Research Group Mucosal Infection Immunology

The junior research group “Mucosal Infection Immunology” of PD Dr. Matthias Lochner is investigating the impact of the intestinal immune system on inflammation and pathology during gastrointestinal infections. One major focus of Dr. Lochner’s work is to understand the function of immune cell subsets during the infection-related immune response against intestinal bacterial pathogens such as Citrobacter rodentium or Clostridium difficile, one of the leading causes of hospital-acquired gastrointestinal infections in the western world. In particular, Matthias Lochner’s group focuses on the function of innate cell types including DCs and innate lymphoid cells (ILC) as well their interaction with the gut epithelium or important intestinal T cell subsets such as Th17 and Treg cells. In order to develop novel translational approaches to modulate immune responses in the gut, the Lochner group also strives to understand the processes of the cellular metabolism that govern the development and function of immune cells and the intestinal epithelium during gut infection and inflammation.