Innate Immunity and Adjuvants

Researchers: Dr. Mike de Veer and Prof. Els Meeusen

Phone: 9905 5132; 9905 2513
Email: Michael.deveer@med.monash.edu.au; els.meeusen@med.monash.edu.au

The innate immune system detects and responds to many pathogenic invaders as a first line of defense, by stimulating the recruitment of early effector cells such as neutrophils and macrophages to the site of infection or vaccination.. Following detection of pathogens it also mobilises and instructs the "flexible" adaptive immune system to respond in a more specific manner. The multifunctional aspect of the innate immune system has major implications for infectious as well as inflammatory diseases .  It also has wide reaching implications for the design of vaccine adjuvants that work by activating the innate immune system to varying degrees. We currently use both sheep and mouse models to investigate how the innate immune system modulates:

• allergic stimuli (house dust mite and peanuts)
• bacterial infection and
• vaccine-induced immunity

Using a unique model of afferent lymphatic cannulation, we examine how different innate stimuli and adjuvants alter gene expression, cellular recruitment and antigen uptake and trafficking within the lymphatic system, the primary route for cells and antigen to travel from tissues to lymph nodes.

The projects undertaken in the innate immune laboratory are aimed at developing an understanding of fundamental pathways and mechanisms involved in shaping the immune system with implications for diseases such as allergies and asthma, bacterial and parasite infections as well as vaccination efficacy and safety.

Contact: Dr. Mike de Veer

Key references:

De Veer M. J., Kemp, J. M., Meeusen E.N.T. 2007 The innate immune response to nematode parasites. Parasite Immunol. Parasite Immunol. 29: 1-9.

Nebl, T., M. J. De Veer, and L. Schofield. 2005. Stimulation of innate immune responses by malarial glycosylphosphatidylinositol via pattern recognition receptors. Parasitology 130 Suppl:S45.

Whitmore, M. M., M. J. DeVeer, A. Edling, R. K. Oates, B. Simons, D. Lindner, and B. R. Williams. 2004. Synergistic activation of innate immunity by double-stranded RNA and CpG DNA promotes enhanced antitumor activity. Cancer Res 64:5850.

de Veer, M. J., J. M. Curtis, T. M. Baldwin, J. A. DiDonato, A. Sexton, M. J. McConville, E. Handman, and L. Schofield. 2003. MyD88 is essential for clearance of Leishmania major: possible role for lipophosphoglycan and Toll-like receptor 2 signaling. Eur J Immunol 33:2822.

de Veer, M. J., M. Holko, M. Frevel, E. Walker, S. Der, J. M. Paranjape, R. H. Silverman, and B. R. Williams. 2001. Functional classification of interferon-stimulated genes identified using microarrays. J Leukoc Biol 69:912.

For a list of all BRL potential student projects please click here