Hosted by the School of Medicine at Cardiff University
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The goals of our research program are to discover the mechanisms linking the metabolic state of immune cells (immunometabolism) with tissue homeostasis and function, and to use these insights for better treatments for cancer and other diseases. We are particularly interested in understanding metabolic drivers, nutrient signaling pathways and systems-level regulatory networks in basic T cell and dendritic cell biology and antitumor immunity. To gain an integrative view, we combine the traditional hypothesis-driven or ‘reductionist’ approach with systems biology principles, including in vivo CRISPR screening, systems proteomics and data-driven network algorithms, to identify new concepts and therapeutic targets for immunometabolism that cannot be surmised from simpler systems. I will discuss our recent progresses in target discovery in T cells and nutrient-mediated intercellular signaling in the tumor microenvironment.
Hongbo Chi is a professor in the Department of Immunology at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital in Memphis, Tennessee. He joined St. Jude in 2007 and previously held the titles of assistant member and associate member. Groundbreaking and innovative, Prof. Chi’s lab aims to understand immune signaling and cell metabolism that control the differentiation and function of immune cells and the effects on immune-mediated disorders. His laboratory has discovered the critical importance of mTOR signaling, metabolism and autophagy in the differentiation and function of T cells, the control of T cell quiescence and antigen-triggered exit from quiescence, and the regulation of autoimmune, infectious and malignant diseases. His research has also contributed to the understanding of the signaling and metabolic pathways in dendritic cell biology and the crosstalk between innate and adaptive immunity. His efforts have yielded the Hulda Irene Duggan Arthritis Investigator Award from the Arthritis Foundation, the Mentored Research Scientist Development Award from the National Institute of Health, and Scholar Awards from both the American Cancer Society and the American Asthma Foundation.