Nanoscale organisation of immune cell surfaces
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The nanoscale organisation of immune cell surfaces
IRAS ID
286613
Contact name
Daniel M. Davis
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
University of Manchester
Duration of Study in the UK
3 years, 0 months, 30 days
Research summary
Each of us relies for our survival on our immune system. Recent discoveries have equipped us not only to understand that system as never before but to develop new kinds of medicine which help the system better fight cancer, for example, or dampen it to thwart auto-immune disease. New kinds of microscope, super-resolution microscopes celebrated in the 2014 Nobel Prize for Chemistry, are one of the tools that allow us to study immune cells in unprecedented detail. Building on my training in physics and immunology, my research team has used these microscopes to study the changing arrangements of molecules in individual immune cells. Our hypothesis is that immune responses are regulated, in part, by miniscule, nanometre-scale, changes to the organisation of immune cell surfaces. The study will involve the isolation of peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBLs) from blood products obtained from the National Health Service Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), and blood samples from the Manchester Cancer Research Centre (MCRC) biobank, the Manchester Allergy, Respiratory & Thoracic Surgery (ManARTS) biobank, and the Continuum Long-term Survivor Study biobank. Ethical approval to work with samples from the biobanks is given as part of a successful application to use these samples and as such is not being sought as part of this application. We primarily use leucocyte cones, which are a by-product of the apheresis process used in platelet donations, that NHSBT make available for purchase as non-clinical components for research as they would otherwise be discarded. Donors give generic consent for research use as part of the donation process and are not identifiable. Here, we will test how the surface organisation of specific white blood cells (called Natural Killer cells and macrophages) varies in health and disease, as well as in individuals with variations in immune system genes. We will establish how these changes impact thresholds at which immune responses are switched on or off. As well as understanding how immune cells work, we hope to uncover new ways in which medicines can nudge their activity up or down. This research has been funded by Wellcome Trust, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), and Continuum Life Sciences.
REC name
West Midlands - Black Country Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/WM/0235
Date of REC Opinion
26 Aug 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion