Researchers from Rockefeller University and Weill Cornell Medicine have explored how prior viral infections affect the immune system's response to subsequent infections. In a study published in Immunity, researchers found that mice previously infected with SARS-CoV-2 exhibited enhanced protection against influenza A virus due to epigenetic changes in macrophages, which are innate immune cells. These changes allowed the macrophages to mount a stronger defense against unrelated viruses, challenging the traditional view that immune memory is exclusive to adaptive immune cells.
Notably, the memory exhibited by macrophages wasn't virus-specific but rather recognized common patterns shared by many viruses. The study revealed that macrophages in the lungs of mice recovered from COVID-19 developed an epigenetic program that rendered antiviral genes more accessible, thus improving their ability…
