New compound can reduce overactivation without impairing the body's immunity response When the body detects a pathogen, such as bacteria or viruses, it mounts an immune system response to fight this invader. In some people, the immune system overreacts, resulting in an overactive immune response that causes the body to injure itself, which may prove fatal in some cases. Now, scientists from Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (NTU Singapore) have created a compound that could help to reduce this overactivation without impairing the body's entire immune response. An overactive immune system leads to many autoimmune disorders - when the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy tissues - such as rheumatoid arthritis and type 1 diabetes. More recently, it has also been linked to severe COVID-19 infections, in which immune-system signalling proteins ramp up to dangerous levels, leading to damage to the body's own cells.