The Center for Immunology is an interdisciplinary research program at the University of Minnesota devoted to advancing the field of immunology and educating future immunologists.
Autoimmunity • Cancer • Vaccines • Cures
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Naive B Cells with High-Avidity Germline-EncodedAntigen Receptors Produce Persistent IgM+andTransient IgG+Memory B Cells
Immune memory often lasts for life, this is not the case for certain vaccines in some individuals. By studying B cell responses to phycoerythrin, in the June 2018 issue of Immunity, Pape et al. find that memory B cell responses can be shortlived when generated from precursors that experience unusually strong early signals of avid antigen binding via germline-encoded VH elements. Read more
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Intravital mucosal imaging of CD8+ resident memory T cells shows tissue-autonomous recall responses that amplify secondary memory
Using two-photon intravital microscopy to visualize the responses of CD8+ resident memory T cells (Trm cells), Post Doctoral fellows in Masopust, Vezys, and Fife labs found that the Trm cells were highly motile but would pause and undergo in situ division after antigen challenge. Read more
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Co-housing with pet store mice changes the immune system of laboratory mice
Nature highlights the work of Lalit Beura, Sara Hamilton, Marc Jenkins, Vaiva Vezys, Steve Jameson, Dave Masopust, et.al. and their evidence of how laboratory rodents can skew immunology research but that "dirty mice" can clean up the results Read more
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Cutting Edge: Dual TCRa Expression Poses an Autoimmune Hazard by Limiting Regulatory T cell Generation
In cutting edge research performed by the students and Post Doctoral fellows in the labs of Fife, Hogquist and Binstadt the hypothesis that dual TCR expression can promote autoimmunity by limiting agonist selection of self-reactive thymocytes is revisited . Read more
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Chrysalis: A New Method for High-Throughput Histo-Cytometry Analysis of Images and Movies
Advances in imaging have led to the development of powerful multispectral, quantitative imaging techniques, like histo-cytometry. The utility of this approach is limited, however, by the need for time-consuming manual image analysis. In an effort to address the time issue, Kotov and Pengo et al. created the software Chrysalis along with a suite of Imaris Xtensions to batch image processing and analysis to automate the processing workflow for confocal, epi-fluorescence, and two-photon microscopy images. Read more
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CD8αα+ Intraepithelial Lymphocytes Arise from Two Major Thymic Precursors
In an article published in Nature Immunology, Post Doctoral Fellows Ruscher and Lee from the Hogquist and Jameson lab wanted to better define the thymic IEL precursor, and were able to provide an important foundation for understanding the biology of CD8αα IELs. Read More
Latest News
The Center for Immunology proudly hosted its first-ever Alumni Celebration
On Thursday, April 18, 2019, the Center for Immunology hosted its first Alumni Celebration. The event welcomed over 100 current faculty and students, alumni, professors and more. We were especially happy to welcome Drs. David, Brown, Gus Dalmasso, Paul Quie and John Crosson who made special trips to campus just for the occasion of the reunion. At the event, the Robert A. Good Door was presented (see photos) and will be hung at the Center for Immunology. Drs. Marc Jenkins and Matt Mescher also announced the creation of a new fund to enhance the student experience within the Center. The Mesher Trainee Enhancement fund, an endowed fund, will live in perpetuity at the University of Minnesota and will be available to the Center for Immunology's students. The fund will help with costs like conference registration and travel, equipment and technology, emergency needs and other expenses which can make all the difference in training the next generation of scientists. To date, $60,000 has been raised with a goal of $100,000. If you were interested in making a gift, and have not done so yet - or were unable to attend the event but still want to support the CFI while honoring Dr. Mescher -visit the fund here. You may also contact Sarah Barsness at the University of Minnesota Foundation if you'd like to make a gift using your IRA, estate plans, donor-advised fund, or other means of charitable giving. Sarah's contact information is 612-625-5976 or sbarsnes@umn.edu. Please click here to see all the great pictures taken at the event!Congratulations to Lee Meier, recipient of three 2019 student awards for excellence
Congratulations to Lee Meier, an M.D./Ph.D. student in Bryce Binstadt's lab. Lee was one of the recipients to received the 2019 President's Student Leadership and Service Award in April 2019. See the full list of recipients. On May 1, 2019, at the Dean's Tribute to Excellence in Education, Lee received 2 Medical School Awards, Dr. Marvin and Hadassah Bacaner Research Award and the Jan Lunden Award. Congratulations on a job well done Lee!! CFI is very proud of you.
CFI welcomes our newest faculty member, Jesse Williams, PhD
Jesse received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago mentored by Dr. Anne Sperling where he studied the crosstalk between dendritic cells and T cells in eliciting Th2-mediated allergic responses. He did his postdoctoral training with Dr. Gwendalyn Randolph at Washington University in St. Louis, where they studied pathways regulating the development of tissue-resident macrophages in models of atherosclerosis. At the University of Minnesota, Jesse’s lab will continue to work on elucidating mechanisms that regulate the recruitment and differentiation of innate immune cells in atherosclerotic plaque. Through collaborations within the Center for Immunology and using cutting edge approaches such as single-cell RNA sequencing and intravital imaging, Jesse hopes to make innovative observations that will expand our understanding of immunity in cardiovascular disease. Stop by his office on the third floor of WMBB and introduce yourself.
