Buckner, Jane Hoyt MD

Autoimmune disease presents a major health hazard to our population and can be devastating to individual patients. To date, there is no therapy that can prevent or cure autoimmune disease. The proposed studies will investigate how naïve T cells promote the transition from sub-clinical autoimmunity to autoimmune disease, focusing on this transition in individuals at-risk for type 1 diabetes and in individuals with Down syndrome, which is a genetic condition at high-risk for developing autoimmune disease.

The proposed research is directly relevant to public health as it focuses on understanding the mechanisms that underlie autoimmunity in type 1 diabetes, multiple sclerosis and rheumatoid arthritis. Furthermore, it will provide insight into the patient response to therapy targeting the interleukin-6 receptor.

The proposed research is relevant to public health because it investigates why individuals with Down syndrome are at increased risk for autoimmune disease yet are protected from development of solid tumors. It will advance our understanding of anti-tumor mechanisms and thus provide insight into how to improve cancer immunotherapy. This knowledge will also be important for developing therapeutic approaches to treat autoimmune disease in Down syndrome.