How hard the flu hits us has a lot to do with our first experience of the disease, a new paper reports.
Researchers at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) and the University of Arizona may finally have an explanation as to why different people seem to have such different reactions to the flu. And, to a large extent, they report, it has to do with your childhood.
Our immune system often struggles to recognize and defend against closely related strains of seasonal flu, even though these are essentially the genetic sisters and brothers of strains that circulated just a few years ago, said lead author Katelyn Gostic, currently a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Chicago.
This is perplexing because our research on bird flu shows that deep in our immune memory, we have some ability to recognize and defend against the distantly related, genetic third cousins of the strains we saw as children.
An individuals ability to fight off the flu is related to the number of different flu strains they contracted during their lifetime and the order in which they did so. Prior exposure to a pathogen, be it in the wild or controlled (in a vaccine) is known as immunological imprinting.
For the study, the team set out to determine whether immunological imprinting could explain differences in how people respond to the flu. They used health records from the rizona Department of Health Services to track how different varieties of the virus affect people at various ages, focusing on the H3N2 and H1N1 strains. These strains were selected as both have led to seasonal outbreaks over the past few decades, so there was enough data on them to work from.
In very broad lines, H3N2 is more closely associated with severe flu cases in elderly people and causes the majority of flu-related deaths. H1N1 seems more partial to children and young adults and is far less deadly.
The data showed that people who were first exposed to H1N1 during childhood were less likely to require hospitalization if they re-encountered the strain later on in life compared to those who were first infected with H3N2. Similarly, this latter group would be more resistant to subsequent reinfections of H3N2.
The team looked at the evolutionary relationship between the two strains and report that they belong to two different branches of the influenza family. Further research revealed that while infection with any of the strains does somewhat boost resistance against any other, the best effects are seen with strains from the same family that an individual has battled before. Furthermore, your first exposure seems to grant you extra protection against related strains in the future: people who had their first run-in with flu as children in 1955 (N1H1 strain) were significantly more likely to be hospitalized with an H3N2 infection than an H1N1 infection when both strains were circulating.
However, the team also found that people whose first childhood exposure was to H2N2 did not have better protection when they later encountered H1N1 (although the two strains are closely related). They are still unsure as to why this is.
We hope that by studying differences in immunity against bird flus where our immune system shows a natural ability to deploy broadly effective protection and against seasonal flus where our immune system seems to have bigger blind spots we can uncover clues useful to universal influenza vaccine development.
The paper Childhood immune imprinting to influenza A shapes birth year-specific risk during seasonal H1N1 and H3N2 epidemics has been published in the journal PLOS Pathogens.
See original here:
Your resistance to flu is shaped by previous flus, and their type - ZME Science
- Eosinophil innate immune memory after bacterial skin infection promotes allergic lung inflammation - Science | AAAS - April 5th, 2025
- Researchers Discover mRNA Vaccines Leave Lasting Mark on the Immune System - SciTechDaily - April 5th, 2025
- Scientific Journeys: Uncovering how dioxins affect the immune system - National Institutes of Health (NIH) (.gov) - April 5th, 2025
- Oligodendroglial precursor cells modulate immune response and early demyelination in a murine model of multiple sclerosis - Science | AAAS - April 5th, 2025
- Measles can ravage the immune system and brain, causing long-term damage a virologist explains - The Conversation - April 5th, 2025
- Microscopic Instigators - The University of New Mexico - April 5th, 2025
