Category Archives: Immunology

Immunology

Study Shows Improved Tolerance with Second COVID-19 Vaccine – MD Magazine

Ever since the COVID-19 vaccines were approved for the public population, conversations have persisted regarding their efficacy, especially regarding people who had immediate allergic reactions with the first dose.

Despite this, a multicenter, retrospective study confirmed that most patients with immediate and potentially allergic reactions to the COVID-19 vaccines tolerated the 2nd dose.

In an interview with HCPLive, 2 of the leading authors of the study, Kimberly Blumenthal, MD, MSc, Quality and Safety Officer for Allergy, Massachusetts General Hospital, Co-Director, Clinical Epidemiology Program, Division of Rheumatology Allergy and Immunology and Matthew Krantz, MD, Clinical Fellow, Allergy/Immunology, Vanderbilt University Medical Center spoke of the genesis of the study as well as the data gathered on reactions from participants.

Prior to the study, the team targeted healthcare workers who had received some of the first doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines.

One of the unexpected observations early on after emergency use authorization in December of 2020 where we primarily targeted vaccinating healthcare workers was we did observe a higher rate of immediate potentially allergic reactions and anaphylaxis than with traditional vaccines, Krantz said.

Krantz, Blumenthal and colleagues set out to find if participants in the study were truly allergic to the COVID-19 vaccines.

If you're allergic to something, you have an IgE antibody, [so] you have to avoid it, Blumenthal said. Thats really important for mRNA vaccines: were people forming true, classic allergy to these vaccines?

From January 1, 2021-March 31, 2021, the investigators enrolled 189 patients from participating centers, all of whom recorded an immediate reaction to their first Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccine.

Patient population demographics showed that the mean age of all patients was 43 years, and that most of the total population (86%) were women. Of the vaccine first-dose reactions, 130 (69%) were Moderna and 59 (31%) were Pfizer-BioNTech.

Allergic reactions were defined as symptom onset within 4 hours of dose 1, at least 1 allergic symptom, and referral for an allergy/immunology consultation with in-clinic or tele-heath assessment.

Anaphylaxis was scored using the Brighton and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases/Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Network Criteria.

Blumenthal, Krantz and colleagues defined second dose tolerance as 1 of the following:

1. No immediate symptoms after second dose administration

2. Symptoms that were mild, self-limited and/or resolved with antihistamines

Phone calls regarding clinical details were made for individuals who did not have their second dose observed by allergy/immunology departments.

The investigators noted that the most frequently reported first-dose reactions in patients were flushing or erythema (28%), dizziness or lightheadedness (26%), tingling (24%), throat tightness (22%), and hives (21%), and 32 participants (21%) met the anaphylaxis criteria.

Encouragingly, 159 patients as well as 19 individuals who experienced first-dose anaphylaxis tolerated the second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. Only 20% of participants reported immediate and potentially allergic symptoms associated with the second dose, which were either self-limited, mild, or resolved with antihistamines alone.

Additionally, most of the participants in the study (89%) received the second dose, and 47 patients (30%) were given an antihistamine premedication before the second dose.

It's important to note that in terms of classic IgE allergy, we do not expect premedications to abort a reaction, Krantz said. But, in the case of a non-IgE mediated reaction, antihistamines can also blunt or make these reactions (milder).

The effectiveness of the drugs on some patients supported the hypothesis that the participants did not have to avoid the COVID-19 vaccines, as they did not have whats considered a classic allergy response.

Blumenthal also noted the effectiveness of the premedication and clarified that the study was not intended to recommend a specific medication, as each patient was treated with individual methods depending on what their allergist felt was appropriate.

Everybody had a different [recommendation], Blumenthal said. This study wasn't designed to test how best to get from a dose 1 immediate reaction to safe dose 2 completion. But it gives us a hint that it's largely possible.

Blumenthal noted that further research might explore the possibilities of a specific premedication or treatment methods for patients who had a reaction to the COVID-19 vaccines, especially considering the possibilities of COVID-19 vaccine boosters in the coming fall season.

