Immunology

A growing body of evidence suggests that a single dose of vaccine against cancer-causing human papilloma virus (HPV) may protect as well as the standard two-or-more dose regimen. This would make it easier to protect more women, especially in low-income areas where vaccine access is scarce. A study published recently in The Lancet Global Health…

A new test detects exposure to viruses that cause COVID-19 and their relatives. Research using it could aid efforts to protect against infections.    A team at the Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research developed a test capable of assessing exposure to the virus that causes COVID-19 and to a selection of its variants and viral…

Five new projects led by Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNL) scientists have earned Laboratory Directed Exploratory Research (LDER) funding for the upcoming fiscal year. The LDER program, which was modeled after the U.S. Department of Energy’s Laboratory Directed Research and Development program, provides FNL scientists…

Frederick National Laboratory scientists were part of a multi-institutional collaboration that has identified a second patient whose natural immune response to HIV infection appears to have cured her of the disease, raising the question: Can this be replicated? Only three other patients have ever been declared fully cured, but each of these…

You may have had a sore arm, felt tired, or had a headache. Maybe you ran a slight fever. You might have heard these things happen because your COVID-19 shot is working as it should. On the other hand, a lack of side-effects does not point to vaccine failure, according to a new study. The relationship between a reaction to COVID-19 vaccines and…

Scientists have identified a genetic variant that can predict whether immunotherapy drugs called immune checkpoint inhibitors, used to treat cancer, might fail in certain patients. The team’s findings, which appear in Lancet Oncology, point to HLA-A*03, an allele (a form of a gene) found on chromosome 6 of human DNA. The presence of HLA-A*03 in…

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) awarded three Frederick National Laboratory teams with NIH Director’s Awards for innovative approaches to COVID-19-related research that advances knowledge and enhances health. “It is a tremendous honor for three Frederick National Laboratory teams to be nominated by three distinct entities within NIH…

SeroNews is the quarterly newsletter from the Clinical and Translational Serology Task Force and NCI Serological Sciences Network. Each edition includes clinical and translational serology highlights. This newsletter will be published every three to four months and is intended to summarize key priorities, perspectives, and events of a very…

Frederick National Laboratory for Cancer Research (FNL) plays a central role in a public-private network that has kept scores of substandard COVID-19 blood antibody tests out of circulation and helped ensure that marketed tests give accurate results. This critical pandemic response is detailed in a scientific study published January 12 in…