Skip to content. | Skip to navigation

Garvan Institute

Sections
 

Immunobiology

 

Group Leader
Dr Stuart Tangye

 

Our focus is on understanding the development of B cells – the population of white blood cells responsible for the production of protective antibodies - and the regulation of antibody responses. We are particularly interested in understanding how the immune system responds to infections or vaccinations, such that it can provide us with a ‘memory’ of the response so that following subsequent exposure to the same infectious agent, our immune systems will respond more rapidly. We are also studying X-linked lymphoproliferative disease (XLP), a genetic disorder that results in an often-fatal immunodeficiency. These studies are being performed using a  cohort of XLP patients, as well as an animal model of this human disease. Overall, we hope to identify means to improve the immune response in individuals with immunodeficiencies and ways by which the immune system of patients with autoimmune diseases could be attenuated.

The lab receives grant support from the XLP Registry Trust (UK), NHMRC and the Cancer Council NSW.



Cindy MaSenior Research Officer
Dr Cindy Ma
Mainthan PalendiraSenior Research Officer
Dr Mainthan Palendira
elissa_deenick90.jpgSenior Research Officer
Dr Elissa Deenick
Danielle PreistleySenior Research Assistant
Danielle Priestley
Edwin HoResearch Assistant
Edwin Ho
santi_suryani90.JPGPhD Student
Santi Suryani
Anna ChanResearch Assistant
Anna Chan
PhD Student
Lucinda Berglund
Carol LowBSc Honours Student
Carol Low
BSc Honours Student
Megan Ives



News

 

Finding that could shed light on "golden staph", candida and allergies

MEDIA RELEASE: 01 Jul 2008
Recent scientific findings explain why people with Hyper IgE Syndrome, or ‘Job’s Syndrome’, are unusually susceptible to certain common infections. By revealing the exact molecular mechanisms involved, they also give us clues as to why some ‘healthy’ people are more prone to these infections than others, and suggest potential treatments.
 
 

Silencing of molecular 'conversation' may help curb severe allergies

MEDIA RELEASE: 30 Jun 2008
Scientists in Sydney have identified a process, a synergistic encounter between two molecules, that may account for the extreme allergic reactions some people experience. By silencing at least one of these molecules, it may be possible to treat allergies.
 
 

Managing the way our immune system remembers infection

01 Aug 2007
New Garvan research, published online in the prestigious PNAS journal, identifies which genes are involved in our bodies’ capacity to “remember” infection, and fight it the second time around. This knowledge could be useful in developing new vaccines.
 
 

Personal tools