Autoimmune diseases arise when the body mounts an immune response against a specific organ or tissue. Therapeutic interventions against autoimmunity are hampered because the molecular and cellular entities targeted by the immune system are largely unknown. In addition, how the components of the immune system interact to mediate autoimmune inflammation is not well understood. PrIISM investigators are using multidisciplinary approaches to develop effective treatments for a variety of autoimmune diseases. These include T and B cell autoimmune diseases associated with primary immune deficiencies, rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis, and autoimmune liver diseases.

Basic and clinical immunologists at the PrIISM Institute are using whole genome and exome sequencing to identify new monogenic causes of autoimmunity; next generation sequencing-based tools for discovering autoantigens; highly multiplexed analytical strategies to generate integrated perspectives onto autoimmune pathogenesis; development of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies; profiling the signatures of cytokines, chemokines and other soluble proteins at the local and systemic level to identify potential autoimmune biomarkers; computational approaches and single cell analyses to improve the diagnosis and individualized therapy of patients with autoimmune diseases. This collective approach by PrIISM scientists is aimed towards elucidating autoimmune disease pathogenesis and development of improved diagnostic, prophylactic, and therapeutic modalities.

Investigators with a major focus in autoimmunity include: Konstantina Alexandropoulos, Paolo Cravedi, Charlotte Cunningham-Rundles, Yizhou Dong, Karen Edelblum, Percio Gulko, Dirk Homann, Amir Horowitz, Seunghee Kim-Schulze, Sergio Lira, Daniel Puleston, Robert Samstein