Regulation of the adaptive immune response by chemokine scavenging receptors

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When our bodies are invaded by foreign organisms such as bacteria or viruses, we mount what is called an immune response. This requires the careful orchestration of cell movement throughout the body, without which the immune response would not be properly developed. Much of the movement of the immune cells is regulated by specialised proteins which are called Chemokines. It is with these proteins that we work. We have identified molecules that can degrade some of the chemokines and therefore remove them from the area surrounding cells. We believe that this is important for the proper working of the immune system. The current proposal aims to study these molecules, which we call scavengers, in much more detail and to carefully examine their roles in helping the development of immune responses. The data we generate will therefore help us to understand the regulation of the immune response in much more detail and will have implications for our ability to therapeutically manipulate this process. In addition, sometimes chemokines can play deleterious roles and can be at the root cause of diseases such as arthritis and psoriasis. We believe that we might be able to use these scavenger molecules in disease contexts to switch off inflammation. We will therefore try to develop anti-inflammatory agents based on our knowledge of these scavenger molecules and will partner with a large Pharmaceutical company to help develop their therapeutic potential.