The rockefeller university

Event Details

Type

Friday Lecture Series

Speaker(s)

Dan R. Littman, M.D., Ph.D., Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Professor of Molecular Immunology; professor of pathology and microbiology, program in molecular pathogenesis, Skirball Institute of Biomolecular Medicine, New York University Medical Center; investigator, Howard Hughes Medical Institute

Speaker bio(s)

The vertebrate intestinal tract is colonized by hundreds of species of bacteria that outnumber the total cells in the host, yet must be compartmentalized and tolerated to prevent invasive growth and harmful inflammatory responses. Signaling initiated by commensal bacteria contributes to compartmentalization, preventing mononuclear phagocyte-mediated transport of the noninvasive bacteria to sites where adaptive immune responses can be induced, e.g. the mesenteric lymph nodes. Nevertheless, T cell responses against noninvasive commensals can occur, as exemplified by responses elicited by the segmented filamentous bacteria. These bacteria adhere to the epithelium in the terminal ileum of mice and induce differentiation of Th17 cells that contribute to autoimmune disease in susceptible mice. How T cells elicited by commensal bacteria can influence autoimmunity is a central question that remains unsolved. Dr. Littman's lab is studying the antigenic specificity of effector T cells and the mechanisms by which their functions are acquired upon interaction with distinct commensal species. These studies in mice are relevant for human autoimmune diseases, many of which have Th17 cell involvement. The implications of how individual constituents of the microbiota contribute to the effector/memory T cell repertoire and to organ-specific autoimmune disease will be discussed.

 

Dr. Littman completed the M.D./Ph.D. program at Washington University in St. Louis and was a postdoctoral fellow in Richard Axel’s laboratory at Columbia University. He was professor of microbiology and immunology at the University of California, San Francisco, before joining New York University in 1995, at which time he also became a Howard Hughes Medical Institute investigator. Dr. Littman is an elected member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences, the Institute of Medicine and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. He is the recipient of the New York Mayor’s Award for Excellence in Science and Technology, the AAI-Invitrogen Meritorious Career Award and the inaugural Ross Prize in Molecular Medicine.

Open to

Public

Reception

Refreshments, 3:15 p.m. - 3:45 p.m., Abby Lounge

Contact

Alena Powell

Phone

(212) 327-7745

Sponsor

Alena Powell
(212) 327-7745
apowell@rockefeller.edu

Readings

http://librarynews.rockefeller.edu/?p=3277