What we really need is a prospective study when it comes to the booster doses, Blumenthal said. So, prospective, meaning that we enroll people who had reactions before (and) who didn't have reactions, and we have them diary their medication so that we can piece out what premedication regimen might work.

Blumenthal and Krantz both noted the potential for improvement in identifying allergic reactions in patients regarding the COVID-19 vaccines and general vaccines.

The study, Safety Evaluation of the Second Dose of Messenger RNA COVID-19 Vaccines in Patients With Immediate Reactions to the First Dose, was published online in JAMA Internal Medicine.

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Study Shows Improved Tolerance with Second COVID-19 Vaccine - MD Magazine

Immunology

Ireland getting "very close to the end of the pandemic", says Immunology Professor – JOE.ie

Immunology Professor Paul Moynagh has said that Ireland is getting "very close to the end of the pandemic" and closer to moving to an "endemic phase".

Moynagh, who is Professor of Immunology at Maynooth University, said that while the virus will still be "circulating in the background", most people will be "protected" via vaccination or natural immunity.

Moynaghtold Newstalk Breakfast that things could be taking a positive turn in spite of increasing case numbers over the last number of weeks.

A number of weeks ago, the projections were not very good, we were hearing very large numbers," he said.

Now what we seem to be seeing is a decrease in the day-to-day increase we had been seeing. The percentage of those cases ending up in hospital is going down the duration of hospital stays is going down.

He added that Ireland and other countries in the UK and Europe could be getting close to the "end of the pandemic phase".

I think were getting to the stage where a number of countries like ourselves, the UK and most countries in Europe - are getting very close to the end of the pandemic phase, and will probably move more into an endemic phase," he added.

The virus will be circulating in the background, but thankfully most of us will be protected by either vaccination or natural immunity through infection.

Moynagh's comments come as 1,408 cases of Covid-19 were reported across Ireland on Wednesday, just 2% of which were hospitalised cases.

Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan said on Wednesday that Ireland might be in a position "in the coming weeks" to move away from some economic and social Covid-19 restrictions.

During a Department of Health press briefing he said: "If we keep pushing on with the kinds of uptake rates we've seen in some of the older age groups, which by international standards are some of the best in the world, that gives us a lot of reason for optimism that the conditions that we think will need to be satisfied to allow us to move away from some of the restrictions that still remain in place could be met."

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Ireland getting "very close to the end of the pandemic", says Immunology Professor - JOE.ie

Immunology

iShares – iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) gains 0.04% in Active Trading on July 29 – Equities.com

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IDNA - Market Data & News

iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (NYSE: IDNA) gained to close at $50.03 Thursday after gaining $0.02 (0.04%) on volume of 107,527 shares. The stock ranged from a high of $50.52 to a low of $49.80 while iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs market cap now stands at $327,696,500.

Visit iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs profile for more information.

The New York Stock Exchange is the worlds largest stock exchange by market value at over $26 trillion. It is also the leader for initial public offerings, with $82 billion raised in 2020, including six of the seven largest technology deals. 63% of SPAC proceeds in 2020 were raised on the NYSE, including the six largest transactions.

To get more information on iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF and to follow the companys latest updates, you can visit the companys profile page here: iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs Profile. For more news on the financial markets be sure to visit Equities News. Also, dont forget to sign-up for the Daily Fix to receive the best stories to your inbox 5 days a week.

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iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) gains 0.04% in Active Trading on July 29 - Equities.com

Immunology

New Approach for Cell Therapy Shows Potential Against Solid Tumors with KRAS Mutations – pennmedicine.org

Adham Bear, MD, PhD, Mark O'Hara, MD, Gerald P. Linette, MD, PhD, Beatriz M. Carreno, PhD, and Robert H. Vonderheide, MD, DPhil.

PHILADELPHIAA new technology for cellular immunotherapy developed by Abramson Cancer Center researchers at Penn Medicine showed promising anti-tumor activity in the lab against hard-to-treat cancers driven by the once-considered undruggable KRAS mutation, including lung, colorectal, and pancreatic.

