The Dual Role of Preexisting Immunity in Influenza: Protective Recall Versus Constraint of Novel Responses
Annette Fox, Ziheng Zhu, Stephany Sánchez‐Ovando · 2026
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Description
Fox, Zhu, and Sánchez-Ovando review influenza's double edged memory. Past infections and vaccines protect fast against familiar viruses, yet memory can crowd out responses when the virus drifts. This tension, once called original antigenic sin, decides how well the season's vaccine works. Their 2026 review weighs cohort, antibody, and vaccine data against mouse and cell fate mapping to sort when recall helps and when it constrains.
Three mechanisms do most of the constraining. Circulating antibodies can mask the spots new cells need to see. A receptor on B cells can brake activation. Battle tested memory cells outcompete naive ones when their aim is dated. Dose, antigen distance, formulation, and T cell help tilt the balance. The authors close with levers: higher doses, adjuvants that wake naive cells, displaying antigens, and strain choice. A universal flu vaccine, they argue, must be designed around memory, not despite it.
Catalog record
| CREATOR | Annette Fox, Ziheng Zhu, Stephany Sánchez‐Ovando |
|---|---|
| YEAR | 2026 |
| COLLECTION | PAPERS |
| FORMAT | TXT |
| FILE SIZE | 24 KB |
| LICENSE | https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0 |
| RIGHTS | CC BY |
| SOURCE | Europe PMC |