T cells are the critical effector cells of the adaptive immune response. To acquire effector functions, however, naive T cells undergo a complex differentiation process to become the mature cells capable of effecting host defense against microbial pathogens. Different pathogens require different types of effector cells that can have markedly different capabilities. The most widely disparate mature helper T cell populations, termed Th1 and Th2 cells, secrete distinct patterns of cytokines that orchestrate distinct types of immune responses. The laboratory melds molecular, cellular and animal studies to investigate the requisite signals that direct the differentiation of naive CD4+ T cells to their mature states.
The current laboratory interests focus primarily on the development of Th2 cells, an effector cell type that has been implicated in allergic diseases. Using a variety of genetically modified cells and mice, Th2 differentiation is studied in vitro and in vivo, using both infectious and allergic models. Major interests include understanding the primary regulation of IL-4 gene transcription that occurs after stimulation of the T cell antigen receptor and localizing genetic differences between inbred mouse strains that underlie disease susceptibility mediated by inappropriate Th subset differentiation.
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