Harvard University
Immunology
Immunologists explore how our bodies protect us from infections, diseases, and foreign substances. Through research, Harvard scientists are gaining a deeper understanding, finding better treatments, and implementing stronger preventions for everything from the flu to cancer.
Immunology has a wide impact
Defending the body from bacteria and viruses is only one of the roles of the immune system.
The immune system fights disease
Each year flu season affects millions of Americans. With our immune systems at the center of the fight, protection comes from both past infection and vaccination.
The immune system intersects with other systems
Research in the field of chronic itch have shown the importance and the complexity of the interactions between the immune system and the nervous system.
We know that if you don’t get enough sleep, there’s changes in your immune function. Your immune function is how you fight diseases.”
Elizabeth Klerman
Professor of neurology, Harvard Medical School
Investigating immune overreactions
Researchers identified a protein that can turn the immune system against the body’s own tissues, driving inflammation and tissue damage in a range of autoimmune and chronic inflammatory conditions. In other research, scientists discovered that vagus nerve cells that sense heat, irritation, and tissue damage also help prevent harmful immune overreactions, which could help prevent immune-driven damage in flu and other viral infections.
Unleashing the immune system to fight cancer
Married for 47 years, and scientific collaborators for about as long, Arlene Sharpe and Gordon Freeman have dedicated their careers to unraveling the mysteries of the immune system and fulfilling the long-elusive promise of cancer immunotherapy.
Supercharging cancer treatments
Adapting as cancer adapts
Keeping cancer from coming back
We’re trying to understand the difference between protective and failed immunity to TB.”
Sarah Fortune
Professor of immunology and infectious diseases, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
Antibiotic resistance
Bacteria that cause infections are developing resistance to commonly used antibiotics, creating a growing public health threat. Research is underway to develop effective treatments before bacteria outpace our current drugs.
Bacterial infections
Because bacteria can attach to implants and form infections that are hard to treat, researchers developed biomaterial-based vaccines that train the immune system to recognize and attack these bacteria more effectively.
Molecular differences
Researchers found that small molecular differences on the surface of gut bacteria help the immune system stay balanced and prevent harmful inflammation in the colon, which could have implications for diseases like Crohn’s and colitis.
I want to understand how microbes affect our immunity and help protect us.”
Smita Gopinath
Assistant professor of immunology and infectious diseases, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health
