By Ariane Tsai, C2ST Intern, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, Institute for Genomic Biology

Do you ever wonder how our bodies protect themselves from threats? 

Not only are our bodies constantly under threat from the outside world, but they also naturally produce cells that could be harmful, like cancer! Thankfully, our bodies have built up their own defense systems to fight off these dangers. In this article, we will take a closer look at an aspect of the immune system called adaptive immunity, where T cells and B cells work hand in hand to eliminate pathogens from our bodies.

Continue reading “An Open Letter from a Pathogen: T Cells & B Cells”

By Veronica Villanueva, C2ST Intern, Rush University

It’s that time of the year again–time for warm tea, cozy sweaters, and runny noses. 

Autumn is “cold and flu season” due to several factors including: reduced immune function due to cold weather, increased allergies making you more susceptible to viruses, and close proximity to people increasing viral spread. This is why the CDC recommends getting your flu vaccine in early fall (September/October) allowing you to maintain immunity through the cold months.

While we have a yearly vaccine for the flu, there are several other viruses that are common during this time of year. A virus wreaking havoc this year is respiratory syncytial virus (RSV). RSV is a respiratory virus that causes cold-like symptoms including a runny nose, fever, coughing, sneezing, and wheezing. It is very common (around 2 million cases a year) and people usually recover within a week thinking they just had a cold. 

For some people, especially infants and young children, it can cause bronchitis or pneumonia, leading to hospitalization.

Continue reading “The RSV Immunity Gap”

By Laura Tran, C2ST Intern, Rush University

One of the highlights of autumn is watching the trees change from a sea of green to an explosive ocean of red, orange, yellow, and purple.

Although the effect seems like magic, there’s a perfectly reasonable scientific explanation for the change in color!

Continue reading “The Chemistry Behind Fall Foliage”

By Laura Tran, C2ST Intern, Rush University

Look! Up in the sky! It’s a bird, it’s a plane, it’s…bird flu!

The last major avian flu (bird flu) outbreak in the United States occurred in 2014 and lasted until 2016. It circulated among wild birds during their migration and then spread to domestic poultry, which affected more than 50 million birds (mainly chickens and turkeys). It cost billions of dollars to cull infected poultry populations in order to control the spread of the virus.

While the worst of bird flu seemed to settle down, it never really went away.

Continue reading “How The Avian Flu Is Affecting Your Turkey This Thanksgiving”