The molecular basis of T cell differentiation

Our laboratory has studied the molecular basis of T helper cell differentiation. We have used reporter transgenic mice, selective hybridization techniques, and studies of cell signaling to show that a complex pattern of gene expression is reprogrammed as the decision is made to become either a Th1 or Th2 cell. Many of these components have been identified, and their mechanisms of action elucidated. Understanding these mechanisms is likely to lead in the long-term to ways to intervene in these processes and, therefore, to direct immune response in therapeutically useful directions.