Servicenavigation

Project Details

Back

Projekt Print View

TRR 130:  B Cells: Immunity and Autoimmunity

Subject Area Biology
Medicine
Term from 2013 to 2022
Project identifier Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 215346292
 
The vision of the consortium of the TRR130 is to understand and explain the details of B cell activation and B cell induced antibody responses, as well as their dysregulation in autoimmune diseases. Detailed understanding of these processes is needed to be able to manipulate B cell fate and function for therapeutic purposes. The COVID-19 pandemic with all its open questions about virus-induced immune responses has highlighted the urgency to examine B-cell and antibody responses in much detail. A long-term B cell memory response against SARS-CoV-2 will be crucial for both immunity and for vaccination strategies. The TRR130 aims to investigate these new research topics in the next funding period. Furthermore, new regulatory functions of B cells have been discovered and the clinical application of B cell targeting antibodies has led to a reconsideration of the importance of B cells in autoimmune diseases. The projects of the TRR130 cover many aspects of B cell activation, for example, the change from the resting to the activated state of the B cell, the B cell receptor triggered signalling pathways and the differences between the naïve and memory B cell responses. Another focus is the regulation of the germinal centre responses. Several projects examine the differentiation to plasma cells, including the dynamics and survival conditions of plasma cells. There is a focus on the regulation of IgE responses in helminth infections and allergy and many projects are interested in the dysregulation of B cell responses in autoimmune diseases. A special feature of this TRR130 is the combination of basic research in mouse models and of human studies, particularly in autoimmune patients. One further aim of this consortium is to develop new therapeutic strategies to target antibody-mediated autoimmune diseases. Although B cell depleting antibodies, such as rituximab, have been successfully applied in autoimmune patients, it has so far not been possible to target antibody-secreting plasma cells. Scientists of this proposal developed several new targeting strategies for plasma cells. One targeting strategy involving a proteasome inhibitor was first successfully tested in a mouse model and has now been successfully applied in a collaborative effort of several groups of the TRR130 in the first human systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients. Our TRR130 proposal for the third funding period now combines six locations, Erlangen, Berlin, Freiburg, Göttingen, Ulm and Munich. Three central service projects on intravital multiphoton microscopy in Berlin, on proteomics in Freiburg and on genetic mouse models in Erlangen have strongly contributed to the synergy of the projects of this consortium so far. Two of these will continue in the third funding period. This consortium has also put a substantial amount of effort into a coordinated and attractive doctoral training programme, the IRTG, which has been very active during the second funding period and is proposed to continue.
DFG Programme CRC/Transregios

Completed projects

 
 

Additional Information

© 2024 DFG Disclaimer / Copyright / Privacy Policy

Textvergrößerung und Kontrastanpassung