- Changes in the immune index before and after surgery in urinary malignancy patients with AIDS - Nature - April 5th, 2025
- Non-immune targeting of CXCR3 compromises mitochondrial function and suppresses tumor growth in glioblastoma - Nature - April 5th, 2025
- 8 Supplements That Will Boost Your Immune System - Verywell Health - April 5th, 2025
- Improving immunotherapy for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: learning from patients and preclinical models - Nature - April 5th, 2025
- Redefining the immune landscape of hepatitis A virus infection - Nature - April 5th, 2025
- What Happens to Your Immune Health When You Take Vitamin C and Zinc Together? - Verywell Health - April 5th, 2025
- Diet Has A Major Impact On The Immune System - WorldHealth.net - April 5th, 2025
- Top 7 ways to boost your immune system - The Indian Express - April 5th, 2025
- Kinetics of pIgR and IgM immune responses in snakehead ( Channa argus ) to inactivated Aeromonas hydrophila via immersion and intraperitoneal... - April 5th, 2025
- What Is Man Flu? - Cleveland Clinic Health Essentials - April 5th, 2025
- Dynamics of T cell subpopulations and plasma cytokines during the first year of antineoplastic therapy in patients with breast cancer: the BEGYN-1... - April 5th, 2025
- Publication in npj Vaccines Reports Cross-reactive and Long-Lasting Immune Responses for self-amplifying mRNA (samRNA) COVID-19 Vaccine Booster... - April 5th, 2025
- 9 Supplements, Tonics, and Oils to Boost Immune Health - W Magazine - April 5th, 2025
- Preoperative pan-immuno-inflammatory values and albumin-to-globulin ratio predict the prognosis of stage IIII colorectal cancer - Nature - April 5th, 2025
- Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Lupus) - Who gets it? | NIAMS - February 7th, 2025
- Systemic Lupus Erythematosus (Lupus) Basics - National Institute of ... - February 7th, 2025
- Long COVID: women at greater risk compared to men could immune system differences be the cause? - The Conversation - February 7th, 2025
- What is Pemphigus? Symptoms & Causes | NIAMS - February 7th, 2025
- How the immune system influences pancreatic cancer: New interactions provide therapeutic insights - Medical Xpress - February 7th, 2025
- Mitochondrias Secret Power Unleashed in the Battle Against Inflammation - SciTechDaily - February 7th, 2025
- WNT11 Promotes immune evasion and resistance to Anti-PD-1 therapy in liver metastasis - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- The role of the behavioral immune system in the expression of short and long-term orientation in young Chilean men during the COVID-19 pandemic - BMC... - February 7th, 2025
- Harvard nutritionist eats these 5 foods to keep her 'immune system strong' and 'energy high' - CNBC - February 7th, 2025
- Micro Immune Response On-chip (MIRO) models the tumour-stroma interface for immunotherapy testing - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- Personalized Therapeutic Vaccine Steers the Immune System to Fight Kidney Cancer | Newswise - Newswise - February 7th, 2025
- Identification of m6A methyltransferase-related WTAP and ZC3H13 predicts immune infiltrates in glioblastoma - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- Serotonin attenuates tumor necrosis factor-induced intestinal inflammation by interacting with human mucosal tissue - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- Identification of the immune infiltration and biomarkers in ulcerative colitis based on liquidliquid phase separation-related genes - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- FLASH radiation reprograms lipid metabolism and macrophage immunity and sensitizes medulloblastoma to CAR-T cell therapy - Nature.com - February 7th, 2025
- Young Innovators: U of S researcher uses bat immune systems to find next generation therapies - Saskatoon Star-Phoenix - February 7th, 2025
- World Cancer Day 2025: Chronic stress, immune system, and cancer risk- How are these connected? - The Times of India - February 7th, 2025
- New research unlocks key to long-lasting immune response in cancer and chronic diseases - The Peter Doherty Institute for Infection and Immunity - February 7th, 2025
- Microbial Dynamics and Immune Response to NTHi in COPD - Physician's Weekly - February 7th, 2025
- MHE Week in Review RFK Jr. Spotlight - Managed Healthcare Executive - February 7th, 2025
- Psoriasis Basics: Overview, Symptoms, and Causes - January 27th, 2025
- Vitiligo Symptoms, Treatment & Causes | NIAMS - January 27th, 2025
