In the afternoon of May 27, 2016, Dr. Hai Qi, Professor of Tsinghua University, gave a lecture titled“T-B cell entanglements and ICOSL-driven feed-forward regulation of germinal centre reaction”as part of ShanghaiTech Life Science Research Seminar.
Dr. Hai Qi is dedicated in research of immunity for a long term. His team uses series of advanced techniques including cellular and molecular immunology methods, genetically modified mouse, and intravital imaging technique basing on diatomic microscopy, to investigate mechanisms on T-B cells interactions, adhesion, and immigrations as well as explore the role of these mechanisms in autoimmune diseases.
Antibodies are the basis for a majority of successful antimicrobial vaccines. A subset of effector T cells, T follicular helper (Tfh) cells control the formation of, and the cellular reactions that occur in, germinal centers. Within these organized lymphoid tissue microstructures, B cells proliferate and somatically mutate to produce long-lived, high-affinity antibody-producing cells and memory B cells. Proper recruitment and retention of Tfh cells in the germinal center are crucial for their helper functions and are under elaborate control by various guidance mechanisms. In the lecture, Dr. Qi discussed his recent published and unpublished studies that reveal an unconventional combination of co-stimulatory, co-inhibitory, and neuronal guidance molecules collectively regulate the positioning of follicular helper T cells with unprecedented sophistication.
