Defining the microenvironmental regulators of spleen function and immunity

脾脏是存在于几乎所有脊椎动物中的重要器官，并且是诱导全身免疫应答的关键部位。目前的脾脏生物学研究主要来自啮齿动物研究，但人类脾脏的细胞生物学仍然定义不清。利用新的工具，先进的转录组学和成像技术，该项目旨在揭示人类脾脏基质细胞的功能，并确定脾脏基质细胞在长寿免疫中的基本作用。预期的成果是建立澳大利亚的研究能力，并产生新的知识的意义，为我们的基本了解脾脏和该组织在免疫系统中的作用。

The spleen is an important organ that is present in almost all vertebrates and is a critical site for the induction of systemic immune responses. The current paradigms of spleen biology are mostly derived from rodent studies, but the cellular biology of the spleen in humans remains poorly defined. Using novel tools, advanced transcriptomics and imaging techniques this project aims to reveal the functions of stromal cells in the spleen in humans and to define the fundamental roles of spleen stromal cells in long-lived immunity. The anticipated outcomes are to build Australia’s research capacity and to generate new knowledge of significance for our fundamental understanding of the spleen and the role of this tissue in the immune system.