DSSS - Domestication and Innovation: Half a billion years of vertebrate immunity

Revolutionary advances in cellular and molecular biology, genomics and methods of genetic modification now offer unprecedented opportunities to consider, at unprecedented scale, the impact of the astounding phenotypic diversity of vertebrates on immune system function. Using a broad range of model and non-model organisms, we seek to understand how innate and adaptive immunity work together to ensure tissue homeostasis and to coordinate the fight against infections. We expect that the emerging general principles and the discovery of their evolutionarily selected variations will inspire the future development of novel therapeutic strategies for human immune disorders.