InvivoGen’s Reviews
Innate Immunity
TLR3: racing for vaccine advantages
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play a pivotal role in the initiation of prompt innate immune defenses, as well as in the activation of adaptive immune cells for enhanced and memory responses. Thus, TLR agonists are attractive candidates for vaccine adjuvants and cancer therapeutics
Previous reviews
Innate Immunity
TLR7 and TLR8: same, same... but different!
InvivoGen presents a new Insight Newsletter reviewing TLR7 and TLR8 reporter cells, designed to monitor the intertwined NF-κB and IRF responses of the two Toll-Like Receptors TLR7 and TLR8. Also, M5049 (aka Enpatoran), a novel TLR7- and TLR8-specific antagonist, was added to our growing library of TLR7/8 ligands.
Antibodies
Importance of mAb murinization for in vivo mouse models
In 1985, the FDA approved the first monoclonal antibody (mAb) for clinical use. This mAb was an anti-CD3 antibody for the treatment of organ allograft rejection1. Being of mouse origin, all patients administered with this mAb developed a human anti‑mouse immunoglobulin (Ig) antibody (HAMA) response, significantly limiting its use2. This response leads to the inactivation and clearance of the...
Inflammasome
NLRP1 & NLRP3: a tale of two inflammasome sensors
In this first newsletter of 2023, InvivoGen highlights the current knowledge about the NLRP1 and NLRP3 inflammasome sensors and discusses the experimental difficulty in assessing their respective role in pathophysiological contexts.
We also introduce a series of new products, including NLRP1 reporter cell lines, TLR4 reporter cell lines, as well as a new liquid formulation of our...
Vaccination
Vaccine Adjuvants review
Adjuvants are essential for enhancing and directing the adaptative immune response to vaccine antigens. This response is mediated by two main types of lymphocytes, B and T cells.
COVID-19
Spotlight on COVID-19: Protective immunity & Re-infection
As our understanding of COVID-19 continuously progresses, some essential questions remain open including "Does protective immunity develop after SARS-CoV-2 infection?" and "How long does it last?" There is growing evidence that re-infection by SARS-CoV-2 can occur, indicating that immunity is either not strong enough, or not long-lasting in all individuals. Therefore, it is crucial to...
COVID-19
Spotlight on COVID-19: Vaccine development
Globally, the vaccine development effort in response to the COVID-19 pandemic is unprecedented in terms of both scale and speed. Importantly, SARS-CoV-2 vaccines will be essential in reducing morbidity and mortality if the virus establishes itself in the population. The race is now on for the development of both a safe and, effective vaccine against SARS-CoV-2.
COVID-19
Spotlight on COVID-19: Predicted immune responses
Currently, there is very limited knowledge of the host immune response to SARS-CoV-2. However, SARS-Cov-2 shares sequence identity with SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV, similar cell entry mechanisms, and the propensity to induce hyper inflammation in severe cases. Therefore, based on the accumulated clinical and experimental data on these previous viruses, predictions can be made on how the host...
COVID-19
Spotlight on COVID-19: Treatment with repurposed drugs
There are currently no effective drugs targeting SARS-CoV-2, the causative agent of COVID-19. The first strategy for the treatment of COVID-19 is the repurposing of existing drugs that are known to be safe in humans. Therapeutic targets against SARS-CoV-2 exist at various stages of the infection including viral attachment, entry, and replication, as well as the host cytokine response.
COVID-19
Spotlight on COVID-19: Infection
Since December 2019, coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has spread rapidly around the world, causing a pandemic that threatens global public health. The causative agent of COVID-19 is Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), a novel β-coronavirus. Globally, the number of positive COVID-19 cases grows exponentially every day and now the race is on to find both an...
Innate Immunity
TLR7 & TLR8: fraternal twins
Toll-like receptors (TLRs) play a pivotal role in the initiation of anti-infectious immune responses. Distinct pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) are recognized by different TLRs, at the cell surface or in endosomes. TLR7 and TLR8 are endosomal receptors that share structural homology and sense viral single stranded (ss) RNA as well as synthetic base analogs. However, there are...