Autoimmune Life Blog

Community and news about autoimmune diseases, allergies and more.

Blog Main Gretchen Schoenstein Runner Editorial
February 23, 2022

One Pandemic, Three Autoimmune Diseases and 100 Half Marathons

Rain was pouring down on the morning of Gretchen Schoenstein’s 100th half marathon — a day she’d dreamt of but wasn’t sure would ever come. That morning, the event’s producer asked her to share a few words.

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Blog Main Frannie Bars Editorial
February 10, 2022

Research Fuels Change: One Family’s Motivation to Participate

Becky Ronan has seen firsthand how research has impacted life for people with Down syndrome. When her older brother Kevin was born with Down syndrome in 1967, her parents were advised not to bring him home. “Most people with Down syndrome were put in institutions,” Becky says.

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Blog Main Image - 3D Biological Cells White Red
January 17, 2022

Using Your Own Cells to Fight Autoimmune Disease

For nearly 20 years, Dr. Buckner has been working to find a more targeted approach with fewer side effects. And she’s among a handful of scientists pursuing an intriguing idea: Can we use gene editing to change cells that cause disease into cells that protect you from disease?

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Blog Main Image - 3D Tetramer Original
January 12, 2022

The Power of Tetramers: A Tool Developed by Bill Kwok, PhD

Bill Kwok, PhD, has made groundbreaking discoveries and built a tool that’s fueled countless advances. But he makes his work and his path to BRI sound simple: Why study the minute details of the immune system? Well, he’s curious — he was always at the library as a kid.

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Blog Main Image - 3D COVID Syringes
January 11, 2022

Understanding Omicron: Key questions about spread, variants and where we go from here

Just when you thought you were done being an armchair epidemiologist, the Omicron chapter of the COVID-19 pandemic brings more questions. Will the new variants ever end? Are there any new protections, especially for people at higher risk of complications?

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Blog Main Image - People Men Hands Multiple Screens
January 5, 2022

Understanding Down Syndrome and Autoimmunity

You’ve probably heard of Down syndrome. You may even remember that it’s caused by an extra copy of chromosome 21. But fewer people know that almost half of those with Down syndrome have an autoimmune disease. Or that they are at lower risk of solid tumor cancers like breast cancer.

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Blog Main Image - Patient Child IV Hospital Bed
December 30, 2021

Could medicines for inflammatory bowel disease help fight type 1 diabetes?

Among the many mysteries of autoimmune diseases, we know one thing for sure: These diseases are connected. They often occur when immune cells called T cells mistakenly attack healthy tissue — say the pancreas in type 1 diabetes (T1D) or the gut in inflammatory bowel disease (IBD).

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Blog Main Image - 2D Abstract Telemedicine Online Healthcare
December 14, 2021

Inside the Sound Life Project: How BRI is Studying Health to Understand Disease

BRI’s vision is to create a healthy immune system for everyone. But before we can do that, we need to answer a key question: What exactly does a healthy immune system look like?

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Blog Main Image - 2D Antibodies Monoclonal
November 22, 2021

Monoclonal Antibodies and COVID-19: Insight from an Infectious Disease Expert

Monoclonal antibodies have been getting a lot of attention as a treatment for COVID-19. Monoclonal antibody infusion centers for COVID-19 patients are opening at Virginia Mason and across the country. But what exactly are monoclonal antibodies? How do they work and who needs them?

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Blog Main Image - Woman Sick Cold Medicine Couch
November 10, 2021

Why COVID-19 Makes It Harder to Predict This Year’s Flu Season

Before COVID-19, having the sniffles or a mild headache was rarely cause for concern. Now, it’s common practice to stay home at the first sign of a cold. This is one of the reasons that there was very low flu activity during last year's flu season. But will that trend continue this year?

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