Inflammatory bowel diseases, which include Crohn’s disease and ulcerative
colitis, affect several million individuals worldwide. Crohn’s disease and
ulcerative colitis are complex diseases that are heterogeneous at the clinical,
immunological, …
While women are generally underrepresented in STEM fields, there are noticeable
differences between fields. For instance, the gender ratio in biology is more
balanced than in computer science. We were interested in how this difference is
reflected in …
Acquisition of genes through horizontal gene transfer (HGT) allows microbes to rapidly gain new capabilities and adapt to new or changing environments. Identifying widespread HGT regions within multispecies microbiomes can pinpoint the molecular …
Receptors of the innate immune system detect conserved determinants of microbial
and viral origin. Activation of these receptors initiates signaling events that
culminate in an effective immune response. Recently, the view that innate immune …
Recognition of potentially pathogenic organisms is a critical first step in an
immune response. To prevent pathogen outgrowth, this detection must be rapid and
initiate a robust inflammatory response. However, inflammation is dangerous, and
spurious …
The NOD-like receptors (NLRs) were among the first innate immune receptors
discovered, yet a clear understanding of the basic principles underlying their
mechanisms of action is lacking. Two recent studies provide important cell
biological insights …
The Toll-like receptors (TLRs) of the innate immune system are unusual in that
individual family members are located on different organelles, yet most activate
a common signaling pathway important for host defense. It remains unclear how
this common …
The protein arginine methyltransferase (PRMT) family of enzymes catalyzes the
transfer of methyl groups from S-adenosylmethionine to the guanidino nitrogen
atom of peptidylarginine to form monomethylarginine or dimethylarginine. We
created several …
Nuclear factor of activated T cell (NFAT) transcription factors are key
regulators of gene transcription within immune cells. The NFAT-interacting
protein, (NIP45), augments NFAT-driven IL-4 expression by a mechanism that
relies on arginine …