The study, published online in Nature Communications, successfully demonstrated using human cells that a T-cell receptor, or TCR, therapy could be designed to mobilize an immune system attack on mutated KRAS solid tumors and shrink them. The preclinical work has laid the groundwork for the first-in-human clinical trial now in the planning stages for the treatment of advanced pancreatic cancer in patients whose tumors harbor specific KRAS mutations and express a specific type of human leukocyte antigen, or HLA, the therapy is built to recognize.

Weve shown that targeting mutant KRAS immunologically is feasible and potentially generalizable for a group of patients with lung, colorectal and pancreatic tumors, said senior author Beatriz M. Carreno, PhD, an associate professor of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, the Abramson Cancer Center, and Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at Penn. We look forward to taking this research to the next level and closer to clinical study.

KRAS mutations are among the most prevalent mutations observed in cancers and have been shown to drive tumor development and growth. Only recently have targeted therapies been shown to successfully treat a specific KRAS mutation found most commonly in lung cancer; however, no treatments currently exist for the majority of other KRAS mutations more prevalent in other tumor types. Immunological targeting of mutant KRAS represents an alternative treatment approach but has been less studied and understood.

Using a multiomics approach, the Penn team identified specific neoantigens associated with mutations at the G12 site on the KRAS gene. Neoantigens are protein fragments that form on the cancer cell surface when certain mutations occur in tumor DNA. More than 75 percent of the alterations in the KRAS protein occur at G12, making it an ideal site to target with therapies.

Armed with this knowledge, the researchers tested a TCR therapy directed toward specific KRAS G12 mutations present in conjunction with particular HLA types highly prevalent among patients. They showed in a mouse tumor model that it was effective at attacking and eliminating tumor cells. HLAs are an important part of the immune system because they encode cell surface molecules that present specific neoantigens to the T-cell receptors on T cells.

In other words, HLAs are key genetic codes needed for these engineered T cells to find and attack tumors.

The research further supports the use of neoantigens for targeting tumor cells, for both cellular therapy and cancer vaccines, which have been underway at Penn Medicine and elsewhere.

Importantly, the neoantigen and HLA information from this latest study is being used to develop TCR therapies to treat solid tumors, as well as new cancer vaccines. Based off these latest findings, the team initiated a vaccine clinical trial led by Mark OHara, MD, an assistant professor of Hematology-Oncology at Penn and co-author on the study, in pancreatic cancer targeting mutated KRAS.

The first clinical trial for the TCR therapy is projected to launch as soon as 2022, depending on regulatory approval, at Penns Abramson Cancer Center for patients with advanced pancreatic cancer who have both the KRAS mutation and specific HLA types identified in this latest studywhich could represent up to 10 percent of patients with pancreatic cancer. The study opens the door, however, to expand the patient population as researchers continue to discover more about the neoantigens derived from regions of the KRAS gene and other mutated oncogenes implicated in driving cancer.

We provide evidence that this oncogenic protein is a very promising clinical target of immune-based therapies, said lead author Adham Bear, MD, PhD, an instructor in the division of Hematology-Oncology at Penn and member of the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at Penn. The goal, now that we have identified these neoantigens and T cell receptors, is to translate these findings and apply them to develop new therapies at Penn.

Robert H. Vonderheide, MD, DPhil, director of the Abramson Cancer Center, and Gerald P. Linette, MD, PhD, a professor of Medicine in the Perelman School of Medicine, served as co-authors.

The study was supported by the National Institutes of Health (R01 CA204261, P30 CA016520, CA196539 and CA232568), The Stand Up to Cancer/Lustgarten Foundation Pancreatic Cancer Collective, the Penn Institute for Immunology, and the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy.

Penn Medicineis one of the worlds leading academic medical centers, dedicated to the related missions of medical education, biomedical research, and excellence in patient care. Penn Medicine consists of theRaymond and Ruth Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania (founded in 1765 as the nations first medical school) and theUniversity of Pennsylvania Health System, which together form a $8.9 billion enterprise.

