Welcome to our lab!
We study host-pathogen interactions and immunity to infection. Our research focuses on the intracellular protozoan parasite Toxoplasma gondii, which infects an estimated one third of the human population worldwide and virtually all warm-blooded animals. In immune competent individuals, T. gondii is controlled by the immune system, and infections are typically mild or asymptomatic. The parasite establishes a chronic infection, however, which persists in various tissues in the body, including the brain, heart, and eye. In immune suppressed individuals, T. gondii can cause severe, life-threatening neurological disease.
We are particularly interested in the balance between host defense and disease progression, which reinforces the complex relationship of the immune response with the parasite. The goal of our research is to define the cellular and molecular interactions between T. gondii and host immune cells to better understand the development of disease and to facilitate the design of more effective anti-parasite therapeutics.
