Microbiology and Immunology Endowed Graduate Education

This Giving Tuesday, help us raise $6,000 to fund pilot experiments that are critical to the future success of our Microbiology and Immunology trainees and faculty.

These pilot projects are as follows:

• Perform spatial transcriptomics to determine how immune cells (particularly dendritic cells) found in the areas of fibrotic lung tissue differ from those found in non-fibrotic areas using human explant lung tissue. This will help us identify therapeutic targets for testing in preclinical models and strategies to limit the progression of fibrotic lung disease
• Perform RNA sequencing to identify why some bacteria are better able to disseminate from the primary site of infection and cause life-threatening sepsis. By identifying the gene expression patterns using RNA sequencing that characterize bacteria from the blood stream versus their original infecting site in the skin, lung or urinary tract, we can understand how the bacteria escape the local immune environment, disseminate and then survive in a new niche to cause disease. This is the first step in developing new therapies to save lives when sepsis occurs. This fund will be used to support trainees in the Microbiology and Immunology department. Your support could help with expenses to do pilot experiments and generate preliminary data to support grant applications. It can also help trainees to attend national or international conferences to present their work and to network with experts in their field. Such interactions are critical for helping trainees highlight the important work they are doing and secure their next positions.