The Perelman School of Medicine has been ranked among the top medical schools in the United States for more than 20 years, according toU.S. News & World Report's survey of research-oriented medical schools. The School is consistently among the nation's top recipients of funding from the National Institutes of Health, with $496 million awarded in the 2020 fiscal year.

The University of Pennsylvania Health Systems patient care facilities include: the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania and Penn Presbyterian Medical Centerwhich are recognized as one of the nations top Honor Roll hospitals byU.S. News & World ReportChester County Hospital; Lancaster General Health; Penn Medicine Princeton Health; and Pennsylvania Hospital, the nations first hospital, founded in 1751. Additional facilities and enterprises include Good Shepherd Penn Partners, Penn Medicine at Home, Lancaster Behavioral Health Hospital, and Princeton House Behavioral Health, among others.

Penn Medicine is powered by a talented and dedicated workforce of more than 44,000 people. The organization also has alliances with top community health systems across both Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, creating more options for patients no matter where they live.

Penn Medicine is committed to improving lives and health through a variety of community-based programs and activities. In fiscal year 2020, Penn Medicine provided more than $563 million to benefit our community.

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New Approach for Cell Therapy Shows Potential Against Solid Tumors with KRAS Mutations - pennmedicine.org

Immunology

Fighting off food poisoning depends on the time of day – UT Southwestern

Scanning electron micrograph shows segmented filamentous bacteria attaching to the intestinal surface of a mouse. More bacteria attach during the night than during the day. Credit: John F. Brooks II

DALLAS July 28, 2021 The bodys ability to prevent food poisoning by producing a natural antimicrobial compound increases during the day, when exposure to noxious bacteria is most likely, a new study by UT Southwestern scientists suggests. The findings, published online in Cell, could eventually lead to timed therapies and vaccination regimens designed to maximize this immune response.

John F. Brooks II, Ph.D.

This study shows that our immune systems are not turned on all the time, which is an unexpected result, says study leader John F. Brooks II, Ph.D., a postdoctoral fellow in the laboratory of Lora Hooper, Ph.D., study co-leader and professor of immunology and microbiology at UTSW. Our findings suggest that there are peak times in which the body is more primed to fight infections.

Researchers have long known that virtually all animals follow circadian cycles that are tied to sunrise and sunset. These cycles allow animals to anticipate and prepare for changes in their environment. Disrupting circadian rhythms can have serious health consequences; for example, chronic sleep disruption is related to increased intestinal infection in humans. However, why this occurs has been unclear.

Lora Hooper, Ph.D.

Brooks, Hooper, and their colleagues suspected that antibacterial immunity might change in the intestines on a circadian cycle. To investigate this idea, the researchers looked for rhythms in the expression of natural antimicrobial agents produced in the gut of mice to fight foodborne illness. The researchers saw that in normal lab mice, one of these antimicrobial molecules known as regenerating islet-derived protein 3g (REG3G) was more abundant at night, when these nocturnal animals are active, and less so during the day, when mice sleep. However, in mice raised to have no gut bacteria, REG3G was essentially absent throughout both the day and the night.

Searching for the microbial components driving the rhythmic pattern, the researchers found that mice with cycling amounts of REG3G had large resident populations of segmented filamentous bacteria in their guts microbes typically present in rodents, nonhuman primates, and humans that have a unique ability to attach to the intestinal lining and change their hosts gene activity. Further experiments showed that these bacteria attached to the animals intestinal lining during feeding, probably to siphon off nutrients. When they attached, REG3G production ramped up in the intestines.

This cycling had significant consequences for the ability of mice to fight off infection. When the researchers infected normal mice with bacteria, the animals had higher bacterial burdens and rates of death if they were exposed at sunset than at sunrise. Mice that cant make antimicrobial proteins, including REG3G, had similarly high rates of bacterial burden and death regardless of when they were infected.