- The Surprising Connection Between Obesity, Parasites, and Your Immune System - SciTechDaily - January 27th, 2025
- Versatile 69p spice that boosts immune system can go in soups, smoothies and milk - Express - January 27th, 2025
- How the skins secret immune system could lead to needle-free vaccines - Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance - January 27th, 2025
- Fevers link with a key kind of immunity is surprisingly ancient - Science News Magazine - January 27th, 2025
- Immunology - The Scientist - January 27th, 2025
- Opinion: Immune System And Ageing Why We Get More Vulnerable As We Age - ABP Live - January 27th, 2025
- 'Forever chemicals' (PFAS) may weaken immune function in children, leading to more frequent infections - U.S. Right to Know - January 27th, 2025
- Cellular Signals That Wreak Havoc in Sepsis are Revealed - LabRoots - January 27th, 2025
- New Combination Immunotherapy Targets Melanoma and Breast Cancer with Promising Results - Inside Precision Medicine - January 27th, 2025
- New Research in The Journal of Poultry Science: Trained Immunity Offers Novel Poultry Disease Prevention Strategies - PR Newswire - January 27th, 2025
- Scientists uncover how cancer cells hijack T-cells, making it harder for the body to fight back - Medical Xpress - January 27th, 2025
- MiNK Therapeutics Targets Immune Reconstitution to Combat - GlobeNewswire - January 27th, 2025
- Mitochondria may be a promising therapeutic target for inflammatory diseases - Medical Xpress - January 27th, 2025
- Explainer: What is Guillain-Barr Syndrome and how it affects the immune system - Mathrubhumi English - January 27th, 2025
- Yes, Some Vaccines Contain Aluminum. Thats a Good Thing. - The New York Times - January 27th, 2025
- You Are What You Eat? MD Breaks Down The Science Of The Gut Microbiome - mindbodygreen - January 27th, 2025
- Potential gamechanger: Researchers discover basis for immunotherapy-induced myocarditis - Healio - January 27th, 2025
- Ozempic and Wegovy may boost health, from addiction to dementia - BBC.com - January 27th, 2025
- Neutrophil diversity and function in health and disease - Nature.com - December 6th, 2024
- Harnessing the Power of the Immune System for Breast Cancer Treatment - Breast Cancer Research Foundation - December 6th, 2024
- Study Examines Neoantigen Landscapes and Their Role in Immunotherapy Efficacy - Consult QD - December 6th, 2024
- The 5 Best Teas to Support Your Immune System This Cold & Flu Season - EatingWell - December 6th, 2024
- Engineered immune cells may be able to tame inflammation - Medical Xpress - December 6th, 2024
- Hybrid model of tumor growth, angiogenesis and immune response yields strategies to improve antiangiogenic therapy - Nature.com - December 6th, 2024
- Opioids interfere with cancer immunotherapy, but another type of drug could help - Medical Xpress - December 6th, 2024
- RANKL cytokine restores thymus cells in old mice, reducing tumor growth and improving T cell immune response - Fierce Biotech - December 6th, 2024
- Predictive role of neutrophil percentage-to-albumin ratio, neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio, and systemic immune-inflammation index for mortality in... - December 6th, 2024
- Immuno-Oncology Strategic Industry Research Report 2023-2024 & 2030: Approval of Pembrolizumab (Keytruda) and Nivolumab (Opdivo), which Target... - December 6th, 2024
- Study cracks the cold case of immunotherapy resistance - News-Medical.Net - December 6th, 2024
- New immune therapy improves survival and reduces tumor burden in glioblastoma - News-Medical.Net - December 6th, 2024
- Identification of immune-related hub genes and potential molecular mechanisms involved in COVID-19 via integrated bioinformatics analysis - Nature.com - December 6th, 2024
- Immune Cell Breakthrough: Scientists Discover a Hidden Ally in the Fight Against Cancer - SciTechDaily - December 6th, 2024
- Rising temperatures impact the immune system of wild monkeys - Earth.com - December 6th, 2024
- Study declaring Alzheimer's to be a "brain disease" proven to be fabricated - Earth.com - December 6th, 2024
- Warming temperatures impact immune performance of wild monkeys, U-M study shows - University of Michigan News - December 6th, 2024
- New study explores heart risks of cancer immunotherapy - News-Medical.Net - December 6th, 2024
- 'Incredible' way to boost your immune system naturally and ward of colds and flu this winter - The Mirror - December 6th, 2024
- Tis the Season to Boost Your Immune System - Mix93.3 - December 6th, 2024