This research deals with the interaction between the reproductive system and the immune system, providing a unique perspective on two biological systems that are normally considered separately. This research may help to improve the treatment of infertility, reproductive tract infections and testicular cancer, but may also lead to new treatments for inflammatory diseases that hospitalise or kill many thousands of patients each year, and for preventing graft failure in transplant recipients.
Interferon Epsilon, A Key Cytokine In The Pathophysiology Of The Female Reproductive Tract Mucosa
Funder
National Health and Medical Research Council
Funding Amount
$793,303.00
Summary
The female reproductive tract is a complex environment, which permits pregnancy but protects against infections, all under the influence of hormones and the resident microbial flora. We have discovered a novel protein called interferon epsilon that acts on cells in the female reproductive tract to regulate protection against infections. We aim to discover how this new protein works and will determine its therapeutic potential in infections and inflammatory diseases affecting women's health.
This study aims to determine the extent to which semen is important in initiating the maternal immune response to the fetus and placenta during pregnancy. We postulate that exposure to paternal proteins in sperm and other factors present in the semen may have a cumulative, beneficial effect in 'educating' the female immune system to respond in the correct way to the embryo when pregnancy occurs. To investigate this, the behaviour and movements of white blood cells responding to semen will be stu ....This study aims to determine the extent to which semen is important in initiating the maternal immune response to the fetus and placenta during pregnancy. We postulate that exposure to paternal proteins in sperm and other factors present in the semen may have a cumulative, beneficial effect in 'educating' the female immune system to respond in the correct way to the embryo when pregnancy occurs. To investigate this, the behaviour and movements of white blood cells responding to semen will be studied during the period after mating, in which the uterus prepares for and accommodates to pregnancy. In particular, the study will focus on the roles of a specific chemical messenger substance in semen, called transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta, which triggers the molecular changes leading to maternal immune tolerance. A deeper understanding of these events will have an important impact in human and veterinary medicine where implantation failure is a major cause of reproductive loss and inadequate placental growth poses a threat to the health of the conceptus both in utero and into adult life.Read moreRead less