If further research shows this phenomenon also occurs in humans, scientists may eventually be able to capitalize on it by timing the administration of synthetic antibiotics for intestinal infections and oral vaccines or finding new ways to avoid intestinal infections altogether.

These results make me think twice about waking up in the middle of the night and raiding the refrigerator, Hooper says. It may be more dangerous to eat bacteria-laden potato salad when your gut defenses are lowest.

Other UTSW researchers who contributed to this study include Cassie L. Behrendt, Kelly A. Ruhn, Syann Lee, Prithvi Raj, and Joseph S. Takahashi.

This work was supported by grants from the National Institutes of Health (R01 DK070855), The Welch Foundation (I-1874), and the Walter M. and Helen D. Bader Center for Research on Arthritis and Autoimmune Diseases.

Hooper holds the Jonathan W. Uhr, M.D. Distinguished Chair in Immunology, the Nancy Cain and Jeffrey A. Marcus Scholar in Medical Research, in Honor of Dr. Bill S. Vowell, and is an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Takahashi holds the Loyd B. Sands Distinguished Chair in Neuroscience and is an investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

Brooks is a recipient of the highly competitive Howard Hughes Medical Institute Hanna Gray Fellowship.

About UTSouthwestern Medical Center

UT Southwestern, one of the nations premier academic medical centers, integrates pioneering biomedical research with exceptional clinical care and education. The institutions faculty has received six Nobel Prizes, and includes 25 members of the National Academy of Sciences, 16 members of the National Academy of Medicine, and 13 Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators. The full-time faculty of more than 2,800 is responsible for groundbreaking medical advances and is committed to translating science-driven research quickly to new clinical treatments. UTSouthwestern physicians provide care in about 80 specialties to more than 117,000 hospitalized patients, more than 360,000 emergency room cases, and oversee nearly 3 million outpatient visits a year.

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Fighting off food poisoning depends on the time of day - UT Southwestern

Immunology

iShares Trust – iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) falls 0.91% for July 27 – Equities.com

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IDNA - Market Data & News

Today, iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF Incs (NYSE: IDNA) stock fell $0.4424, accounting for a 0.91% decrease. iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF opened at $48.92 before trading between $48.92 and $47.38 throughout Tuesdays session. The activity saw iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs market cap fall to $317,085,500 on 93,591 shares -above their 30-day average of 89,687.

Visit iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF's profile for more information.

The New York Stock Exchange is the worlds largest stock exchange by market value at over $26 trillion. It is also the leader for initial public offerings, with $82 billion raised in 2020, including six of the seven largest technology deals. 63% of SPAC proceeds in 2020 were raised on the NYSE, including the six largest transactions.

To get more information on iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF and to follow the company's latest updates, you can visit the company's profile page here: iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF's Profile. For more news on the financial markets be sure to visit Equities News. Also, don't forget to sign-up for the Daily Fix to receive the best stories to your inbox 5 days a week.

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DISCLOSURE:The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the authors, and do not represent the views of equities.com. Readers should not consider statements made by the author as formal recommendations and should consult their financial advisor before making any investment decisions. To read our full disclosure, please go to: http://www.equities.com/disclaimer

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iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) falls 0.91% for July 27 - Equities.com

Immunology

Call in the T-Cell Cavalry to Fight COVID in the Immunocompromised – MedPage Today

Last year was one of collective confinement. The majority of us shuttered our doors to visitors, worked from home, and ventured out sparingly in hopes of evading the grasp of COVID-19. Now in 2021, thanks to vaccination rollout, those who have been vaccinated are hopefully on the path to normalcy. But not everyone is so fortunate. For some, 2021 will bring more isolation and loneliness than ever before, which is hard to imagine. I'm talking about immunocompromised adults and children. While much of the rest of the populace clinks glasses, hugs loved ones, and joins parties, immunocompromised individuals do not have the security of an effective vaccine, and for their health and safety will maintain their distance and watch the social revelry from the sidelines.

