Taishin Akiyama
Associate Professor,Institute of Medican Science,University of Tokyo

Immune reactions toward self-organs or harmless external antigens were suppressed in healthy body, which is a state called immune tolerance. Breakdown of immune tolerance results in autoimmune or allergy, and its manipulation may enforce the immune reactivity toward cancer.

Thymus is an organ inducing immune tolerance as well as developing T cells. In thymus, medullar epithelial cells play critical roles on the induction of immune tolerance.

The aims of this study are to elucidate the molecular mechanism of immune tolerance induced by thymic medullary epithelial cells and then to establish artificial systems to regulate immune tolerance.