Greenberg, Philip

Our lab studies the immunobiology of host T cell responses to infectious viruses and transformed cells. Analysis of T cell responses to pathogenic viral infections and tumors has demonstrated that reactive T cells are often rendered anergic or dysfunctional as a consequence of encounter with the antigen, and the basis for these defects and corrective molecular strategies are being explored. Tolerance to tumor antigens are being examined in transgenic mouse models that express tumor-derived proteins under the control of tissue-specific promoters- these models are making it possible to isolate and track antigen-specific tolerant cells, to use technologies such as gene expression arrays to identify defects, and to test molecular strategies for correcting defects. Immunity to human pathogenic viruses is being studied with the goal of defining methods to generate or augment protective immune responses. These studies include developing transgenic/knock-in mice expressing human genes to create models that better typify human immune responses, and these mice are being used to evaluate and improve the design of candidate HIV vaccines. Our lab is also pursing translational studies of adoptive therapy with cloned T cells to treat human malignancies.