La Jolla Institute For Immunology

Programs: The la jolla institute for allergy and immunology ("lji") is a private, nonprofit medical research organization that is recognized as a world leader in comprehensive research dedicated to understanding the intricacies and power of the immune system and applying that knowledge toward its goal of life without disease. The institute is home to 23 independent laboratories, each operated by a leading scientist handpicked for his/her creativity and pioneering spirit. Each of these labs is dedicated to understanding the far-reaching influence of the immune system and to training to the next generation of scientists, to promote human health and prevent a wide range of diseases. The institute was recently ranked among the top five organizations with the greatest research impact in immunology worldwide by the rating agency thomson-reuters. In addition, four of its scientists are among the most highly cited immunologists in the world-a distinction held by less than half of one percent of all publishing scientists. 2016 notable research resultsin 2016, lji research teams made discoveries meriting publication in leading peer-reviewed scientific journals - 164 papers in all, more than ever before. No fewer than 49 original research papers appeared in high impact journals, which is a measure of the research's pioneering nature and influence and represents a 36 percent increase over 2015. Together, they illustrate the range and power of immunology research, the caliber of lji's faculty and their impact on a broad group of human health issues. Some of the highlights among papers published in 2016 include:the shresta lab strengthened the case for sexual transmission of zika virus. Aedes aegypti mosquitoes harboring parasitic zika virus are the primary transmitters of virus to humans, potentially causing catastrophic congenital microcephaly in babies born to women bitten by infected mosquitoes. Lji investigator sujan shresta, ph. D. , employed two different mouse models to confirm that live zika virus placed directly in the vagina infects the mouse's reproductive tract, replicates, moves into the bloodstream, and causes clinical signs of disease. Intriguingly, also reports that the stage of the reproductive cycle during which a female mouse is exposed to virus determines vulnerability to infection. If applicable to humans, this discovery has public health implications for virus transmission to a population of great concern, women of child-bearing age. (published in cell reports, december 2016 issue). In a bid to better understand the gene expression patterns that control t cell activity, the rao lab mapped genome-wide changes in chromatin accessibility as t cells respond to acute and chronic virus infections. Their findings shed light on the molecular mechanisms that determine the fate of t lymphocytes and open new approaches to clinical intervention strategies to modulate t cell activity and improve immune function. (published in immunity, dec. 2017). The crotty lab was the first to directly track how the latest hiv vaccine candidate elicits a successful antibody response. Their findings revealed crucial immunological features and bottlenecks that determine whether immunization is successful and provide a valuable tool to track the potential of novel hiv vaccine candidates in upcoming human phase i clinical trials. In the global quest to get the ongoing aids epidemic under control, dozens of hiv vaccine candidates have been tested in clinical trials but a safe and effective hiv vaccine has yet to emerge. Until now, researchers trying to understand why so many attempts have failed, had been limited to measuring antibody titers in peripheral blood weeks or months after immunization with a vaccine candidate, while germinal centers, the central hub for the generation and fine-tuning of high-affinity antibodies, had remained something of a "black box. " a novel technique, developed in the crotty lab, allowed the lji researchers to directly probe germinal centers and shed light on the immunological processes by which a vaccine elicits a protective immune response (published in cell reports, november 2016). Concerns over the zika virus have focused on pregnant women due to mounting evidence that it causes brain abnormalities in developing fetuses. However, research from the shresta lab suggested that certain adult brain cells may be vulnerable to infection as well. Among these are populations of cells that serve to replace lost or damaged neurons throughout adulthood, and are also thought to be critical to learning and memory. Although more research is needed to determine if this damage has long-term biological implications or the potential to affect behavior, the findings suggest the possibility that the zika virus, which has become widespread in central and south america over the past eight months, may be more harmful than previously believed. A study from the surh lab indicated why children are likelier to develop food allergies. An estimated 15 million americans suffer from food allergies, many of them children. These are non-trivial concerns, as food allergy or intolerance can cause symptoms ranging from a harmless skin rash to a potentially lethal anaphylactic shock. The good news is that many affected children outgrow their allergy, presumably as the immune system learns to tolerate food initially mistaken as "foreign". Coupling molecular approaches with a long-forgotten model of "antigen-free" mice, surh and his team were the first to demonstrate that consumption of a normal diet stimulates cells in the gut that suppress rejection of food by the immune system. Knowing this could explain why children, who have more limited exposure to novel foods than adults, are more susceptible to food allergies and how food tolerance emerges over time in normal individuals. (published in science, january 2016). Competitive research grant funding & research awards & distinctions:in 2016, la jolla institute scientists continued to attract increasing numbers of competitively awarded research grants attesting to the high level of research productivity present at the institute. During 2016, lji scientists worked with the support of 152 grants and fellowships, an increase of 25% over the previous year. The granting institutions included: national institutes of health, naval medical research center, boston children's hospital, benaroya research institute at virginia mason, university of california berkeley, case western university, cedars sinai medical center, dana-farber cancer institute, albert einstein college of medicine, emory university, university of georgia, harvard medical school, university of wisconsin, ichan school of medicine at mount sinai, sanford burnham prebys medical discovery institute, the scripps research institute, university of florida, university of alabama at birmingham, university of california los angeles, university of california san diego, university of north carolina, american association for cancer, research, american diabetes association, american heart association, arthritis national research foundation, university of michigan, crohn's and colitis foundation of america, cancer research institute, immune deficiency foundation, immunotherapy foundation, jane coffin childs memorial fund for medical research, jeffrey modell foundation, johns hopkins university, leukemia and lymphoma society, melanoma research alliance, the michael j. Fox foundation, national parkinson's foundation, oregon health science university, the pew charitable trusts, rady children's hospital - san diego, rheumatology research foundation, thrasher research fund, university of cape town, and the university of miami. With new and recurring grant support, the institute received more than $47 million in research funding in 2016, which is supplemented by corporate funding sources as well as philanthropic support.