“Exploring plasmacytoid dendritic cell biology in autoreactive inflammation and beyond”

Online via Microsoft Teams

Host: Dr Henry McSorley 

Abstract 

We have a major focus on immunobiology of plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs), the dendritic cell subset known for its ability to produce large amounts of type I interferons (IFNs) in response to activation of endosomal toll-like receptors. On one hand, we are interested in exploring the pathogenic role of pDCs in different clinical contexts of autoreactive inflammation. For example, our group has previously shown crucial role of pDC-derived type I IFNs in discrete contexts like autoimmune disorders (viz. systemic lupus and psoriasis) and metabolic disorders (obesity associate adipose tissue inflammation). Recently, we have also been exploring pathogenic role of pDCs inneurodegenerative inflammatory contexts. Thus, we are aiming to expand our understanding about the pDC-driven pathogenic continuum across discrete clinical contexts of autoreactive inflammation. On the other hand, our laboratory is engaged in exploring the cell biology of human pDCs with an aim to discover novel regulatory pathways and potential therapeutic targets. Our interest in the cell biology of human pDCs has also recently been veered to exploring the role of Piezo1 mechanosensors inregulation of cellular functions in pDCs as well as other human immune cells. The present talk plans to inform the audience about how our laboratory has contributed to the aforementioned areas and how does the future trajectory of our research look like.