Mayo Clinic researchers have found a way to revive immunity in mice that have abnormal or deficient immune systems. The discovery may lead to a means of restoring immunity to individuals with immunodeficiency diseases such as AIDS and cancer. Also, because the research involves an existing therapy, application may be possible in the near future. The research team, led by Mayo Clinic immunologists Marilia Cascalho, M.D., Ph.D., and Jeffrey Platt, M.D., report in this month’s Journal of Immunology that B cells, the lymphocytes that produce antibodies, help to generate T cells, the lymphocytes that fight viruses and tumors.
