#immune activation

[internationalbiotherapy]

Unveiling the Power of Oncolytic Viruses in Cancer Therapy: A Promising Frontier

Oncolytic viruses represent a promising frontier in cancer therapy, leveraging the innate ability of viruses to selectively target and destroy cancer cells while sparing healthy tissue. This innovative approach harnesses the dual power of direct cytotoxicity and immune system activation, offering new hope in the fight against various forms of cancer.

Historical Perspective and Evolution

The concept of using viruses to combat cancer dates back to the 1960s, when initial experiments explored the potential of viruses like poliovirus and adenovirus to induce tumor regression. These early efforts, though promising, faced significant challenges due to the potential for uncontrollable systemic infections. This led to a temporary halt in research until advances in DNA and RNA mapping technology enabled scientists to engineer safer, more targeted oncolytic viruses.

Among the most promising oncolytic viruses is the Newcastle Disease Virus (NDV). NDV specifically targets and kills cancer cells, inducing immune responses that further aid in eliminating tumors. Its unique properties make it an invaluable tool in developing personalized cancer therapies, enhancing treatment efficacy while minimizing side effects. Alongside NDV, other oncolytic viruses such as herpes simplex virus (HSV), reovirus, and vaccinia virus are being extensively studied and show significant potential in the realm of cancer treatment. Each of these viruses offers unique mechanisms of action and therapeutic benefits, broadening the scope and effectiveness of oncolytic virotherapy.

How Oncolytic Viruses Operate

Oncolytic viruses are adept at identifying and attaching themselves to cancer cells, exploiting specific receptors that distinguish them from healthy cells. Once inside the cancer cell, these viruses replicate, triggering a process known as apoptosis—programmed cell death. As infected cancer cells break down, they release new viral particles, which then proceed to infect neighboring cancer cells. This cycle continues, effectively amplifying the treatment's impact within the tumor.

Moreover, oncolytic viruses initiate an immune response against cancer cells by exposing viral antigens. This dual mechanism—direct cell destruction and immune activation—enhances the body's natural defenses against cancer, potentially eliminating residual cancer cells that conventional therapies might miss.

Enhancing Therapeutic Efficacy

To optimize the efficiency of oncolytic viruses, researchers are exploring various strategies. One approach involves combining oncolytic virotherapy with existing treatments such as radiation or chemotherapy. These therapies not only complement each other but also help mitigate immune responses that could prematurely neutralize the virus. By weakening the immune system's vigilance around the tumor site, these treatments create a more conducive environment for the oncolytic viruses to exert their effects.

Furthermore, scientists are investigating ways to augment the immune response triggered by oncolytic viruses. This includes integrating viral antigens into personalized cancer vaccines, which educate the immune system to recognize and attack cancer cells displaying these antigens. Such approaches transform "cold" tumors—those previously resistant to immune attacks—into "hot" targets for immune-mediated destruction.

Administration and Future Directions

Currently, oncolytic viruses are primarily administered intravenously or directly into localized tumors that are accessible. Intravenous administration allows for widespread dissemination of the virus throughout the body, targeting metastatic cancer cells that may have spread beyond the primary tumor site. Alternatively, direct injection into tumors converts them into sites of ongoing viral replication, essentially turning the tumor itself into an internal factory for generating anti-cancer agents.

Looking Ahead

The future of oncolytic virotherapy holds promise for further advancements. Ongoing research aims to refine virus engineering techniques to enhance tumor specificity and reduce potential side effects. Additionally, regulatory approvals for systemic administration are pending, suggesting broader accessibility and adoption of this cutting-edge treatment modality.

In conclusion, oncolytic viruses represent a paradigm shift in cancer treatment, merging virology with immunotherapy to combat malignancies in novel ways. As research continues to unravel the complexities of viral interactions with cancer cells and the immune system, the potential for personalized and potent cancer therapies continues to grow. With each breakthrough, the prospect of turning viruses once considered harmful into potent allies in the fight against cancer becomes increasingly tangible.

[slyandthefamilybook]

[axcyndraws]

I love them so much-

Double Hearted by the wonderful @kitsuneisi and @xmaruu11 !!!

