Identifying the niche of perivascular immune cells

免疫细胞分布在所有组织中，以保护我们的身体免受病原体的侵袭。长期以来，人们一直认为巨噬细胞和肥大细胞装饰皮肤血管外表面，调节其功能。然而，这种串扰的分子身份在很大程度上是未知的。特别是，我们对不同的血管类型和血管成分如何塑造调节皮肤中血管周围免疫细胞的身份和功能的特定“生态位”缺乏详细的了解。通过原位成像结合小鼠遗传学，我们将研究(A)特定血管成分(内皮细胞、周细胞、血管平滑肌细胞、神经)在调节动态平衡和确定血管周围巨噬细胞和肥大细胞表型方面的功能作用，以及(B)控制这些细胞在血管周围定位的信号和分子。我们的研究将为血管周围免疫细胞的局部调节以及它们在皮肤中发挥的生理功能提供重要的新见解，这些发现可能会外推到其他外周组织。

Immune cells distribute throughout all tissues to protect our body from pathogens. It has long been acknowledged that macrophages and mast cells decorate the outer surfaces of cutaneous blood vessels and regulate their functions. However, the molecular identity of this crosstalk is largely unknown. In particular, we are missing a detailed understanding about how different vessel types and vascular components shape the specific "niche" that regulates the identity and function of perivascular immune cells in the skin. By using in situ imaging in combination with mouse genetics, we will investigate (a) the functional role of specific blood vessel components (endothelial cells, pericytes, vascular smooth muscle cells, nerves) in regulating the homeostasis and defining the phenotype of perivascular macrophages and mast cells, and (b) the signals and molecules that control the perivascular localization of these cells. Our studies will provide important novel insight into both, the local regulation of perivascular immune cells, as well as the physiological functions they exert in the skin, findings that likely can be extrapolated to other peripheral tissues.