̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge - Adrian Liston

Becoming a scientist

ps748 — Thu, 29 Aug 2024 11:28:37 +0000

A team of scientists at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge feature in a new graphic book highlighting their individual journeys into the career of their dreams.

Discovery of ‘new rules of the immune system’ could improve treatment of inflammatory diseases, say scientists.

jg533 — Tue, 18 Jun 2024 15:02:29 +0000

This overturns the traditional thinking that regulatory T cells exist as multiple specialist populations that are restricted to specific parts of the body. ̽��ֱ��finding has implications for the treatment of many different diseases – because almost all diseases and injuries trigger the body’s immune system.

Current anti-inflammatory drugs treat the whole body, rather than just the part needing treatment. ̽��ֱ��researchers say their findings mean it could be possible to shut down the body’s immune response and repair damage in any specific part of the body, without affecting the rest of it. This means that higher, more targeted doses of drugs could be used to treat disease – potentially with rapid results.

“We’ve uncovered new rules of the immune system. This ‘unified healer army’ can do everything - repair injured muscle, make your fat cells respond better to insulin, regrow hair follicles. To think that we could use it in such an enormous range of diseases is fantastic: it’s got the potential to be used for almost everything,” said Professor Adrian Liston in the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge’s Department of Pathology, senior author of the paper.

To reach this discovery, the researchers analysed the regulatory T cells present in 48 different tissues in the bodies of mice. This revealed that the cells are not specialised or static, but move through the body to where they’re needed. ̽��ֱ��results are published today in the journal Immunity.

“It's difficult to think of a disease, injury or infection that doesn’t involve some kind of immune response, and our finding really changes the way we could control this response,” said Liston.

He added: “Now that we know these regulatory T cells are present everywhere in the body, in principle we can start to make immune suppression and tissue regeneration treatments that are targeted against a single organ – a vast improvement on current treatments that are like hitting the body with a sledgehammer.”

Using a drug they have already designed, the researchers have shown - in mice - that it’s possible to attract regulatory T cells to a specific part of the body, increase their number, and activate them to turn off the immune response and promote healing in just one organ or tissue.

“By boosting the number of regulatory T cells in targeted areas of the body, we can help the body do a better job of repairing itself, or managing immune responses,” said Liston.

He added: “There are so many different diseases where we’d like to shut down an immune response and start a repair response, for example autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis, and even many infectious diseases.”

Most symptoms of infections such as COVID are not from the virus itself, but from the body’s immune system attacking the virus. Once the virus is past its peak, regulatory T cells should switch off the body’s immune response, but in some people the process isn’t very efficient and can result in ongoing problems. ̽��ֱ��new finding means it could be possible to use a drug to shut down the immune response in the patient’s lungs, while letting the immune system in the rest of the body continue to function normally.

In another example, people who receive organ transplants must take immuno-suppressant drugs for the rest of their lives to prevent organ rejection, because the body mounts a severe immune response against the transplanted organ. But this makes them highly vulnerable to infections. ̽��ֱ��new finding helps the design of new drugs to shut down the body’s immune response against only the transplanted organ but keep the rest of the body working normally, enabling the patient to lead a normal life.

Most white blood cells attack infections in the body by triggering an immune response. In contrast, regulatory T cells act like a ‘unified healer army’ whose purpose is to shut down this immune response once it has done its job - and repair the tissue damage caused by it.

̽��ֱ��researchers are now fundraising to set up a spin-out company, with the aim of running clinical trials to test their findings in humans within the next few years.

̽��ֱ��research was funded by the European Research Council (ERC), Wellcome, and the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC).

Reference: Liston, A. ‘ ̽��ֱ��tissue-resident regulatory T cell pool is shaped by transient multi-tissue migration and a conserved residency program.’ Immunity, June 2024. DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2024.05.023

Scientists at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge have discovered that a type of white blood cell - called a regulatory T cell - exists as a single large population of cells that constantly move throughout the body looking for, and repairing, damaged tissue.