[the-bat-bros]

Bruce wdym you don’t want your girlfriend bonding with your kids how else is she supposed to integrate into the family?

From the latest update of Wayne Family Adventures on Webtoons

[sanasanakun]

People try too hard to make Curly an active participant in Jimmy's abuse. Isn't the whole point that he's passive in everything Jimmy does? Abuse occurs because he actively doesn't do anything? Not to call someone out or be mean, but I saw a post saying Anya's ID being in Curly's locker at the beginning shows that he intended to prevent Anya from filing an HR report and I disagree. I get where that interpretation is coming from, but I think it's a little uncharitable. I don't like being too kind to Curly because he's like...a morally mid dude at best lol But if we're going by the HR report interpretation, I would say it's more likely he requested Anya's ID in order to file an HR report on her behalf. After all, the only way to contact Pony (that we see) is in the cockpit, he's the Captain, and Pony Express sucks bad so I wouldn't put it past them to only allow the Captain to use the communication device thing. As we see before, Curly is the only one able to use tools around the ship that you would think other employees could use (ex. Swansea should be able to use the axe if he's the repair guy. Idk why they'd need an ax but that falls under manual labor which Swansea is designated for as the mechanic/fixer dude. But it has to go through Curly). I never got the vibe that Curly moved to actively protect Jimmy. He just lets things happen without say a word; Jimmy walks all over him, and by extension, the whole crew. I get why people would think that because he gives the whole "Hey Jimmy, we can get through this together, bud" spiel right before the crash. This part interests me a lot because there's so many ways to interpret Curly's intentions there. My interpretation is that Curly is on autopilot mode. The responses seem so stilted in comparison to Jimmy's. Like it's the kind of thing Curly's said before again and again and again when Jimmy's gotten in trouble. However, as others previously pointed out, I don't think Curly ever dealt with Jimmy doing something this irredeemable. He doesn't know how to respond, so he just goes for the default "You've gotten through tough situations before. Work through it one step at a time." Like the response is lame af lol I think he was in shock; he was scared (and just so I can say it one more time: he's super lame).

Anyway, this is way longer than I intended and I've said things a billion people have already stated. But uhhh tldr the whole point of Curly's character is he's passive; he never acts. He just watches. Making him an active participant in the abuse by taking actions to cover for Jimmy (like preventing Anya from filing an HR report) defeats the purpose of his character. He's a bystander.

[farads]

Au concept:

Viggo is a telepath (maybe develops telepathy later on in life so he can develop a love for the game beforehand?) and gets quite bored of playing games when he knows what someone's going to do next

Then enter hiccup who's actions are impossible to glean because they're all in dragonese

He would be so intrigued I think

Unfortunately I don't have time or spoons to write this :(

[actiwitch]

i think a lot of people mistake vegans for believing themselves to be "morally superior" rather than the actual, and very reasonable stance that IF YOU HAVE THE OPTION NOT TO KILL OTHER LIVING BEINGS, YOU SHOULDN'T DO IT.

most of us can understand that it's stupid to wield "oh so you think you're morally superior" against any type of human or environmental rights activists because how do you even respond to that? sure? Because its NOT ABOUT MORAL SUPERIORITY. IT'S ABOUT NOT UNNECESARILY CAUSING HARM.

Also, an activist could be the most annoying, self righteous person on the entire planet, but their stances having NOTHING to do with that. An asshole saying "trans rights" doesn't mean you shouldn't support trans rights because an asshole said it.

PLEASE start looking at veganism like you look at any other form of activism and resistance, and consider what disinformation and propaganda you've been fed about it.

[therantingsage]

This is riddled with spoilers so it's under the cut, but here's my theory:

Doll was never in as much danger as she thought she was.

Doll is down in the labs because she wants to cure herself of the Solver. But I don't think she actually even needed to. I think her solver wasn't a threat to her at all (or at least in the way she thinks it is).

The only two Solver users alive to use for reference here are Nori and Yeva, but if you see that list it says that Yeva had a version of the Patch installed. Reasonably speaking, we can assume that she was patched before the core collapse, because if this happened after, why would Nori still be down there looking for it? They would've known where it is cuz Yeva used it.

