Casali Lab

Research focus

NIH R01 · 2024

Epigenetics of the autoantibody response in systemic lupus

PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT. Epigenetics of the autoantibody response in systemic lupus. Like “mature” antibody responses to viruses and bacteria, the lupus autoantibody response requires B cell class- switch DNA recombination (CSR), somatic hypermutation (SHM) and plasma cell differentiation. As we have shown, epigenetic factors, including histone modifiers (such as Sirt1) and inhibitors (such as butyrate) modulate B cell expression of AID (gene: AICDA/Aicda) and Blimp-1 (PRDM1/Prdm1), which are critically for CSR/SHM and plasma cell differentiation, respectively. Towards a better definition of the epigenetic landscape of lupus B cells, we hypothesize that Tet2, a key epigenetic factor,…

From the public funding record at NIH RePORTER. Describes the funded project, not the reviews below.