The rockefeller university

Event Details

Type

Friday Lecture Series

Speaker(s)

Daniel Mucida, Ph.D., assistant professor and head, Laboratory of Mucosal Immunology, The Rockefeller University

Speaker bio(s)

The intestinal tissue is continuously exposed to large amounts of microbe- and food-derived molecules that can stimulate immune responses (antigens). In order to contend with both harmless and potentially pathogenic stimulation, efficient protective responses against invading pathogens must be coupled with tolerance. This includes peripheral tolerance, i.e., a cell-intrinsic or -extrinsic process that prevents pathological immune reaction against non-self antigens, and disease tolerance, i.e., prevention or control of inflammation- or pathogen-induced damage. Several cellular and molecular mechanisms exist to ensure robust tolerance induction in the mucosae, and disruption of such processes often leads to severe chronic inflammatory pathologies, including colitis, asthma, and food allergies. Dr. Mucida's laboratory focuses on the characterization of tolerance and resistance pathways that operate in the intestinal tissue and the consequences when these pathways are compromised. They hypothesize that distinct cues within niches of the intestinal tissue dictate the pro- versus anti-inflammatory function of immune cells. Although the role of environmental cues in the adaptation of immune cells to specific tissue conditions has been increasingly appreciated, the nature of these signals and the mechanisms by which they influence immune cells are still unclear. Dr. Mucida's efforts are dedicated to understanding how gut-specific environmental cues influence the development, localization, and intra-tissue specialization of immune cells involved in resistance and tolerance mechanisms.

 

Dr. Mucida received his Ph.D. in 2005 from the University of São Paulo and New York University. After completing his postdoctoral research at La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology, he joined Rockefeller’s faculty in 2010. Dr. Mucida is the recipient of several honors, including an Irma T. Hirshl/Monique Weill-Caulier Trust Research Award in 2012 and a Breakthrough Award for IBD Research from the Kenneth Rainin Foundation, a Senior Research Award from the Crohn’s and Colitis Foundation of America, and a Burroughs Wellcome Fund-PATH Investigator Award, all in 2015.

Open to

Public

Host

Brian Chait, Ph.D.

Reception

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

Contact

Linda Hanssler

Phone

(212) 327-7714

Sponsor

Linda Hanssler
(212) 327-7714
lhanssler@rockefeller.edu

Readings

http://librarynews.rockefeller.edu/?p=4058.