The normal vaccine response that elicits antibodies and immune cells to fight infection are absent in these immunocompromised individuals, who fall into two categories: those living with congenital or acquired diseases that weaken their immune system, or those with pre-existing conditions whose treatment requires dampening of the immune system (e.g., patients with blood cancers or transplant recipients). This vulnerable population represents a sizable proportion of the U.S. population. A 2018-2019 analysis in JAMA Network Open estimated that 2.8% of adults in America were on a treatment regimen that dampened their immune system. That percentage may seem small but extrapolate it to the entire U.S. population and you hit 9 million vulnerable people. This doesn't even include immunocompromised individuals who are not taking immune-suppressing medication.

The plight of immune-compromised individuals has large-scale implications. This inability to combat the virus not only can be potentially life-threatening but can also lead to the continued evolution of mutant strains that infiltrate healthy populations. The so-called New York variant (B.1.526) was identified in a patient with advanced AIDS. Similarly, the highly transmissible and more deadly Alpha strain (B.1.1.7) emerged in a patient receiving immune suppressive treatment for a blood cancer.

So, while COVID-19 vaccines administered in the U.S. have been highly effective for mounting an antibody immune response in people with functional immune systems, it's not enough to vanquish the contagion. In our fight against virus infection, another critical arm of the immune system is required: The T-cell immune response. While antibodies may prevent infection, these warriors destroy already infected cells. And initial research suggests they may be active even in absence of antibodies.

Just recently, researchers (including myself) published a study in the Journal of Clinical Immunology that showed that pediatric patients with primary immune deficiencies, who often fail to make protective immune responses to infections and vaccinations, show robust T-cell activity and immunity against SARS-CoV-2. These findings are important because if T-cell responses to COVID-19 are protective in this highly vulnerable population, this could suggest that a COVID-19-directed T-cell immunotherapy might benefit other profoundly immunocompromised patients. However, we still don't know if such responses will persist to provide protective long-term immunity, especially against mutant strains of the virus.

Indeed, earlier findings published by me and my team in Blood, show T cells can be taken from the blood of recovered COVID-19 patients and multiplied in a lab, which could then be infused into bone marrow transplant patients whose immune systems can't fight the virus on their own. In effect, this creates an army of trained coronavirus fighters to potentially provide protective T-cell immunity long-term to these highly immunosuppressed patients. My team and I submitted this coronavirus-killing T-cell therapy (CST) clinical trial proposal to the FDA and have recently received approval to start this first-in-human clinical research protocol to treat these vulnerable patients who are currently falling through the cracks in the vaccine fight against COVID-19.

Ongoing research in the race to outpace the pandemic has helped us to increasingly unravel the prominent role of T cells in long-term immunity. A study published in Nature showed patients who recovered from the 2003 SARS epidemic, whose antibodies faded within 2 to 3 years, had a robust T-cell response to SARS 17 years later. These T cells also recognize the SARS-CoV-2 nucleocapsid protein.

For immunocompromised patients, adoptive immunotherapy using T cells from recovered COVID-19 patients may be the answer when vaccines only offer partial protection. T cells could vanquish infected cells to limit the severity of disease or avoid hospitalization, and they remember a contagion for decades.

With the number of COVID-19 variants multiplying, this is an arms race. As a society, we need to deploy every weapon in our arsenal to ensure no one is left behind in the return to normalcy, especially not the most vulnerable. If antibodies were the infantry in our fight against the pandemic, then T cells are the cavalry. It's time we call them in.

Catherine Bollard, MD, MBChB, is the director of the Center for Cancer and Immunology Research at the Children's National Research Institute, director of the Program for Cell Enhancement and Technologies for Immunotherapy, and a member of the Division of the Blood and Marrow Transplantation at Children's National Hospital in Washington, D.C.

Disclosures

Bollard is co-founder and on the scientific advisory boards for Catamaran Bio and Mana Therapeutics with stock and/or ownership; is on the Board of Directors for Cabaletta Bio with stock options; has stock in NexImmune and Repertoire Immune Medicines; and has submitted patent applications on SARS-CoV-2 T cells.