But:

Yeva still uses her Solver right before the collapse. I think most people are under the assumption that the Patch completely removes the Solver from the host drone, but this doesn't seem to be the case based on this? While I think it's possible the Patch that gets thrown around by Nori in the flashback is a more recent version than the one Yeva has installed, I'd like to propose an alternative idea.

What if the Patch doesn't remove the abilities associated with the Solver at all? What if it just removes the ability for it to possess you?

You'd likely still overheat and need oil to soothe it, as we see with Doll, but Doll never gets possessed by this need on screen like Uzi does. Uzi's murders are all done under direct influence of the Solver, while Doll is very much in control of herself every single time she kills someone.

Yeva passed down a patched version of the Solver to her daughter, but Nori didn't.

But I don't think Doll knows this. I think Doll just assumed she was better at managing this than Uzi was. That needing to drink oil at all was the curse given to them, and needed to be fixed based on that. And then she sees (since she was there at camp) how Uzi lost control and figured that could probably happen to her too.

So she goes down into the labs, trying to find the cure because she fears that same loss of control, and what does she get told by the one who'd be doing the possessing?

Doll can't get possessed. The Solver has no use for a vessel it cannot control. Therefore, all Doll is is someone who could cause problems if she helps cure the others.

Doll had all the benefits and only some of the drawbacks, thought that was because she was just really good with her powers, and then got killed for not having enough information to do proper risk assessment. The moment she decided to go down there she was on the chopping block.

[overclock-00]

i spend way too much time looking at chaos and nyx's design and i enjoy finding all of the little similarities that symbolize their relationship as parent & child.

maximizing their joint slay by wearing matching earrings and gems on their foreheads.

the purple wispy things floating around nyx as well as the circular parts of the gold collar she wears resemble whatever body horror chaos has going on. and this one might be a reach but it looks like ??? chaos is wearing rings on their left hand just like nyx is.

this one wasn't as obvious to me but chaos' first design has black bat wings sprouting from their head while nyx has them on her shoulders.

the wings change drastically with their second design but one thing that remains similar is that one of their wings reflects the void. or maybe its just made of void ???

they both have little faces on their clothes! these little faces were prevalent in chaos' first design as well but they're smaller in their 2nd design and the ones on the buttons match nyx's really well.

the gemstones on their chest (also retained from chaos' first design) is the most obvious similarity here but also the gold collar thingy that chaos now wears to match nyx. and not to mention the makeup!!

[gemglyph]

I’ll give you all some advice, but first let’s take a walk together through some of my life.

I have some family that was killed in the Holocaust. I did not learn this until recently, but in retrospect I probably should have known.

What I had learned (when I was “old enough” and it was therefore deemed okay to talk about) was that my ashkenazi family narrowly avoided being slaughtered in the Holocaust by escaping to the US before the US closed its borders to jewish refugees.

I have always known since I was little that some of my family are jews from Sicily. They avoided pogroms (jew hunts) by hiding that they’re jewish. This part of my family immigrated (probably actually fled) to the US prior to WWII (or WWI, my family bickers about this. We don’t have records, I guess).

In both instances, they have to hide who they are to protect themselves.

Life happens, jews persist, I’m born.

Elementary school, I’m told by my family I can’t talk about my home life at school. I’m singled out by my peers and bullied for being different. I move states. Go to an entirely different elementary school. I’m singled out and bullied for being different. Jewish. Kids know this word, I know this word, it’s the 2000s, people use jew as a slur. You know that they mean it that way. Because they say it like it’s wrong.

Middle school, I only fit in with the “weird kids”. I have maybe 5 friends.

One of my friends mom is obsessed with taking me to church if I were to attend a sleepover. When I stop spending time over there because she made me uncomfortable, two of my friends confess they’re only around me because they’re trying to convert me to catholicism.

I have 3 friends.

One of my friends say they can’t be around me because it gets them bullied for associating with a jew.

I have 2 friends.

One of my friends moves away.

I have 1 friend.

