Respiratory & Systemic Diseases
Immunology
Ricardo Pujol Borrell
Principal investigators Mónica Martinez Gallo | Researchers Roger Colobran Oriol, Teresa Español Boren, Manuel Hernández González, Ana María Marín Sánchez, Elena Sánchez Zapardiel
Summary
A year of advances in thyroid autoimmunity and in immunodeficiencies.
The unexpected functional expression of TSHR by thymocytes and the ability of its autoantibodies from Graves’ disease to activate TSHR, provides a long sought explanation for GD-associated thymic enlargement and for the origin of autoantibodies to TSHR (Giménez-Barcons et al JI 2015). In addtion the first self-antigens from non thymic antigens have been detected in the human thymic HLA-DRs peptidome this opening a new window to understand central tolerance in a work lead by Dr D Jaraquemada of UAB-IBB (Alvarez I et al. JAI, 2015)
In a join effort with other groups of VHIR and of Banc de Sang i Texits (BST) and using NGS more patients are being diagnosed and treated for known and newly described immunodeficiencies. HUVH-VHIR-BST is becoming a major reference centre in this field (publications appearing in 2016).
Other highlights include the initiation of the RAPID a HUVH-VHIR-BST join program for the quick diagnosis of newborn children with immunodeficiencies an the filing of the application for the reaccreditation as Centre of Excellence of the FOCIS (www.focisnet.org), that was confirmed in June 2016.