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Ben Varco-Merth

@varcomerth

Scientist at OHSU. HIV persistence and pre-clinical therapies, T cell immunology, immunotherapy, CAR-T, therapeutic vaccination and more.

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12.11.2024
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Latest posts by Ben Varco-Merth @varcomerth

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HIV-induced sialoglycans on infected CD4+ T cells promote immune evasion from myeloid cell-mediated killing @natcomms.nature.com @nufeinbergmed.bsky.social
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

16.12.2025 20:27 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Distinct components of mRNA vaccines cooperate to instruct efficient germinal center responses This study dissects the individual contributions of the different components of mRNA vaccines to immune responses. Nucleoside-modified mRNA promotes the production of type I interferons that act on de...

I am excited to share that our work, in which we have dissected the signals driven by the nucleoside-modified mRNA and LNP components of mRNA vaccines that regulate germinal center (GC) responses, is now published in Cell! www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...

16.12.2025 17:39 πŸ‘ 46 πŸ” 19 πŸ’¬ 5 πŸ“Œ 4

Here is a link to Rebecca Denison’s CROI 2025 Martin Delaney presentation β€œ40+ Years of HIV: What’s Changed, What Hasn’t, What Shouldn’t, What Must”

youtu.be/UOW2hF2fBqI?...

11.03.2025 23:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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CROI chair Prof Havlir reaffirm the commitment of CROI to support scientific gatherings with free exchange of ideas, and condemns the censoring of science.

She also highlights the response to US federal policy changes.

#CROI2025

10.03.2025 00:12 πŸ‘ 17 πŸ” 6 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1

House cuts to NIH (to fund billionaires) would cut the Cures Act (passed with bipartisan support) by ~$300 million or 70%. Scientific loss includes cancer research, adult stem cell research, brain/dementia research, and a critical data collection project to study rare diseases, among other topics.

09.03.2025 16:34 πŸ‘ 208 πŸ” 140 πŸ’¬ 5 πŸ“Œ 4
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A powerful talk by Rebecca Denison, founder of WORLD and woman living with HIV.

We can't go back to the days without treatment access.

Silence is death.

And courage is a decision.

The hall erupted in a standing ovation.

#CROI2025

10.03.2025 01:36 πŸ‘ 49 πŸ” 11 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Comparison of Research Spending on New Drug Approvals by the NIH vs the Pharmaceutical Industry This cross-sectional study examines National Institutes of Health and pharmaceutical industry investments in recent drug approvals.

99% of new medicines developed by the pharmaceutical industry depend on NIH research jamanetwork.com/journals/jam...

10.03.2025 14:14 πŸ‘ 885 πŸ” 438 πŸ’¬ 18 πŸ“Œ 25
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Chris Beyrer, describing the current state of the HIV/AIDS pandemic reminds us that of the words of Archbishop Desmond Tutu that β€œeveryone is welcome in my father’s house” and this is central to our work as biomedical scientists

10.03.2025 16:29 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
Adeeba Kamanarulzaman offering the N’Galy-Mann lecture, describing the importance of human dignity and social justice in addressing human health

Adeeba Kamanarulzaman offering the N’Galy-Mann lecture, describing the importance of human dignity and social justice in addressing human health

On a similar theme, CROI N’Galy-Mann lecturer Adeeba Kamarulzaman reminded us of the importance of human dignity and social justice in addressing human health

10.03.2025 16:23 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

She also reminds us that silence; in the face of pandemic, in the face of oppression, and in the face of authoritarianism; will not save us

10.03.2025 16:13 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0

Very moved by CROI 2025 Martin Delaney lecturer Rebecca Denison, who reminds us of the importance of the HIV community in advocating for science, which has enabled so many fundamental discoveries about human health and disease.

10.03.2025 16:12 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 2 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 1

I hope so

09.03.2025 00:44 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 0 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0

Rubio terminated 5800 USAID contracts – more than 90% of its foreign aid programs – in defiance of the courts.

Here’s a list of just some of the lifesaving awards that were terminated. Nearly all were Congressionally mandated. They’ve saved millions of lives. 🧡

27.02.2025 20:59 πŸ‘ 11295 πŸ” 6230 πŸ’¬ 422 πŸ“Œ 794

The inevitable cost. Not only people eventually dying of HIV-associated diseases, but that along the way there will be a massive explosion in antiretroviral drug resistance as some of those living with HIV skip doses to help out friends.

27.02.2025 18:57 πŸ‘ 17 πŸ” 12 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Excited to present our work β€œAZD5582 inhibits vaccine-elicited CD8+ T cell responses in SIV+ RM on ART” at CROI 2025 (Poster 0530)

08.03.2025 23:49 πŸ‘ 2 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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A single mutation in bovine influenza H5N1 hemagglutinin switches specificity to human receptors In 2024, several human infections with highly pathogenic clade 2.3.4.4b bovine influenza H5N1 viruses in the United States raised concerns about their capability for bovine-to-human or even human-to-h...

While the risk of human-to-human transmission is still low, the pervasive reservoirs and appearance of new, concerning mutations or those identified as a threat science.org/doi/10.1126/...
demand a very high level of vigilance and preparedness

31.12.2024 23:44 πŸ‘ 154 πŸ” 34 πŸ’¬ 6 πŸ“Œ 3
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Potential of a blood test to determine how long a vaccine-induced antibody protection will last, via a platelet signature
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
www.nature.com/articles/s41...

