Sohair Geyer - IUIS Beijing ICI 2019 Presentation

Sohair Geyer was one the members who represented the Division of Immunology at the 17th International Congress of Immunology held in Beijing in October. Sohair's presentation was entitled "Investigating Host Immune Responses in Astrocytes During CNS-TB Infection".

Sohair Geyer - Investigating Host Immune Responses in Astrocytes During CNS-TB Infection

Dissemination of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) to the central nervous system (CNS) is the severest clinical extra-pulmonary manifestation of tuberculosis (TB) but little is known about the cells that regulate immune responses during CNS-TB infection. Although microglia are the prime resident immune-effector cells in the CNS, increasing evidence indicates that astrocytes, as the most abundant CNS glial cell population, regulate innate and adaptive immunity in CNS disease and injury. Our research evaluates the potential immunological role of astrocytes in CNS-TB by exploring their interactions and regulation of CNS inflammation following Mtb challenge. Our findings demonstrate that astrocytes can internalize Mtb in vitro; and induce and modulate cytokine responses in vivo supporting the regulatory role of astrocytes in maintaining a delicate balance through promoting cellular responses and limiting inflammation following CNS-Mtb infection. New knowledge on the role of astrocytes and their interaction with other cells within the CNS will significantly broaden overall understanding of host pathogen-relationship with respect to tuberculosis health challenges, essentially forming the basis of intervention strategies that could be developed for an improved prognosis and disease outcome.