Harnessing the Melanocortin System (MCS) to moderate inflammation and enhance healthy ageing

炎症是哺乳动物中进化保守的生物反应，其特征在于细胞募集和释放关键的趋化因子/细胞因子、生长因子和肽激素，其协调保护性反应并导致消退和组织修复。协调这些反应的两种主要细胞类型是巨噬细胞和成纤维细胞。随着年龄的增长，炎症变得延长，无法解决。黑皮质素通过调节细胞募集、粘附和细胞因子释放在调节炎症中具有关键作用。本项目将探索炎症中的黑皮质素通路，并发现介导巨噬细胞炎症功能及其与成纤维细胞相互作用的关键受体和配体。

Inflammation is an evolutionary conserved biological response in mammals characterised by cell recruitment and release of critical chemokines/cytokines, growth factors and peptide hormones that orchestrate the protective reaction and lead to resolution and tissue repair. Two major cell types that coordinate these responses are macrophages and fibroblast. With age inflammation become prolonged and fails to resolve. The melanocortins have critical roles in regulating inflammation by modulating cell recruitment, adhesion and cytokine release. This project will explore the melanocortin pathways in inflammation and discover the key receptors and ligands that mediate the inflammatory function of macrophages and theirinteraction with fibroblast.