Immunology | Penn Today

The Conversation

Beyond COVID vaccines: What else could mRNA technology do for our health?

Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman of the Perelman School of Medicine are lauded for receiving the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for their discoveries in mRNA biology.

Katalin Kariko and Drew Weissman wearing lab coats.

Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman, Penn’s historic mRNA vaccine research team, win 2023 Nobel Prize in Medicine

The highest honor was bestowed for foundational discoveries that gave the world a vaccine to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Philadelphia Inquirer

Lyme disease vaccines are back, one in trials from Pfizer and another in early tests at Penn. But will people get them?

A Lyme disease vaccine is being tested at Penn using the same messenger RNA technology that worked against COVID-19 in the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines.

An mRNA vaccine against Lyme disease-causing bacteria

In pre-clinical models, researchers at Penn Medicine have developed a vaccine that protects against Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that causes Lyme disease.

Four bottles of Influenza vaccine beside one medical syringe.

Q&A

This season’s flu and COVID-19 vaccines

Judith A. O’Donnell of the Perelman School of Medicine answers common questions about this year’s flu shot and the new COVID-19 vaccines.

The immune health future, today

Breaking the code of the immune system could provide a new fundamental way of understanding, treating, and preventing every type of disease. Penn Medicine is investing in key discoveries about immunity and immune system function, and building infrastructure, to make that bold idea a reality.

Stroma-targeting CAR T cells (green) in the stroma surrounding a solid tumor.

Removing the barrier surrounding solid tumors clears path for T cells

Penn researchers uncover a new way to target solid tumors. Using CAR T cells to remove cancer-associated fibroblasts surrounding pancreatic tumors allows T cells to infiltrate and attack the tumor cells.

The Business Journals

Penn’s cell therapy pioneer Dr. Carl June shares $3M Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

Carl June of the Perelman School of Medicine has been awarded a $3 million Breakthrough Prize in life sciences for developing CAR-T therapy to treat cancer, with remarks from President Liz Magill.

Penn Medicine’s Carl June to receive 2024 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences

The Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy in the Perelman School of Medicine is honored for pioneering the development of CAR T cell therapy, which programs patients’ own immune cells to fight their cancer.

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