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Call in the T-Cell Cavalry to Fight COVID in the Immunocompromised - MedPage Today

Immunology

iShares Trust – iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) gains 0.10% for July 15 – Equities.com

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IDNA - Market Data & News

iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (NYSE: IDNA) shares gained 0.10%, or $0.05 per share, to close Thursday at $48.20. After opening the day at $48.18, shares of iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF fluctuated between $48.38 and $47.55. 61,343 shares traded hands a decrease from their 30 day average of 77,682. Thursday's activity brought iShares - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs market cap to $315,710,000.

Visit iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs profile for more information.

The New York Stock Exchange is the worlds largest stock exchange by market value at over $26 trillion. It is also the leader for initial public offerings, with $82 billion raised in 2020, including six of the seven largest technology deals. 63% of SPAC proceeds in 2020 were raised on the NYSE, including the six largest transactions.

To get more information on iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF and to follow the companys latest updates, you can visit the companys profile page here: iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETFs Profile. For more news on the financial markets be sure to visit Equities News. Also, dont forget to sign-up for the Daily Fix to receive the best stories to your inbox 5 days a week.

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iShares Trust - iShares Genomics Immunology and Healthcare ETF (IDNA) gains 0.10% for July 15 - Equities.com

Immunology

St Catharines Immunology professor says 90 per cent vaccination rate will be needed to reach COVID-19 herd immunity – insauga.com

Brock University immunologist Adam MacNeil believes that Canada will need a 90 per cent fully vaccinated rate to achieve herd immunity against COVID-19.

According to data released today (July 13), slightly more than half of all eligible Canadians - 50.06 per cent - are now fully vaccinated, a long way still from 90 per cent.

However, factoring in children under 12 years of age, the actual percentage of fully vaccinated Canadian is just 44 per cent.

In a recent interview with the St Catharines campus newspaper, The Brock News, MacNeil suggested it will take a national conversation to reach Canadians reluctant to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

We are at a pivot point and need to elevate and disseminate the conversation into communities, leveraging all of our experts and their messages to create one unified, culturally-sensitive national voice that will reach those pockets of people who are hesitant because of misinformation or perhaps for ideological reasons, MacNeil told the newspaper.

MacNeil said its going to take individuals reaching out to reluctant family members, neighbours and colleagues in their personal networks to provide support for vaccination.

He believes trust is key to changing the minds of those hesitating to be vaccinated.

I dont think just pounding on the table saying, vaccines work, you have to get it, is the solution in those cases, he told the paper. It comes from genuine conversations with people they trust.

With the new Delta and Lambda variants of COVID-19 quickly spreading, MacNeil acknowledged that its pointless to try urging hardcore anti-vaxxers, always touting the latest conspiracy theories but rather he believes theres a segment of the unvaccinated population who would be willing to take the needles.

Among the issues facing them could be seniors unfamiliar with computers not being able to online book, employees who dont feel they can take the time off work and is similarly worried the after-effects may waylay them for a few days or even cultural differences where communities speaking a different language dont understand the process.

As for those who simply dont believe the vaccines work, MacNeil cited figures from Ontarios new Chief Medical Officer of Health, Dr. Kieran Moore, who recently said that between May 15 and June 12, nearly 99 per cent of COVID cases in Ontario involved individuals who were not fully vaccinated.

With the latest social media gambit among resistors being If everyone around me is fully vaccinated, I dont need to be, MacNeil points out they are not taking into account the totality of their community which includes children under 12, people who are immuno-compromised, as well as the many who have had various types of medical conditions or recent surgeries and require immune-suppressant medications.

Given the stark difference between 50 and 90 percent vaccinated rates, it would seem the fight against COVID-19 is still far from over for Canadians.

