Project: Regulators of Self Antigen Expression in the Thymus: Guardians of Immunological Tolerance – SelfExpress

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Project : SelfExpress

The thymus plays a critical role in establishing central tolerance by producing a diverse repertoire of non-autoreactive T cells. The expression of a high diversity of tissue-restricted self-antigens (TRAs) by thymic medullary epithelial cells (mTECs) is crucial for the elimination of autoreactive thymocytes and the selection of regulatory T cells (Tregs) capable of suppressing autoimmunity. Although a large number of TRAs are controlled by the transcription factors (TFs) AIRE and FEZF2, half of the TRAs have no known regulators to date. This lack of knowledge leaves significant gaps in our understanding of which “self” is expressed in the thymus and how central immune tolerance is established.

The SelfExpress project aims to identify the “missing regulators” that constitute the TRA regulome and to characterize their respective mode of action in mTECs.