The study of histocompatibility in man and in other vertebrates led to the understanding of the mechanisms of immune recognition and to the discovery of novel molecules and cells involved in these processes, including class I and class II proteins encoded in the major histocompatibility complex of all vertebrates examined and T cell receptors. The normal human response to bacterial and viral infection involves these molecules and results in either the generation of T helper cells and antibodies or of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes. In addition, many important human autoimmune diseases are linked to particular alleles of the class I and class II proteins. Tolerance is a central theme. Our studies involve the mechanisms of tolerance, both in pregnancy and in multiple sclerosis or its murine analog, Experimental Acquired Encephalomyelitis.

My laboratory is focused now on 3 main projects:

The role of MHC proteins and of products of other disease susceptibility genes in human autoimmunity, including multiple sclerosis, diabetes, pemphigus vulgaris and ankylosing spondylitis

Activating and inhibitory immunological synapses in human natural killer cells: how they are formed and how they function

Uterine decidual lymphocytes and their roles in the immunobiology of pregnancy. This project involves characterizing uterine natural killer (NK) cells, invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells and T cells and the roles of these lymphocytes and the many unusual proteins they produce in implantation and maintenance of pregnancy.