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Current research projects in my laboratory stem from my longstanding interest in understanding
the molecular mechanisms of B lymphocyte activation. Some of the outstanding questions in B
cell adaptive immunity that we currently address relate to the regulation of B cell antigen receptor
diversity, organization and signal transduction. We also investigate mechanisms of B cell
differentiation and antibody response, as well as B cell cytokine sensing and secretion. To
address these questions, we utilize genetic knockouts in the context of mouse models of infection,
autoimmunity and inflammation. We employ quantitative multi-omics technologies, highresolution fluorescence imaging, and pre-clinical drug discovery approaches. My seminar will
focus on our published and unpublished data that establish the importance of the plasma
membrane-actin cytoskeleton linker protein Ezrin in orchestrating B cell function in the context of
flu infection and allergic asthma inflammation.
I am also the Director of the Center of Excellence in Lymphoid Malignancies Research
(Lymphocenter), which is a major collaborative and synergistic effort at the Cleveland Clinic, with
members hailing from Lerner Research Institute, Taussig Cancer Institute, and Pathology and
Laboratory Medicine Institute. Members of Lymphocenter investigate molecular mechanisms of
resistance and relapse, develop novel small molecular therapies, utilize patient-derived xenograft
lymphoma models to test new rational combinations of small molecule drugs and biologics, and
identify the molecular basis of patient response to novel cellular immunotherapies. I will be happy
to discuss Lymphocenter research outside of the seminar. |