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

炎症是哺乳动物的一种进化保守的生物反应，其特征是细胞募集和释放关键的趋化因子/细胞因子、生长因子和多肽激素，这些激素协调保护反应并导致分解和组织修复。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，炎症变得旷日持久，无法消退。黑素皮质素通过调节细胞的募集、黏附和细胞因子的释放，在调节炎症中起着关键作用。该项目将探索炎症中的黑素皮质素途径，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.