Inflammasome formation in infectious and inflammatory diseases

Upon infection or injury the host mounts an innate immune-driven inflammatory response to control infections and repair damaged tissue. Dysregulation of innate immunity, however, is associated with many diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and autoimmunity in humans and animals. Receptors present inside the cell (NOD-like receptors) sense bacteria and viruses, or non-infectious danger-associated molecules produced endogenously, to form a macromolecular inflammasome-signalling complex which drives protective immunity against pathogens and optimises the development of adaptive immunity. Professor Bryant’s research programme will investigate how inflammsome-signalling complexes self-assemble within cells in response to different pathogens or ligands and the consequent functional impact on the host immune response to infection. The impact of within- and between-species diversity in inflammasome genes on inflammasome self-assembly and host innate immune responses will also be investigated.