Go Back
  • For Business
  • |
  • Warnings
  • Data Suite
  • Newsletters
  • Advertising
  • Superior Accuracy™
Tropical activity brewing near US Atlantic and Gulf Coasts. Get details Chevron right
Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast. Click here Chevron right

Columbus, OH

84°F
Location Chevron down
Location News Videos
Use Current Location
Recent

Columbus

Ohio

84°
No results found.
Try searching for a city, zip code or point of interest.
settings
Columbus, OH Weather
Today WinterCast Local {stormName} Tracker Hourly Daily Radar MinuteCast Monthly Air Quality Health & Activities

Around the Globe

Hurricane Tracker

Severe Weather

Radar & Maps

News

News & Features

Astronomy

Business

Climate

Health

Recreation

Sports

Travel

For Business

Warnings

Data Suite

Newsletters

Advertising

Superior Accuracy™

Video

Winter Center

AccuWeather Early Hurricane Center Top Stories Trending Today Astronomy Heat Climate Health Recreation In Memoriam Case Studies Blogs & Webinars

News / Health

'Inverse' vaccines may hold key to challenge autoimmune diseases

Reverse or inverse vaccines work by targeting only the specific part of the immune system that's behind diseases such as lupus, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and Type 1 diabetes, experts say.

By Brian P. Dunleavy, UPI

Published Jun 30, 2025 11:35 AM EDT | Updated Jun 30, 2025 11:49 AM EDT

Copied

Partner Content

UPI

Reverse or inverse vaccines work differently from conventional immunizations like the flu shot and currently available immunosuppressant treatments for autoimmune conditions. (Photo credit: RF_Studio/Pexels)

NEW YORK, June 30 (UPI) -- For the millions of Americans battling autoimmune disorders, new hope may be on the horizon in the form of reverse or inverse vaccines -- injections that target a specific part of the immune system, experts told UPI.

However, these injections work differently from conventional immunizations like the flu shot and currently available immunosuppressant treatments for autoimmune conditions.

They work by targeting only the specific part of the immune system that's behind diseases such as lupus, multiple sclerosis, psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis and Type 1 diabetes, the experts say.

"Inverse vaccines are being developed to treat undesired immune responses, [and] for these situations, the body is reacting to something that is not dangerous," said Lonnie Shea, a researcher in biomedical engineering at the University of Michigan who has studied inverse vaccines and worked on some of the key technology behind them.

"A vaccine activates an immune response to a specific antigen," Shea told UPI via email. Inverse vaccines are being developed to treat undesired immune responses, [and] for these situations, the body is reacting to something that is not dangerous.

Essentially, an inverse vaccine "aims to decrease the response to a specific antigen, like insulin in Type 1 diabetes," he added.

First line of defense

When healthy, the immune system is the body's first line of defense against diseases such as cancer and infections caused by viruses and bacteria, according to the National Institutes of Health.

However, if the immune system isn't working properly, it can erroneously attack healthy cells, tissues and organs, causing autoimmune diseases that can affect any part of the body, weakening function and potentially leading to death, the NIH says.

More than 80 autoimmune diseases are known, some of which are caused by exposure to environmental toxins and have no discovered cure. At least 15 million people in the United States, or about 5% of the population, have an autoimmune disease, the agency reports.

Although no cure exists for these conditions, symptoms can be managed with drugs called immunosuppressants, which as the name suggests "broadly reduces your immune system response," Shea said.

These drugs, which are typically administered via monthly injections, can have significant side effects, including making those taking them more susceptible to infections, according to the NIH.

Many people taking them also have to be careful taking traditional vaccines, such as flu shot or COVID-19 shots because of their impact on the immune system.

Training the immune system

Developed by researchers at the University of Chicago and elsewhere, inverse vaccines use synthetic nanoparticles attached to specific disease-related proteins, or antigens, to train certain parts of the immune system to behave differently, limiting the attacks that cause autoimmune diseases, neurologist Dr. Lawrence Steinman said.

With the inverse vaccines currently being studied, the nanoparticles are designed to mimic human cell death, which is a normal process in the human body, according to the 2021 study that first documented their effectiveness in people with celiac disease, another autoimmune disorder.