02.01.2025 17:41 πŸ‘ 412 πŸ” 60 πŸ’¬ 8 πŸ“Œ 0
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How are durable antibody-responses to vaccines induced? News & Views paper discussing excellent new work by Cortese et al in Nature Immunology: www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Megakaryocytes promote long-lived plasmablasts via direct and indirect interactions. #ImmSky #HumanImmunology

02.01.2025 17:27 πŸ‘ 37 πŸ” 13 πŸ’¬ 3 πŸ“Œ 1
Science’s 2024 Breakthrough of the Year is lenacapavir, an injectable drug that demonstrated remarkable success at preventing HIV infection with one shot every 6 months. The drug attaches to the lattice-like capsid proteins that shield the virus’s genetic materialβ€”a mechanism that could inspire other antivirals. Lenacapavir could help end the HIV/AIDS epidemic, but that will hinge on access for those who need it most.

Science’s 2024 Breakthrough of the Year is lenacapavir, an injectable drug that demonstrated remarkable success at preventing HIV infection with one shot every 6 months. The drug attaches to the lattice-like capsid proteins that shield the virus’s genetic materialβ€”a mechanism that could inspire other antivirals. Lenacapavir could help end the HIV/AIDS epidemic, but that will hinge on access for those who need it most.

Science’s 2024 Breakthrough of the Year is lenacapavir, an injectable drug that demonstrated remarkable success at preventing HIV infection with one shot every 6 months.

Learn more about this year's #BOTY and other big advances in science: scim.ag/3BrCtUn

12.12.2024 19:02 πŸ‘ 424 πŸ” 163 πŸ’¬ 20 πŸ“Œ 36
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Nutrient-driven histone code determines exhausted CD8+ T cell fates ACLY-deficient CAR T cells targeting the tumor-associated antigen disialoganglioside GD2 (GD2 CAR T cells) also resisted acquiring TEX-like properties, exhibiting reduced CD39 expression when co-cultu...

Nutrient-driven histone code determines exhausted CD8+ T cell fates
ACLY-deficient CAR T cells targeting the tumor-associated antigen disialogangliosi

www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...

12.12.2024 19:14 πŸ‘ 36 πŸ” 12 πŸ’¬ 2 πŸ“Œ 0

Academic Journals & News
(Upadated Dec 7, 2024)

go.bsky.app/hCfhqn

07.12.2024 01:05 πŸ‘ 80 πŸ” 38 πŸ’¬ 9 πŸ“Œ 3
bioRxiv expands on Mastodon and Bluesky bioRxiv - the preprint server for biology, operated by Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, a research and educational institution

Reminder for newcomers that bioRxiv has Bluesky accounts in every subject category - great way to keep up (please re-skeet) connect.biorxiv.org/news/2023/09...

10.11.2024 13:40 πŸ‘ 362 πŸ” 287 πŸ’¬ 6 πŸ“Œ 6

The raw milk that tested positive for bird flu is from Raw Farm LLC in Fresno. Here's what Raw Farm has posted on IG.

It would be nice to know how long the viruses survive in raw milk. It would be nice to do more than hope that people aren't infected.

25.11.2024 19:13 πŸ‘ 123 πŸ” 43 πŸ’¬ 18 πŸ“Œ 11
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REVIEW: Next-generation combination approaches for immune checkpoint therapy
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
@pamsharmamdphd.bsky.social

25.11.2024 19:31 πŸ‘ 39 πŸ” 15 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Nutrient control of growth and metabolism through mTORC1 regulation of mRNA splicing Ogawa etΒ al. show in Caenorhabditis elegans that the essential growth regulator mTORC1 extensively reprograms gene expression and alternative mRNA splicing. This splicing regulation is critical for gr...

Nutrient control of growth and metabolism through mTORC1 regulation of mRNA splicing πŸ§ͺ
www.cell.com/molecular-ce...

21.11.2024 13:54 πŸ‘ 36 πŸ” 5 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 0
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A spatial human thymus cell atlas mapped to a continuous tissue axis - Nature A quantitative morphological framework for the human thymus reveals the establishment of the lobular cytokine network, canonical thymocyte trajectories and thymic epithelial cell distributions in...

Couldn't wish for a better BlueSky debut post:
Our spatial atlas of the developing thymus is now published in Nature! πŸ₯³
www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Also check out the other papers in the new Human Cell Atlas collection: www.nature.com/collections/...
#singlecell #spatial #multiomics

21.11.2024 21:00 πŸ‘ 46 πŸ” 10 πŸ’¬ 4 πŸ“Œ 0
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Single-cell atlas of the human immune system reveals sex-specific dynamics of immunosenescence, including a female-specific cytotoxic CD8+ T cell subpopulation @martamele.bsky.social @mariasopenar.bsky.social
papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....

19.11.2024 17:04 πŸ‘ 43 πŸ” 18 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 1
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Opinion: The immune–endocrine interplay in sex differential responses to viral infection and COVID-19
www.cell.com/trends/immun...

19.11.2024 17:29 πŸ‘ 1 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 0
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Check out our updated database of 189 PhD fellowships and funding opportunities.

For each fellowship, we provide a description, $ amount, deadline, link to funder and eligibility criteria (such as citizenship).

Good luck!

Download freely here: research.jhu.edu/rdt/funding-...

19.11.2024 13:13 πŸ‘ 211 πŸ” 125 πŸ’¬ 1 πŸ“Œ 4
NIH VideoCast - Joint Meeting of the Martin Delaney Collaboratories for HIV Cure

Joint Meeting of the Martin Delaney Collaboratories for #HIV Cure now broadcasting on NIH Videocast: videocast.nih.gov/livew.asp?li...

18.11.2024 17:45 πŸ‘ 4 πŸ” 1 πŸ’¬ 0 πŸ“Œ 2