIV).

Evaxion Biotech A/S, in collaboration with UMass Chan Medical School, has received a grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health (NIH) for the development of a lead vaccine candidate for gonorrhea.