Web cookies (also called HTTP cookies, browser cookies, or simply cookies) are small pieces of data that websites store on your device (computer, phone, etc.) through your web browser. They are used to remember information about you and your interactions with the site.
Purpose of Cookies:
Session Management:
Keeping you logged in
Remembering items in a shopping cart
Saving language or theme preferences
Personalization:
Tailoring content or ads based on your previous activity
Tracking & Analytics:
Monitoring browsing behavior for analytics or marketing purposes
Types of Cookies:
Session Cookies:
Temporary; deleted when you close your browser
Used for things like keeping you logged in during a single session
Persistent Cookies:
Stored on your device until they expire or are manually deleted
Used for remembering login credentials, settings, etc.
First-Party Cookies:
Set by the website you're visiting directly
Third-Party Cookies:
Set by other domains (usually advertisers) embedded in the website
Commonly used for tracking across multiple sites
Authentication cookies are a special type of web cookie used to identify and verify a user after they log in to a website or web application.
What They Do:
Once you log in to a site, the server creates an authentication cookie and sends it to your browser. This cookie:
Proves to the website that you're logged in
Prevents you from having to log in again on every page you visit
Can persist across sessions if you select "Remember me"
What's Inside an Authentication Cookie?
Typically, it contains:
A unique session ID (not your actual password)
Optional metadata (e.g., expiration time, security flags)
Analytics cookies are cookies used to collect data about how visitors interact with a website. Their primary purpose is to help website owners understand and improve user experience by analyzing things like:
How users navigate the site
Which pages are most/least visited
How long users stay on each page
What device, browser, or location the user is from
What They Track:
Some examples of data analytics cookies may collect:
Page views and time spent on pages
Click paths (how users move from page to page)
Bounce rate (users who leave without interacting)
User demographics (location, language, device)
Referring websites (how users arrived at the site)
Here’s how you can disable cookies in common browsers:
1. Google Chrome
Open Chrome and click the three vertical dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies and other site data.
Choose your preferred option:
Block all cookies (not recommended, can break most websites).
Block third-party cookies (can block ads and tracking cookies).
2. Mozilla Firefox
Open Firefox and click the three horizontal lines in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy & Security.
Under the Enhanced Tracking Protection section, choose Strict to block most cookies or Custom to manually choose which cookies to block.
3. Safari
Open Safari and click Safari in the top-left corner of the screen.
Go to Preferences > Privacy.
Check Block all cookies to stop all cookies, or select options to block third-party cookies.
4. Microsoft Edge
Open Edge and click the three horizontal dots in the top-right corner.
Go to Settings > Privacy, search, and services > Cookies and site permissions.
Select your cookie settings from there, including blocking all cookies or blocking third-party cookies.
5. On Mobile (iOS/Android)
For Safari on iOS: Go to Settings > Safari > Privacy & Security > Block All Cookies.
For Chrome on Android: Open the app, tap the three dots, go to Settings > Privacy and security > Cookies.
Be Aware:
Disabling cookies can make your online experience more difficult. Some websites may not load properly, or you may be logged out frequently. Also, certain features may not work as expected.
Our work demonstrating the role of IL-33 signaling and IL-4 during food allergy was just published in the journal Allergy. Citation: Mast cell responses in a mouse model of food allergy are regulated via a ST2/IL-4 axis; https://doi.org/10.1111/all.16257
Check out our most recent paper assessing the effects of IL-10 neutralization on mast cell responses during food allergy. Citation: IL-10 Neutralization Attenuates Mast Cell Responses in a Murine Model of Experimental Food Allergy; Immunohorizons (2024) 8 (6): 431–441. https://doi.org/10.4049/immunohorizons.2400002
Saurav Ranjitkar, Nicole Maldonado Perez and Caitlin Tedeschi presented their research at the AAI meeting in Chicago.
The lab's most recent paper investigating the role of IL-10 in IL-33-mediated mast cell activation was published in the Journal of Immunology. Citation: Ranjitkar et. al., IL-10 Differentially Promotes Mast Cell Responsiveness to IL-33, Resulting in Enhancement of Type 2 Inflammation and Suppression of Neutrophilia; https://doi.org/10.4049/jimmunol.2300884
Congratulations to Dr. Mathias and Nicole for receiving NIH supplemental funding in support of Nicole's graduate research.
Congratulations to Saurav Ranjitkar for receiving the AAI Trainee Poster Award (2024) from the American Association of Immunologists.
Congratulations to Dr. Mathias for receiving a grant from the CAHNR 2024 Equipment Grant Competition.
Saurav Ranjitkar, Nathan Jordan, and Olena Yatsechko presented their work at the Nutrition and Metabolism retreat at UConn Health.
Dr. Mathias presented the lab's research at the Nutrition and Metabolism retreat at UConn Health.
2023
Congratulations to Dr. Mathias for receiving a grant from the USDA to investigate the effects of plant polyphenols on protein disulfide isomerases in mast cells.
Welcome Saurav Ranjitkar, post-doctoral fellow, to the Mathias lab.
Dr. Mathias received a pilot grant from the Department of Nutritional Sciences to study transcriptional mechanisms by which IL-10 modulates mast cell activation during food allergy.
Welcome graduate students, Caitlin Tedeschi, Nicole Maldonado Perez, and Nathan Jordan to the Mathias lab.
Congratulations to Dr. Mathias (Co-PI ) and Dr. Blesso (PI) for receiving a grant from the American Egg Board to investigate effects of egg yolk sphingomyelin in the modulation of the gut-liver axis.
Dr. Mathias gave a seminar in the Department of Pathobiology at UConn
Congratulations to Dr. Mathias for receiving an NIH grant (RO1) aimed at examining the differential effects of IL-10 on mast cell-mediated allergic responses.
2022
Dr. Mathias gave a seminar in the Genomic and Mechanistic Metabolism series at UConn.
Welcome to undergraduate students, Olena Yatsechko, Krupal Patel, and Anjeli Joseph.
Dr. Mathias gave a seminar in the ImmunoCardio Metabolism series at UConn.
Dr. Mathias started at his lab in the Department of Nutritional Sciences at the University of Connecticut.
