Mesenchymal stroma cells as organizers of immunological memory in the bone marrow

• Applicants: Professor Dr. Hyun-Dong Chang; Professor Dr. Andreas Radbruch
• Subject Area: Immunology ; Rheumatology
• Term: from 2010 to 2017
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 169248505

Mesenchymal stroma cells (MSC) of bone marrow define the numbers of immunological memory Th and memory plasma cells by providing dedicated niches for their survival as nonproliferating cells in the memory phase of immune responses, i.e. in the absence of antigen. In this project we will (1) define the interaction between MSC and other cells of the bone marrow for the generation of the niche for immunological memory, (2) elucidate the crosstalk between MSC and memory lymphocytes, (3) define the heterogeneity of MSC in the bone marrow, and (4) study the differentiation and imprinting of MSC.

• DFG Programme: Priority Programmes
• Subproject of: SPP 1468: Osteoimmunology - IMMUNOBONE - A Programme to Unravel the Mutual Interactions between the Immune System and Bone