Grant: CIHR New Investigator

The immune system is composed of specialized cell types, each of which plays a unique role in combating disease. One of these cell subsets, T cells, develops in the thymus and plays an important function in recognizing, and eliminating, abnormal cells such as those infected with a pathogen or derived from a tumor. T cells "learn" to recognize these abnormal cells and to ignore normal cells as they develop in the thymus. Defects in this process can lead to devastating autoimmune diseases, such as diabetes and multiple sclerosis, or life-threatening immunodeficiency syndromes causing extreme vulnerability to infection. The ability to combat such disorders is limited by the significant gaps in our understanding of basic T cell biology. To address these deficits, we will determine how T cells interact within the thymus and identify factors that control their development and disease fighting activities. Successful completion of these projects will have an immediate impact on our understanding of how a functional immune system is established. In the longer term, we expect this research to guide the development of improved therapeutics for a number of immunological diseases.