It's difficult to think of a disease, injury or infection that doesn’t involve some kind of immune response, and our finding really changes the way we could control this response.

Adrian Liston

Louisa Wood/ Babraham Institute

Dr James Dooley, a senior author of the study, in the laboratory

In brief

A single large population of healer cells, called regulatory T cells, is whizzing around our body - not multiple specialist populations restricted to specific parts of the body as previously thought.
These cells shut down inflammation and repair the collateral damage to cells caused after our immune system has responded to injury or illness.
Tests, in mice, of a drug developed by the researchers showed that regulatory T cells can be attracted to specific body parts, boosted in number, and activated to suppress immune response and rebuild tissue.
Current anti-inflammatory drugs used for this purpose suppress the body’s whole immune system, making patients more vulnerable to infection.
̽��ֱ��discovery could lead to more targeted treatments, with fewer side-effects, for issues from lengthy COVID infections to autoimmune diseases like multiple sclerosis. Clinical trials in humans are now planned.

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes

Licence type:

Attribution-Noncommerical

CamFest Speaker Spotlight: Professor Adrian Liston

zs332 — Sun, 17 Mar 2024 14:51:12 +0000

Adrian Liston, Professor of Pathology at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge, talks about our extraordinary immune system ahead of his event, Diversity in the immune system on 20th March.

̽��ֱ��Academy of Medical Sciences announces election of new Fellows 2021

cg605 — Wed, 12 May 2021 09:39:48 +0000

̽��ֱ��Academy of Medical Sciences has elected 50 prominent biomedical and health scientists to its respected and influential Fellowship. ̽��ֱ��new Fellows have been selected for their exceptional contributions to the advancement of medical science through innovative research discoveries and translating scientific developments into benefits for patients and the wider society.

Professor Dame Anne Johnson, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences, said: “I am truly delighted to welcome these 50 new Fellows to the Academy’s Fellowship, and I offer my congratulations to each of them on their exceptional contribution to biomedical and health science. ̽��ֱ��knowledge, skill and influence that each brings to the Fellowship is the Academy’s most powerful asset.

“ ̽��ֱ��last year has clearly demonstrated the power and prowess of UK biomedical science, and I am proud of how many Fellows, new and old, have been at the forefront of the COVID-19 response in the UK and globally.

“Although it is hard to look beyond the pandemic right now, I want to stress how important it is that the Academy Fellowship represents the widest diversity of biomedical and health sciences. ̽��ֱ��greatest health advances rely on the findings of many types of research, and on multidisciplinary teams and cross-sector and global collaboration.”

Professor Franklin Aigbirhio FRSC

Professor of Molecular Imaging Chemistry, Department of Clinical Neurosciences and the Department of Chemistry, Senior Research Fellow, Magdalene College

Professor Aigbirhio’s research focuses on the development and application of new biomedical imaging technologies for clinical research in areas such as dementia, acute brain injury and hypertension. His research seeks to enable earlier detection and a greater understanding of the disorders, thereby aiding the development of new treatments. A further objective of Professor Aigbirhio’s work is to enable these new imaging technologies to be more accessible and widely applied throughout the NHS.

“It’s a pleasure and honour to be elected to this Fellowship, which I recognise is an outcome of the collaborations with many talented colleagues at Cambridge and further afield, for which I give my sincere thanks,” said Aigbirhio.

“Going forward my election to the Fellowship provides a platform to highlight the role of black researchers and participants in biomedical and health research and to increase their involvement.”

Professor Ravindra Gupta

Professor of Clinical Microbiology at the Cambridge Institute of Therapeutic Immunology and Infectious Diseases, Fellow, Homerton College

Professor Gupta has worked extensively in HIV, both at molecular and population levels, and his work demonstrating escalating global resistance led to change in WHO treatment guidelines for HIV. He led the team that demonstrated HIV cure in the ‘London Patient’ – only the second in history.

In 2020 he was named as one of the 100 most influential people worldwide by TIME Magazine. Gupta deployed his expertise in RNA virus genetics and biology during the COVID-19 pandemic to report the first evidence for immune escape of SARS-CoV-2 within an individual, defining the process by which new variants likely arise, and also reporting the first data on Pfizer BioNTech vaccine-induced antibody responses against the B.1.1.7 ‘Kent UK’ variant.

“I am honoured to have been elected to Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences,” said Gupta. “ ̽��ֱ��COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated the importance of cross-disciplinary science. Research excellence across medical sciences and translation to health improvements has been at the centre of the Academy’s mission and I am very pleased to now be able to contribute to fulfilling this aim as a Fellow.”

Professor Brian Huntly

Head of the Department of Haematology and Professor of Leukaemia Stem Cell Biology, Group Leader at the Wellcome – MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute

Professor Huntly’s research focuses on the stem cell aspects of the evolution of haematological malignancies, in particular acute myeloid leukaemia and lymphoma. His election recognises his many contributions to the understanding and treatment of blood cancers.

“I am delighted and honoured to be elected to the Fellowship of the Academy of Medical Sciences,” said Huntly. “ ̽��ֱ��Academy’s aims of bringing the best minds in biomedical research together, supporting talent, asking challenging questions and sharing our work so that all can benefit from it mirror very much our own aims here in Cambridge. Biomedical research is a hugely collaborative endeavour and I see my election as recognition of the hard work of many people who have contributed to my research and also highlighting the tremendous work we are doing at the ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge Department of Haematology.”

Professor Adrian Liston

Senior Group Leader, Babraham Institute, Senior Research Fellow, Churchill College

Professor Adrian Liston works in the field of immunology, based around the question of the biological checkpoints that restrain immune activation. His research investigates the basis for pathological immune activation in the contexts of autoimmune diseases, primary immunodeficiencies and neuroinflammation. By understanding the genetic, molecular and cellular basis of immune checkpoint failure in these conditions, the rationale selection of therapeutics can help prevent or treat pathologies.

“This is a really wonderful recognition of the work from my team”, Liston said. “I’ve been lucky to work with an outstanding team of scientists, able to work on immune pathology from different angles – from the clinic or the lab, as an immunologist or a neuroscientist, in advanced techniques ranging from cytometry through to computational modelling. ̽��ֱ��curiosity and interdisciplinarity of the team are what has let us explore new fields and push the boundaries forwards.”

Professor Benjamin Simons FRS

Royal Society EP Abraham Professor, Department of Applied Mathematics and Theoretical Physics and Senior Group Leader of the Gurdon Institute, Group Leader at the Wellcome – MRC Cambridge Stem Cell Institute, Fellow, St John's College

As a theorist, Professor Simons has contributed to a diverse range of fields, from quantum condensed matter physics to developmental and cancer biology. His research translates concepts and approaches from statistical physics to gain predictive insights in the collective dynamics of complex systems. In biology, his studies have revealed common mechanisms of stem cell regulation, and how these programmes become subverted during the early phase of tumour growth.

Simons said: “As a theorist, and relative newcomer to the field of biomedical sciences, it is a great honour to be elected as a Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences.”

Cambridge scientists are among the new Fellows announced today by the Academy of Medical Sciences.

̽��ֱ��greatest health advances rely on the findings of many types of research, and on multidisciplinary teams and cross-sector and global collaboration.

Professor Dame Anne Johnson, President of the Academy of Medical Sciences

̽��ֱ��text in this work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Images, including our videos, are Copyright © ̽��ֱ�� of Cambridge and licensors/contributors as identified. All rights reserved. We make our image and video content available in a number of ways – as here, on our main website under its Terms and conditions, and on a range of channels including social media that permit your use and sharing of our content under their respective Terms.

Yes