Targeting the Hyperactive Immune System

Many of the severe cases of COVID-19 result from the excessive reaction of the patients’ immune system, causing "cytokine storms" to wreak havoc in their bodies and lead to multiple organ failures. The world races to find new drugs and vaccines to eradicate the virus, but this may take considerable amount of time. There is an existing subset of drugs (biologics) used to temper inflammatory reactions caused by immune system overdrive. Many of these are undergoing trials related to cytokine storms. How were these drugs discovered, and how can their impact be even greater today? The three laureates of the 2020 Tang Prize will talk about interluekin-1, interleukin-6, and TNF, the three most critical cytokines not only in cytokine storms, but also in autoimmune and autoinflammatory diseases that affect the lives of a large number of  people.

For more information, please link to:
https://www.tang-prize.org/en/week.php?cat=94