Based on a new NOA recieved this month, we are looking for a postdoctoral fellow with solid foundation of molecular skills, creativity, and translational passion to help us develop innovative CARs for targeting discrete subsets of T cells. DM or email me if interested
Rachel Rutishauser
@rrutishauser.bsky.social
Physician-scientist, immunologist. Associate Professor, UCSF Division of Experimental Medicine. Investigator, DARE HIV cure collaboratory. CD8 T cells, HIV, immune development. Posts mine. https://experimentalmedicine.ucsf.edu/laboratories/rutishauser-lab
A decade ago we showed that T-dependent IgM+ memory B cells (MBCs) that express CD80 and CD73 rapidly respond to a secondary Plasmodium infection (Krishnamurty, Immunity, 2016). Since then, post-doc Gretchen Harms Pritchard has been working out the cues that lead to the formation of these cells. ⤵️
Harms Pritchard, @marionpepper.bsky.social et al. dissect key CD4⁺ T cell/B cell interactions to define signals that govern the development of memory B cell populations. rupress.org/jem/article/... #InfectiousDisease #HostDefense #LymphocyteBiology #BCells
@biorxivpreprint.bsky.social Immune activation during broadly neutralizing antibody-mediated HIV suppression prior to post-intervention control @rrutishauser.bsky.social @ucsfhealth.bsky.social www.biorxiv.org/content/10.6...
Presented in part at #CROI2026 by Julia Wagner: www.croiwebcasts.org/console/play... #HIV #bNAbs
Immune activation during broadly neutralizing antibody-mediated HIV suppression prior to post-intervention control https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.29.728863v1
Immune activation during broadly neutralizing antibody-mediated HIV suppression prior to post-intervention control https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.05.29.728863v1
After a single infusion of immune cells engineered to recognize HIV, two people in a new study have suppressed the virus to undetectable levels, one of them for nearly two years. www.nytimes.com/2026/05/11/h...
A Single Infusion Could Suppress H.I.V. for Years, Study Suggests
nytimes.com
Encouraging news, although it's always preferable for media coverage to happen *after* a presentation and not a day before: pag.virtual-meeting.org/US/asgct2026... Two people experienced an unusual degree of extended #HIV viral load control after ART interruption, but other participants didn't.
A Single Infusion Could Suppress HIV for Years, Study Suggests. A study of a few patients, to be presented this week, showed promise for a type of gene therapy that has already cured some blood cancers, by @apoorvanyt.bsky.social www.nytimes.com/2026/05/11/h... via @nytimes.com
Happy to announce publication of our first therapeutic mRNA-LNP paper! In vivo reprogramming of cytotoxic effector CD8 T cells via fractalkine-conjugated mRNA-LNPs | Science Immunology www.science.org/doi/10.1126/...
In vivo reprogramming of cytotoxic effector CD8 T cells via fractalkine-conjugated mRNA-LNPs
Fractalkine-conjugated mRNA-LNPs effectively target cytotoxic effector CD8 T cells for transient in vivo reprogramming.
science.org
My lab has been studying human genes that control infection HIV infection of CD4+ T cells for over a decade. Today we report a major milestone in Cell: www.cell.com/cell/fulltex...
This link will take you to a page that’s not on LinkedIn
lnkd.in
16,000 people living with HIV are expected to lose coverage from the AIDS Drugs Assistance Program due to Florida's funding cuts. Read Kamaria Laffrey's pre-obituary as a long-term survivor in Florida. "Kamaria Laffrey writes an indictment of a system that’s failing people living with HIV."
A ‘pre-obituary’ as protest by a long-term survivor in Florida
positivelyaware.com
“Tens of thousands of Americans are losing access to treatment for H.I.V. as nearly 20 states impose restrictions on assistance programs and several others weigh such changes.” via @nytimes.com
States Move to Limit Access to H.I.V. Treatment
nytimes.com
CD8 cell fitness predicts who benefits most from antibody-based cure strategies
CD8 cell fitness predicts who benefits most from antibody-based cure strategies
Over the last few years a number of studies aiming to cure HIV or at least achieve long-term viral suppression off antiretroviral therapy (ART) have produced tantalising results. These studies have given participants one or both of the long-acting versions of two broadly neutralising antibodies (bnAbs), 3BNC117 (teropavimab) and 10-1074 (zinlirvimab), sometimes in conjunction with immune boosting oral drugs.
aidsmap.com
Study in 80,000 people in Uganda and Kenya shows 70% reduction in risk of HIV infection. The secret? Community health workers offering testing at home, simplified access to PrEP and PEP, follow up with smart phone app that connects people to clinics. Remarkable. www.science.org/content/arti...
Community health project in Kenya and Uganda dramatically cuts new HIV infections
Large-scale study finds that simplifying delivery of prevention medication and improving connections to clinics is key
science.org
New work from our lab, hot off the press in Nature Immunology (@natureportfolio.nature.com)! How do human T cell responses diversify — and how does this lead to durable protection after vaccination? Paper: www.nature.com/articles/s41... Press release: www.fau.eu/2026/02/news... 1/6
Metabolic quiescence of naive-like memory T cells precedes and maintains antigen-specific T cell memory - Nature Immunology
Schober and colleagues show that effector CD8+ T cells undergo metabolic shutdown, CD8+ central memory T cells are the most metabolically active, and naive-like memory T cells are quiescent during the...
nature.com
At #CROI2026 today, Katharine Bar helped advocates decode Sharon Lewin’s Opening Session on #cure, spotlighting emerging approaches like using the #HIV protein Tat to “wake up” latent virus so the immune system can see it & then eliminate it. For explainer videos on cure, visit, hivcurecompass.org.