It takes me being in high school for two years before I actually make any new friends. Some online, some in person. I find a couple more people I connect with and call my friends. I don’t fit in with the rest of my classmates. I’m aggressively bullied by two different groups of classmates. Jew is still used as a slur. People yell “Heil Hitler” at me in the hallway. I can’t count the amount of times I’ve actually seen the Nazi salute in person.

Because “I look jewish enough, people can just tell. It’s a joke”.

Is it? Is it a joke?

2016. I just graduated highschool and I’m in my first week of my first semester of community college. I’m stalked to my car after night class and basically pinned between my car and a big truck. He grabbed my hair and hit my head against my car. This extremely tall man tells me he should beat me to death right now because I’m a disgusting jew. I believe he will.

I’m saved by a stranger who pulls up and makes the man uncomfortable enough that he leaves. In the large truck that had been parked next to me.

I had nothing on me that is “visibly jewish”. He followed me because I look jewish enough to torment. Because I am.

I hate myself for months because I froze. I start paranoia carrying concealed knives and pray I don’t have to use them. I obsess over learning self defense. I’m disabled and not sure I’d actually be able to protect myself. I learn anyway.

2017. I drop out of community college for a few different reasons. I’m stalked on social media. I delete a lot of my accounts.

I find a job. I’m harassed every shift for six months by a supervisor who said he was happy his family was Nazis in Germany. Among many, many other things. Such as gas chamber “jokes”. My manager tells me it was a joke and to not take it too seriously.

I was working at Starbucks.

2018. I’m told that my grandma dying is a good thing because there’s “one less jew in this world”. My grandma was buried in a grave at a local christian church that she attended most her life because that was the only community she had. We never said anything to anyone (it wasn’t safe). This was supposed to be a family friend. This is my grandma’s funeral.

Later I find out that someone stole the things we left at her grave.

2020. I’m working as a pharmacy technician. My coworkers find out I’m jewish and tell me “not to wear anything that could show that because the area isn’t safe” for me. Because I’m jewish.

I stay at this job for a year before returning to school.

2021. I don’t tell anyone, people guess because I “look jewish” and ask me based on appearance. I have found a more accepting community, but I don’t share much. I’ve learned better.

2022. I make it to University. I don’t talk much to classmates, but I make friends.

2023. I talk about religion with a friend at school, they find out I’m jewish. Some people start avoiding me after October. I have said nothing other than mentioning I’m jewish.

2024. I am told, to my face, by a college student, that jews control the United States government, the media, and Hollywood. Citing a major conspiracy theorist. When prompted to consider his sources, he tells me I’m only saying that because I’m jewish.

This list is not exhaustive, but it is exhausting. I’ve faced this shit my entire life and I’m not alone. My story isn’t unique.

It’s nearing the end of 2024. There has been a huge rise in antisemitism/bigotry over the past year. People are doing the same things they have always done. Tormenting jewish people, calling us slurs, telling us to kill ourselves. The list goes on.

The Nazis came for the jews first. Our neighbors turned on us. Other marginalized people we hoped we could rely on threw us out hoping to save themselves. Only for the Nazis to come for them.

First they came for us jews.

They will come for you.

Do something about it.

[lorelune]

i've said this before and i'll say it again, the left fucked themselves over when they started using sociological frameworks and theory but not IRL discoursing (literal use of the word) with other folks about how to APPLY those frameworks. discussion is so central to the understand of sociology and how to apply larger concepts on the real world. it ALSO teaches folks the vital skill of being able to discourse in a way that doesn't like... focus on the individual and instead is ABOUT the discussion and the topics itself.

[braxix]

Elrond: I think I might have just killed Gil-Galad...

Galadriel: What? Oh, good for you I guess.

Elrond: You're not mad?

Galadriel: Gil-Galad is fine, Elrond. This is the tenth time you've almost killed him.

Elrond: Um... It is?

[moonmoonthecrabking]

it's so funny that nerdy prudes must die (the song) has so much michie shipping content when. ghost!max literally fucking kills richie. i think. we have a problem.

[fanaroff]

If we can no longer afford cost of living while having a full time job, then we will have nothing to loose. In any case, we are going to end up in the streets: homeless or protesting.