糖心TV

Gordon Brown completed a Ph.D. in microbiology at the University of Cape Town, South Africa. He was a Wellcome Trust travelling postdoctoral fellow at the University of Oxford, UK, then a Wellcome Trust Senior Fellow at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, and is now a Professor of Immunology and Director of the MRC Centre for Medical Mycology at the University of Aberdeen. His primary research interests are C-type lectin receptors and their role in homeostasis and immunity, with a particular focus on antifungal immunity.

Seminar abstract:

The last few decades has seen a tremendous increase in our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the development of protective anti-microbial immunity. Key among these discoveries is the identification of pattern recognition receptors (or PRRs) expressed by immune cells which recognise conserved microbial components, such as beta-glucans. Recognition of these structures by PRRs, particularly by members of the C-type lectin receptor (CLR) family, triggers intracellular signalling cascades that initiate a variety of cellular and inflammatory responses, and induce the development of pathogen specific adaptive immunity. We now understand that innate recognition by CLRs is essential for the development of protective antimicrobial immunity but there is also emerging evidence that the functions of these receptors play a role in homeostasis and autoimmunity. In this presentation, I will cover the recent developments in our understanding of the function and roles of these receptors.