Dying cells are considered foreign bodies, but the human immune system knows not to attack them.

As a result, with the nanoparticles in inverse vaccines, the immune system can be trained not to attack them, or the proteins attached to them, which effectively short-circuits the process behind autoimmune diseases, Steinman said.

"Instead of immunizing the recipient to a viral infection, the inverse vaccine tolerizes the immune system, so it will not attack our own tissues," Steinman, who has written about inverse vaccines, told UPI in an email.

Several companies are running clinical trials of inverse vaccines, including Cour Pharma, which recently completed successful phase 2 clinical trials for their use in celiac disease and another autoimmune disease, primary biliary cholangitis, according to Shea at the University of Michigan, one of the researchers who started the company.

Additional trials -- phase 2 studies are the second stage in the drug research and development process -- are starting for myasthenia gravis and Type 1 diabetes, he added.

Although more research is needed before the shots become available, a process that could take five years or more, inverse vaccines offer key advantages, Shea said.

For example, unlike immunosuppressants with their monthly dosing, the effects of inverse vaccines appear to last longer, perhaps for as much as a year, similar to conventional vaccines, research suggests.

They may also work for people with severe, life-threatening allergies, such as peanut allergies, according to Shea, who has published a study in this area using mice.

However, there's also the "risk that instead of tolerizing the human immune system to the target, the process induces conventional immunization, which would make autoimmune conditions like Type 1 diabetes and multiple sclerosis worse," Steinman said.

However, "We have come close to success in some early-stage trials," he said "Thus far, none of the results are sufficiently robust for submission in the FDA approval process."

Read more:

‘Nimbus’ COVID-19 variant arrives in U.S. after China surge
Highly microplastic-polluted US coastal waters linked to serious health risks, study finds
Foodborne illnesses increase during the summer
Report a Typo

Weather News

video

Huge dust storm shrouds Las Vegas

Jul. 2, 2025
video

Fallen trees during storm kill Delaware driver

Jul. 2, 2025
video

Towering waterspout hovers near Ohio’s lakeshore

Jul. 2, 2025
Show more Show less Chevron down

Topics

AccuWeather Early

Hurricane Center

Top Stories

Trending Today

Astronomy

Heat

Climate

Health

Recreation

In Memoriam

Case Studies

Blogs & Webinars

Top Stories

Weather Forecasts

Storms to spark on July 4th in parts of the Plains and Southeast

5 hours ago

Weather News

9-year-old dies in hot car outside mother's Texas workplace

10 hours ago

Weather News

Tropical trouble could stir near Southeast beaches around 4th of July

45 minutes ago

Weather News

Alabama teen in ICU after lightning strike hits boat, causing burns an...

9 hours ago

Weather News

Storm chaser stages whirlwind proposal with real tornado

1 day ago

More Stories

Featured Stories

Weather News

‘Shark Whisperer’ swims its way into our shark obsession

3 hours ago

Travel

Fourth of July gas hasn’t been this cheap since 2021

1 day ago

Weather News

What makes fireworks burst with vibrant colors?

6 days ago

Health

'Inverse' vaccines may hold key to challenge autoimmune diseases

2 days ago

Weather News

World’s most liveable city for 2025 revealed

1 week ago

AccuWeather Health 'Inverse' vaccines may hold key to challenge autoimmune diseases
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
Company
Proven Superior Accuracy About AccuWeather Digital Advertising Careers Press Contact Us
Products & Services
For Business For Partners For Advertising AccuWeather APIs AccuWeather Connect RealFeel® and RealFeel Shade™ Personal Weather Stations
Apps & Downloads
iPhone App Android App See all Apps & Downloads
Subscription Services
AccuWeather Premium AccuWeather Professional
More
AccuWeather Ready Business Health Hurricane Leisure and Recreation Severe Weather Space and Astronomy Sports Travel Weather News Winter Center
© 2025 AccuWeather, Inc. "AccuWeather" and sun design are registered trademarks of AccuWeather, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Cookie Policy | About Your Privacy Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information

...

...

...