We study early life immunity using emerging viruses.

The long-term goal of our research is to uncover basic immunobiological mechanisms that underlie and regulate immune responses in utero through early life. We ask questions about immune system function, kinetics, regulation and development during pregnancy and as a neonate in two distinct contexts: under healthy homeostatic conditions and after inflammatory insults (maternal or paternal-restricted and/or local congenital infection).

Our work:

We leverage emerging viruses as biological probes to decode early life immunity. Emerging virus pathogenesis, through disruption, can reveal important host immune networks that lead to the discovery of critical host immune functions. Since early immune exposures influence life-long health, deciphering molecular mechanisms associated with fetal immune system development could hold the key for disease intervention even prior to onset. The ultimate objective of our efforts is to describe fundamental immunobiology in order to discover and identify opportunity to improve offspring health outcomes.