Ecological immunology
I investigate (i) the role of the social and ecological environments in shaping individual immune responses, (ii) the proximate endocrine mediators of immunocompetence, including prenatal programming of immune function, and (iii) linkages between immune phenotypes, parasitism, and host life histories. I study these questions in a wild population of meerkats in South Africa's Kalahari Desert.
Prenatal programming of immune function: does mom's status matter?
A mother’s social status influences aspects of her offspring’s prenatal environment (e.g., via exposure to hormones and nutrients) and postnatal environment (e.g., via maternal care, socialization, and food provisioning). I am examining the consequences of maternal social status, including the prenatal endocrine milieu, for offspring health and survival.
Dispersal
Natal dispersal is a critical and ubiquitous life-history process affecting the socio-spatial dynamics, genetic health, and persistence of populations. Yet, we lack a basic understanding about the demographics of dispersal success or about the mechanisms that may influence individual strategies and outcomes. I am collaborating with experts in movement ecology and metapopulation dynamics from Zurich University who are tracking and sampling meerkats at key time points prior to, during, and following dispersal. As part of this larger project, I am investigating 1) how individual physiology (e.g., hormone concentrations, immunocompetence) changes during dispersal, and 2) if maternal social status, potentially via an androgenic mechanism, influences the dispersal success of female offspring.
Evolutionary Medicine
Reversing evolutionary mismatch using biome enrichment
The concept of ‘evolutionary mismatch’ is a fundamental principle of evolutionary medicine and explains how recent changes in Western culture have led to increases in a variety of inflammation-associated diseases. These diseases include allergies, autoimmune conditions, and a certain neuropsychiatric disorders including migraine headaches, anxiety, and depression. Foremost among the mismatches that lead to these diseases is a loss of biodiversity from the ecosystem of the human body. Originally attributed to hygiene, this mismatch involves the disappearance of symbiotic organisms, most notably the virtual absence of symbiotic worms, called helminths, which previously inhabited our bodies. Although methods for reconstituting the biome are varied, helminthic therapy, or treatment with symbiotic worms, is the most promising. In collaboration with William Parker (Duke University Medical School), I am developing techniques to make this innovative treatment accessible.
Reversing evolutionary mismatch using biome enrichment
The concept of ‘evolutionary mismatch’ is a fundamental principle of evolutionary medicine and explains how recent changes in Western culture have led to increases in a variety of inflammation-associated diseases. These diseases include allergies, autoimmune conditions, and a certain neuropsychiatric disorders including migraine headaches, anxiety, and depression. Foremost among the mismatches that lead to these diseases is a loss of biodiversity from the ecosystem of the human body. Originally attributed to hygiene, this mismatch involves the disappearance of symbiotic organisms, most notably the virtual absence of symbiotic worms, called helminths, which previously inhabited our bodies. Although methods for reconstituting the biome are varied, helminthic therapy, or treatment with symbiotic worms, is the most promising. In collaboration with William Parker (Duke University Medical School), I am developing techniques to make this innovative treatment accessible.
Classical Immunology
Prime-boost strategies for generating functional memory T cells
For my master’s research, I studied cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), which play a critical role in the control of intracellular pathogens and cancer cells and generate a rapid immune response upon reencountering pathogens. The overall aim of my research was to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which memory CTLs are formed and maintained over long periods of time.
Prime-boost strategies for generating functional memory T cells
For my master’s research, I studied cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs), which play a critical role in the control of intracellular pathogens and cancer cells and generate a rapid immune response upon reencountering pathogens. The overall aim of my research was to understand the molecular and cellular mechanisms by which memory CTLs are formed and maintained over long periods of time.