New study—and exciting collaboration with Wei Wang, Cong Liu (UCSD), and Kay Chung (new lab at UNC)—that provides a platform for designing T cells into specific states. We identified state-selective TFs for CD8 T cell states that enable “recipes” for cell engineering! www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Atlas-guided discovery of transcription factors for T cell programming - Nature
A comprehensive atlas platform integrating transcriptional and epigenetic data enables more precise engineering of T cell states, accelerating the rational design of more effective cellular immunother...
nature.com
I am SO incredibly excited to announce the launch of a global list of Inspiring Black Scientists. You can use this list to nominate and connect with researchers. Please share and join us in highlighting these outstanding scientists for #BlackHistoryMonth and beyond! www.wiley.com/en-us/resear...
Recapitulating the qualities of HIV-specific CD8+ T cells from spontaneous controllers journals.lww.com/co-hivandaid... (open access review) #HIV @rrutishauser.bsky.social
New Insights from Perinatal #HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research academic.oup.com/jid/advance-... (open access) @jidjournal.bsky.social
New Insights from Perinatal HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research
Rajesh T Gandhi, Ronald J Bosch, Ann Chahroudi; New Insights from Perinatal HIV: A Way Forward for HIV Cure Research, The Journal of Infectious Diseases, ,
academic.oup.com
Boosting SIV-specific CD8+ T cell responses prior to ART interruption extends time to SIVmac239 rebound www.jci.org/articles/vie... (open access) @jci.org
JCI - Boosting SIV-specific CD8+ T cell responses prior to ART interruption extends time to SIVmac239 rebound
jci.org
Today in @nature.com, we describe how discarded reads in biobank-scale WGS can help resolve the genetic predictors and consequences of Epstein-Barr Virus (EBV) infection. Wonderful working with @ryandhindsa.bsky.social @sherrynyeo.bsky.social @erinmayc.bsky.social www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Population-scale sequencing resolves determinants of persistent EBV DNA - Nature
Population-scale WGS reveals genetic determinants of persistent EBV DNA, linking immune regulation—especially antigen processing and MHC class II variation—to EBV persistence and heterogeneous di...
nature.com
In this difficult period in the fight against HIV these news are particularly welcome. Together we can end HIV/AIDS pandemic 💪
Brazil makes history! 🇧🇷 WHO has validated Brazil for eliminating mother-to-child transmission of #HIV — making it the most populous country in the Americas to reach this milestone.
Very excited our study is out! 🧵 here: bsky.app/profile/rrut...
A study in Nature identifies immune features associated with control of HIV-1 in individuals who exhibited HIV-1 replication control after receiving combination immunotherapy. go.nature.com/48yxGwP #immunosky #medsky 🧪
A paper in Nature reports the details of a 60-year-old male individual from Germany who achieved sustained HIV remission after a stem cell transplant, the seventh-known case reported to date. go.nature.com/4rNjedx #medsky 🧪
11/ HIV is an extraordinarily challenging pathogen. Demonstrating that the immune system *can* be manipulated to improve control of HIV and identifying a correlate of that control in vivo in people is both important for the field and also gives us something concrete to build on.
7/ @demisandel.bsky.social (1st PhD student in my lab!) made the key observation: early in rebound, before viral loads diverged, participants who went on to control HIV to low levels had a larger expansion of activated, cycling CD8+ T cells in the blood compared to those who did not control rebound.
Essential reading if you care about the health of scientific inquiry in the US www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
The U.S. Is Funding Fewer Grants in Every Area of Science and Medicine
A quiet policy change means the government is making fewer bets on long-term science.
nytimes.com
Thoughtful coverage of our study from various outlets. 🧵 1/ The SF Chonicle: www.sfchronicle.com/health/artic...
‘Is this my last pill ever?’ UCSF therapy offers patients a hint at a cure for HIV
Seven of 10 volunteers kept HIV at bay for months after stopping meds, a rare result scientists call a major step toward a functional cure.
sfchronicle.com
1/ We are making progress towards finding a cure for HIV. In a trial @UCSF led by Steve Deeks and @michaelpelusomd.bsky.social, 7/10 participants who received a combination of immunotherapies achieved partial control of HIV after stopping antiretroviral therapy (ART).🧵 www.nature.com/articles/s41...
Correlates of HIV-1 control after combination immunotherapy - Nature
Nature - Correlates of HIV-1 control after combination immunotherapy
nature.com
“The National AIDS Memorial, through a partnership with the AIDS Quilt Touch team, presents all 50,000 panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt in an interactive experience so people around the world can experience the beauty of the Quilt and witness the love and stories stitched into each panel.”
Interactive AIDS Quilt
The National AIDS Memorial, through a partnership with the AIDS Quilt Touch team, presents all 48,000 panels of the AIDS Memorial Quilt in an interactive experience People around the world can experie...
aidsmemorial.org