(Adam MacNeil photo courtesy of BrockUniversity)

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St Catharines Immunology professor says 90 per cent vaccination rate will be needed to reach COVID-19 herd immunity - insauga.com

Immunology

The pros and cons of Freedom Daya view from immunology – The BMJ – The BMJ

Currently, there is much discussion of the UK governments vision to end all covid-19 restrictions in England on 19 July, so-called Freedom Day. This is the endpoint of the UK governments covid-19 roadmap. A postponement was previously put in place because the final condition for ending lockdownthat no new variant had appeared to raise new concernshad been missed due to steeply rising cases caused by the delta variant. As Freedom Day approaches, new cases of covid-19 are rising steeply, with projections that this may rise to 100,000 cases/day. That would be a worse trajectory than the UKs European neighbours or the USA.

The case that the end of covid restrictions will proceed as planned on 19 July is predicated on the point that, despite the enormous caseload, this no longer carries the same ramifications as in the first two waves. The link between infection, hospitalisation, and death has been weakened by the highly successful vaccines and vaccination programme. Transmission is high, but hospitalisations and fatal cases are low. To clarify, the vaccines in use, in most people, generate good levels of neutralising antibodies and substantially reduce the chance of serious infection and death by delta after two doses. The problem is the most people caveatthose at the lower end of the distribution of neutralising antibodies are susceptible to breakthrough infection. [1,2] Secondary school children are currently ineligible for vaccination, and yet are susceptible to infection and have proved an excellent viral incubator during this wave. At the time of writing, concerns about the race to unlock are being raised by experts, including Mike Ryan, the WHOs executive director for health emergencies, who has warned of the epidemiological stupidity of ending covid restrictions, and other leading public health experts who have published an open letter in The Lancet.

The polarisation of the debate bears witness to the fact that the cost benefit analysis is now more nuanced than in early 2021, when 1800 deaths were reported in a single day and the risks were immediate and self evident. With the UK among those countries with the privilege of relatively high vaccination levels and daily fatalities in double figures, it seems only right to ask what level of intervention is appropriate to our relationship with the virus as it is today and is likely to be in the future.

Among the arguments raised in support of Freedom Day are that we have to move on (the now or never), re-establish normality, and rejuvenate the economy. Israel is cited as a country achieving this, even in the face of a growing wave of delta breakthrough cases.

The difficulty is that the national situation and the interlinked global situation are far from under control. Allowing the virus freedom to circulate at high transmission levels in a partially vaccinated population is a concern. It is a real-life, population-level embodiment of viral immunologists laboratory experiments to model the emergence of immune-escape mutants. Such real-world vaccine escape variants are indeed starting to be sequenced [3]. The delta variant has replaced alpha as the dominant variant at present, but the possibility of other global variants coming around the curve remains. If the past 18 months have taught us anything, it is that virus outbreaks traverse the world fast, even in the face of border controls.

Lastly, there is the concern about the long term cost, in the form of new cases of long covid. We still cannot fully assess the time course of this disease process, but certainly there are hundreds of thousands of people whose lives have not yet returned to normal after more than a year. It is known that long covid ensues after SARS-CoV-2 infection, across the severity spectrum, and irrespective of asymptomatic or severe/hospitalised outcome. There is thus no reason to assume that an infection wave in a partially vaccinated population will incur less than the predicted 10-20% of all infections leading to long covid. This suggests a period in which we tolerate up to 10-20,000 people per day, many of them children and young adults, entering the pool of individuals with long covid.

Its important to move forward, but the list of cons reminds us that this virus is an ongoing, formidable, and unforgiving foe, demonstrating time after time the high cost of the smallest miscalculation. This supports a case for continued caution and to go slowly and steadily with a stepwise, evidence-based easings of restrictions.

Daniel Altmann, professor, Department of Immunology and Inflammation, Imperial College London.

Rosemary Boyton, professor, Department of Infectious Disease, Imperial College London, UK & Lung Division, Royal Brompton and Harefield Hospitals, London, UK.

Competing interests: none declared.

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The pros and cons of Freedom Daya view from immunology - The BMJ - The BMJ