Lauren Borhani
Pronouns: She/her
Research Mentor(s): Jintao Xu
Research Mentor School/College/Department: Internal Medicine / Medicine
Program:
Authors: Lauren Borhani, Jintao Xu, Rylan Hissong, Kristie Goughenour, Michal Olszewski
Session: Session 4: 1:40 pm – 2:30 pm
Poster: 37
Abstract
Cryptococcus neoformans is a pathogenic yeast that poses a serious health threat to immunocompromised individuals. Infection of this pathogen can cause severe meningoencephalitis and is responsible for approximately 200,000 global deaths per year. Defense against cryptococcal infection relies on Th1 activated immunity and production of interferon-gamma (IFN-?). However, it remains unclear how this activation process occurs. This research focuses on the role of type 1 conventional dendritic cells (cDC1). We examined the immune response to cryptococcal infection in Batf3-/- mice, which lack the cDC1 subset. Our results demonstrate that cDC1s are largely responsible for recruitment and activation of immune cells in the lungs and brain. Absence of the cDC1 population resulted in higher fungal burdens and lower levels of IFN-? across the brain, lungs, and spleen. Additionally, Batf3-/- mice expressed significantly lower levels of interleukin 12. This result suggests that cDC1 secretes IL-12, but further experimentation is needed to determine the exact role of cDC1 in producing this cytokine. We conclude that the cDC1 subset is an essential part of the Th1 immune response to cryptococcal infection. This pathway could potentially be utilized to develop novel treatments and reduce the mortality associated with this pathogen.