Dr. Marc Jenkins is honored as one of the 2019 Distinguished Fellows of AAI.
Dr. Marc Jenkins has been elected into the inaugural class of the American Association of Immunologists (AAI) 2019 Distinguished Fellows of AAI. This program is one of the highest honors bestowed by AAI. Members are recognized for distinguished careers in the field of immunology; the new class of distinguished fellows has shown exceptional leadership to the immunology community at a national or international level; notable distinction as an educator and outstanding scientific contributions, as well as their service to AAI. CFI would like to congratulate Dr. Jenkins on a well-deserved honor. Meet the class of 2019
The Stromnes lab is selected to receive an AAI Intersect Fellowship in 2019.
Congratulations to Drs. Ingunn Stromnes, Adam Burrack, and Stephen Shen for being selected as one of ten recipients of the AAI Intersect Fellowship Program for Computational Scientists and Immunologists. This fellowship is intended to improve understanding and communication between immunology researchers and computational scientists by affording an opportunity to train in each other’s discipline. The Stromnes lab will work on the project: "Clonal and functional evolution of neoantigen specific T cells during immunotherapy of pancreatic cancer" along with Co-PI: Steve Shen, M.D., Ph.D., Professor, University of Minnesota. Details about this program may be found here.
Dr. Kris Hogquist is selected as the 2019 AAI-Thermo Fisher Meritorious Career Award Recipient
Congratulations to Dr. Kris Hogquist, the 2019 AAI-Thermo Fisher Meritorious Career Award recipient. This award recognizes a mid-career scientist for outstanding research contributions to the field of immunology. Kris' research is focused on T cell development in the thymus, particularly positive and negative selection, tolerance, and T cell selection in immune homeostasis and response. AAI will honor Kris at the annual AAI meeting in San Diego, CA in May 2019.
Dr. Marc Jenkins, director of the Center for Immunology, is named a University of Minnesota Regents Professor
The Center for Immunology would like to congratulate Dr. Marc Jenkins, who has been appointed a Regents Professor of the University of Minnesota. The Regents Professorship is the highest honor the University of Minnesota can bestow on its faculty. This program not only recognizes the national and international prominence of the faculty member, but it also acknowledges the exceptional contributions that have been made to the University through teaching, research, scholarship, creative work, and collaboration with others. As one of the world’s most distinguished immunologists, Dr. Jenkins has devoted his career to understanding how CD4+ T and B cell activation coordinates the entire response to pathogens, cancer cells or other antigens in the body. Dr. Jenkins' research has helped establish basic immunological principles that have lead to more effective vaccines and immunotherapies for rheumatoid arthritis, transplant rejection, and cancer. He is a prolific and highly cited research scientist with over 175 articles and more than 18,000 citations. In addition to receiving many national research awards, including the Pew Scholars Award and the AAI Meritorious Career Award, Dr. Jenkins has been invited to give more than 450 research seminars, 35 of which were keynote or honorary lectures. He is an extraordinary teacher and actively engages both graduate and undergraduate students. He was instrumental in the creation of the Microbiology, Immunology and Cancer Biology Ph.D. program at the University of Minnesota and served as its first Director of Graduate Studies. His leadership established the program’s national reputation as a “premiere training environment in biomedical research.” Dr. Jenkins continues to influence those that he has, directly and indirectly, mentored over the years. Dr. Jenkins recently received the 2018 AAI Excellence in Mentoring Award and the Carole J. Bland Outstanding Faculty Mentoring Award for his efforts. In a news release, President Eric Kaler stated: "Professor Jenkins exemplifies the very best of our University in teaching, research, and scholarship.” Read more here
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Announcements
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Tea and Talk!!
every Monday and Thursday
2:30 p.m. | 2-163 WMBB
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May 20
Immunology Journal Club
Oscar Barrero-Hogquist Lab
9:00-10:00 a.m. | 1-125 CCRB
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Annual review-manadatory for all LMP employees
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May 21
Annual review-manadatory for all LMP employees
Infection and Immunity Research Conference
Matt Pullen, MD & Serin Edwin Erayil, MD
Medical Fellow-Medicine/IDIM & Peds ID
12:00-1:00 p.m. | 1-101 MRF(lunch provided)
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May 22
Immunology Supergroup
Jenkins Lab
1:30-2:30 p.m. | 1-125 CCRB
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ATC Practice Talks
4:00-5:00 p.m. | Surgery Conference Room, 11-157 PWB
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May 27
Immunology Journal Club
Holiday-No Seminar
9:00-10:00 a.m. | 1-125 CCRB
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May 29
Immunology Supergroup
Griffith Lab
1:30-2:30 p.m. | 1-125 CCRB
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May 30
Final Defense Seminar
Lee Meier-Binstadt Lab
"Defining Mechanisms of Inflammation and Fibrosis in Cardiac Valve Disease"
12:00-1:00 p.m. | 1-110 LRB/MTRF
Looking for a place to write?
If you are writing and need a quiet place to gather your thoughts, we have a spot for you.
See Annette Bethke, 2-142 WMBB to check out the office key.