The immune system comprises organs, tissues, cells and molecules, which protect the body against pathogens.
Detailed description
The biological defense system can be separated into an innate and an adaptive part. The innate immune system developed early in the phylogeny of living things. The adaptive immune system adjusts to new or modified pathogens. Both parts collaborate closely. Moreover, the immune system can destroy abnormal or defective cells of the own body.
For over 20 years, Professor Andreas Peschel from the Interfaculty Institute of Microbiology and Infection Medicine Tübingen (IMIT) and the German Center for Infection Research (DZIF) has dedicated
The latest outbreaks of emerging, dangerous pathogens, such as Ebola, MERS-CoV or Zika, emphasise the importance of the rapid development of effective vaccines. However, being able to predict the
Chronic lung infections caused by the bacterium Pseudomonas aeruginosa require complex and, in most cases, long-term treatment with antibiotics. It is generally not possible to completely heal the
Some HIV-infected – and untreated children – who do not develop AIDS, control the virus in a different way from the few infected adults who remain disease-free. Dr Maximilian Muenchhoff, DZIF
Researchers at the ImmunoSensation cluster of excellence at the University of Bonn have managed to do what many scientists dream of: together with researchers from the USA, they have patented new
In 2016, a clinical phase I trial on a potential vaccine against the dreaded Ebola virus was successfully completed. The tested vaccine “rVSV-ZEBOV” proved to be safe and effective. In a further trial
During pregnancy, a mother’s immune system is suppressed to protect the fetus, which is perceived as a foreign body because it is genetically different. A partly DZIF funded study in mice found that
The human immunodeficiency virus has to overcome major obstacles to infect inactive immune cells. DZIF scientists have investigated the defence mechanism of these cells and found indications of a new
Researchers of the University of Tübingen and DZIF in collaboration with the biotech company Sanaria Inc. have demonstrated in a clinical trial that a new vaccine for malaria called Sanaria® PfSPZ
Almost everybody has it: Scientists estimate that approximately 98 percent of adults around the world are infected with the Epstein-Barr virus. In rare cases, an infection with this virus causes
