The combined role of innate and adaptive immune responses in resolving influenza disease is yet to be fully investigated in one single study. The present study utilized longitudinal samples from patients hospitalized with acute influenza to understand these immune responses. It reported the dynamics of 18 important immune parameters related to clinical, genetic, and virological factors in influenza patients across different severity levels. 

The study found-

• Association between Influenza disease and increased IL-6/IL-8/MIP-1α/β cytokines and lower antibody responses.
• A link between Potent activation of circulating T follicular helper cells and peak antibody-secreting cells and influenza haemagglutinin-specific memory B-cell numbers, which is phenotypically different from vaccination-induced B-cell responses.
• Rise in influenza-specific CD8+ or CD4+ T cells early in the disease, which maintained an activated phenotype during patient recovery. 

This study describes the characterization of immune cellular networks underlying recovery from influenza infection, which are highly relevant to other infectious diseases.

Nguyen THO, Koutsakos M, van de Sandt CE. et al. Immune cellular networks underlying recovery from influenza virus infection in acute hospitalized patients. Nat Commun. 2021;12. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-23018-x