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Immunology and Infectious Disease Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Immunology and Infectious Disease

Regulation Of Gut Commensal-Specific T Cell Differentiation By Dendritic Cell Subsets, Emilie Russler-Germain May 2021

Regulation Of Gut Commensal-Specific T Cell Differentiation By Dendritic Cell Subsets, Emilie Russler-Germain

Arts & Sciences Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The mammalian gastrointestinal tract can harbor both beneficial commensal organisms important for host health, but also pathogenic organisms capable of intestinal damage. It is therefore important that the host immune system mounts appropriate responses to different intestinal organisms – promoting tolerance to some, controlling the colonization of others, and inducing sterilizing immunity in cases of noxious pathogens. Failure to induce tolerance to commensal organisms may underlie immune-mediated diseases such as human inflammatory bowel disease, while inappropriate tolerance to more harmful organisms has the potential to result in infection, inflammation, or even malabsorption. Adaptive immune responses to intestinal commensal organisms are …


Investigating The Effects Of Tgf-Β On T Cell Activation-Induced Cell Death, Christina Rose Cunha Jan 2021

Investigating The Effects Of Tgf-Β On T Cell Activation-Induced Cell Death, Christina Rose Cunha

Dissertations

Achieving immune homeostasis requires the functions and numbers of suppressive regulatory T cells (Tregs) and effector conventional T cells (conv T) to be balanced and precisely controlled. A decrease in Treg numbers is associated with autoimmune diseases such as type I diabetes and multiple sclerosis, while Treg numbers are increased in the tumor microenvironment. Conversely, an increase in conv inflammatory T cells in the tumor microenvironment is associated with better outcomes for cancer patients. Thus, maintaining the appropriate balance between Treg and conventional T cell populations is essential for controlling immune responses against non-self and self-antigens, as well as tumor …