Publications by authors named "Nicole Rose Lukesh"

Rapamycin (rapa), an immunosuppressive medication, has demonstrated considerable effectiveness in reducing organ transplant rejection and treating select autoimmune diseases. However, the standard oral administration of rapa results in poor bioavailability, broad biodistribution, and harmful off-target effects, necessitating improved drug delivery formulations. Polymeric microparticles (MPs) are one such solution and have demonstrated promise in pre-clinical studies to improve the therapeutic efficacy of rapa.

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New approaches to treat autoimmune diseases are needed, and we can be inspired by mechanisms in immune tolerance to guide the design of these approaches. Efferocytosis, the process of phagocyte-mediated apoptotic cell (AC) disposal, represents a potent tolerogenic mechanism that we could draw inspiration from to restore immune tolerance to specific autoantigens. ACs engage multiple avenues of the immune response to redirect aberrant immune responses.

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Vaccines represent a pivotal health advancement for preventing infection. However, because carrier systems with repeated administration can invoke carrier-targeted immune responses that diminish subsequent immune responses (e.g.

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Article Synopsis
  • Influenza virus outbreaks pose a significant global health challenge each year, with current vaccines often ineffective due to changes in the virus and low immune responses.
  • COBRA hemagglutinin (HA) immunogens show promise in addressing viral mutations but require adjuvants to enhance their effectiveness, with STING agonists demonstrating potential in this role.
  • This study explores a new vaccine platform using acetalated dextran microparticles with COBRA HA and a STING agonist in mouse models, revealing varying efficacy across different genetic backgrounds and health conditions, emphasizing the need for targeted adjuvant strategies.
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Type 1 diabetes mellitus (T1D) is the leading metabolic disorder in children worldwide. Over time, incidence rates have continued to rise with 20 million individuals affected globally by the autoimmune disease. The current standard of care is costly and time-consuming requiring daily injections of exogenous insulin.

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