Naked Immunology Webinars

The ability to sense the environment is essential to survival and is the primary purpose of the somatosensory nervous system. However, despite its presence in many conditions, the sensation of itch, and its importance in medicine, have been historically overlooked and under-appreciated.

This edition of Naked Immunology highlights how fundamental discoveries and the ensuing success of new therapeutics, have placed itch biology at the forefront of a translational revolution in the field of somatosensation and beyond.

Myeloid cells are key players when it comes to immunity! Understanding their differentiation pathway and how their activation status can modulate the development of pathological features in a broad range of inflammatory diseases is crucial to finding new therapeutic targets for drug development.
Lately, next generation transcriptomic analyses, such as single cell RNAseq coupled with bioinformatics, have allowed scientists to understand how myeloid cells (e.g., dendritic cells) can be primed to modulate T cell activation in atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. These data can also be used to recreate the full immune cell landscape in the skin.

Mast cells are tissue-resident immune cells best known for their detrimental role in allergic disorders via their expression of the high affinity IgE receptor (FceRI). Recently, the discovery of MRGPRX2 as a key receptor that regulates many aspects of mast cell biology, has opened new avenues for the field. In this webinar we discuss how skin mast cells integrate different stimuli to regulate their activation program and the consequences on frequent dermatoses. We also emphasize the importance of bidirectional communications between sensory neurons and MRGPRX2+ mast cells in the development of type 2 immunity-driven skin inflammation.