![Insights Into Antibody Creation and Cancer]()
The immune system relies on mutations in genes that code for antibodies to produce the wide variety of antibodies that protect us against pathogens. The enzyme causing these mutations, activation-induced deaminase (AID), sometimes mutates other genes as well, leading to B-cell lymphoma and other cancers. Matthew Scharff, M.D., and Thomas MacCarthy, Ph.D., from Stony Brook University, were awarded a five-year, $2.9 million National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases Multiple Principle Investigator grant to determine how AID targets specific regions within antibody genes. Using computational modeling of antibody gene sequences and biological experiments, the team will identify DNA signatures within antibody-coding genes that attract AID activity. Learning more about the mechanisms underlying antibody diversification could lead to strategies for producing protective antibodies in patients. In addition, understanding how AID induces gene mutations could help to identify factors that put people at risk for cancer. Dr. Scharff is a distinguished professor of cell biology and of medicine and holds the Harry Eagle Chair in Cancer Research/National Women’s Division. Dr. MacCarthy is assistant professor of applied mathematics and statistics at Stony Brook University, who did his postdoctoral training with Dr. Aviv Bergman at Einstein. (1R01AI132507-01A1)
Posted on: Monday, March 26, 2018