Research interests
Group 1 innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), namely natural killer cells (NK cells) and ILC1s, are part of the innate immune system and possess germline-encoded activating and inhibitory receptors. NK cells are typically considered circulating cells, while ILC1s are regarded as their tissue-resident counterparts.
In a recent study, we demonstrated that conventional NK cells can establish tissue residency upon acute infections. Furthermore, these tissue-resident NK cells (trNK) are activated rapidly and exhibit an accelerated effector response to secondary challenges (Torcellan et al. 2024).
In this project, we aim to investigate the underlying mechanisms that lead to the reactivation of trNK. We hypothesize that other immune cells, could engage in crosstalk with trNK to ensure a fast and sufficient immune response. Furthermore, we intend to characterize the tissue niche and function of these newly described trNK.
