The Troubled Immune System
Research type
Research Study
Full title
The Troubled Immune System (TrIm): molecular origins of immune dysregulation
IRAS ID
251734
Contact name
Sophie Hambleton
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Newcastle Joint Research Office
Clinicaltrials.gov Identifier
BH170919, Organisation's own funding reference
Duration of Study in the UK
2 years, 11 months, 28 days
Research summary
The human immune system draws on a wide range of powerful weapons to protect us against infection. It stands to reason that those weapons also pose a threat if mistakenly targeted to our own tissues, so the healthy immune system is actively held in check. A breakdown in immune regulation can produce common autoimmune diseases like rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and insulin-dependent diabetes. Understanding the balance between protection against infection and vulnerability to autoimmune disease is an important priority for researchers and clinicians alike.
To learn more about the immune system, this research project will focus on a special group of patients. These are children who develop severe problems with self-directed immune responses and/or unusual infections, early in life. Experience suggests that most of these children have an inherited problem with their immune system. In our research, we will sequence patients’ DNA to find the genetic spelling mistakes that cause these problems. We will try to work out how the affected genes take part in proper function of the immune system. To achieve this we will use modern techniques to look in great detail at immune cells from patients and healthy people. By describing new diseases of the immune system and their mechanism, our research will improve patient outcomes.
REC name
North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
20/NE/0044
Date of REC Opinion
28 Jul 2020
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion