Regulation of tissue-resident myeloid cells controlling acute GvHD. (B09)

• Subject Area: Hematology, Oncology ; Immunology ; Medical Microbiology and Mycology, Hygiene, Molecular Infection Biology
• Term: since 2018
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 324392634

Acute GvHD primarily affects the gut, liver, and skin, while sparing organs like the kidney through unclear mechanisms. We identified perivascular PD-L1hi intestinal macrophages (MPs) as key regulators of acute GvHD. While renal MPs lose PD-L1 expression following microbial priming, conditioning-induced microbial translocation rapidly recruits PD-L1+Ly6C+ monocytes that restore the renal PD-L1+ MP network. This project investigates how microbial shifts - whether induced by conditioning or through eubiotic restoration - govern organ-specific myeloid resilience, thereby suppressing GvHD while preserving GvL effects.

• DFG Programme: CRC/Transregios
• Subproject of: TRR 221: Modulation of graft-versus-host and graft-versus-leukemia immune responses after allogeneic stem cell transplantation
• Applicant Institution: Universität Regensburg
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Andreas Beilhack; Dr. Mercedes Gomez de Agüero, since 1/2022