Research Interests
The complement system is part of the immune system and consists of over 50 proteins. Complement serves many homeostatic physiologic functions, not least protection from infection. However, under certain conditions complement can be aberrantly and over activated and the system that normally provides effective protection against pathogens and infected/damaged cells is instead directed toward healthy cells and tissues. Mis-directed complement activation and the ensuing inflammatory response plays a central role in a plethora of diseases and disease conditions, from stroke, cancer, autoimmune disease, transplant rejection and even dementia.
The research of the Tomlinson’s lab is focused on how complement drives these pathological conditions and on ways to mitigate the effects of inappropriate complement activation. We use a combination of approaches including transgenic mice, a toolbox of complement inhibitors that are specifically targeted to anatomical sites and that inhibit different parts of the complement pathway, high resolution microscopy and various high dimensional analyses. Most of our studies utilize mouse models of disease and injury. Although the laboratory has been somewhat agnostic with regard to the type of disease/injury under study, our recent focus has been brain injury (stroke and traumatic brain injury) and composite tissue transplant. We are also interested in long-term outcomes after brain injury, particularly in the context of neurodegenerative disease and dementia.
We have developed a number of site-targeted complement inhibitors that we utilize as investigate tools in mouse models, but are also interested in translation of these inhibitors into the clinic. The laboratory has forged close collaborations with several clinicians, both within MUSC and externally, which has provided valuable perspectives for the translations of therapeutics we have developed. To this end, we have several licensed patents for complement inhibitors, some of which are in commercial development.
Publications (199 Citations)
