Decision making in immune cell activation

Our immune system is a network of white blood cells and proteins that keeps us healthy. John's research focuses on how T cells in the immune system make a committed decision to initiate an immune response on encountering an infected cell. The signalling network inside these cells is complex, so John has reconstituted a 'model' T cell that provides a more tractable way to explore the molecular mechanism of the decision-making process. This research will lead to a better understanding of how our immune system can discriminate between infected and healthy cells, and how we may be able to manipulate it therapeutically when needed.