differences between the fetal, neonatal, and adult immune system
The mammalian immune system develops progressively during ontogeny. In both mice and humans, the types of immune cells that develop in infants differ from those that develop in adulthood. Our goal is to understand the differences between the immune cells that develop preferentially in fetal, neonatal, and adult life, and determine the functional impact of these differences in promoting host immunity or immunopathology.
Recently, we have identified, in mouse models, lineages of innate-like tissue-resident B lymphocytes and macrophages that develop in the fetus (but not adults) independently of the long-term hematopoietic stem cells (LT-HSC). We are also using humanized mice to investigate the development and function of these innate-like tissue-resident B lymphocytes and macrophages in humans, during both infancy and adulthood.