Understanding the microbe-immune system interactions
The gastrointestinal tract is one of the primary sites of exposure to pathogens, but it is also the niche of the largest collection of commensal microbes in the body. Studies in recent years started to reveal the extensive influence microbiota and intestinal immune system have on each other and how this constant interplay impacts health. Moreover, dietary habits have an enormous impact on the composition and metabolism of the microbiota. The study of this very dynamic interactions is the main focus of our lab. Employing in vivo models and perturbations to microbiota homeostasis using dietary modifications, we can identify immune cell populations affected by microbiota components and new microbiota-immune system interactions. One population we are interested in is intraepithelial (IEL) T cells, as we have previously shown that Lactobacillus reuteri induces the development of some IEL populations by the production of metabolites derived from dietary tryptophan. We aim to determine the function of some of these populations in the intestine and discover novel diet-microbiota-immune cell interactions.