Imagen de la Inflamacion cardiovascular y respuesta inmune

Neutrophils are the most abundant innate immune leukocytes in the organism. The primary function is to protect from infections, yet their abnormal activation within vessels can lead to vascular injury, tissue damage and death. The question to be addressed under this Master is how do neutrophils know when to attack and when to pull back to prevent damage to healthy tissues, and whether the underlying mechanism can be manipulated to enhance protection of the host. We have characterized the heterogeneity of neutrophil to establish the basic rules that govern their function in health and disease. We will use a number of tools, from genetic mouse models to receptor agonists and transcriptomics to examine whether we can manipulate their function to prevent disease. The implications are important not only at the basic level (i.e., the 1-0-1 rules of immunity), but also to translate knowledge to the clinic, given the predominant role of neutrophils in highly prevalent disorders that range from stroke, to septic shock or myocardial infarction