There is growing recognition that the critical immune functions of barrier tissues, such as the gut, lungs, and skin, depend not only on immune cells but also on complex interactions involving microbes and other cell types. Dissecting these interactions is a major challenge, requiring a combination of systematic transcriptomic analyses and targeted, hypothesis-driven experiments. We have previously shown that in the gut, neuronal signaling is needed for mucus secretion (Yang, et al. Cell. 2022), and more generally, regional differences in epithelial cells prevent adherent bacterial colonization and inflammation (Earley, et al. Immunity, 2023). We are now studying how gut-associated lymphoid tissues, such as Peyer’s patches, affect gut regionalization and barrier immunity. Additionally, we are using RNA-seq to probe the mechanisms by which gut-resident intraepithelial lymphocytes respond to cytokines implicated in autoimmunity.

Who is involved: Joseph Sifakis and Joey Federico