Reserach

Researchers

PRESTOCREST
  • FY 2010
  • FY 2011
  • FY 2012

  • Makoto ARITA
  • Tatsushi IGAKI
  • Naoko OHTANI
  • Masatsugu OH-HORA
  • Shinobu SAIJO
  • Tomohiro SAWA
  • Yuki SUGIURA
  • Kohsuke TAKEDA
  • Norihiko TAKEDA
  • Yasushi HIROTA
  • Kazuyo MORO
  • Masakatsu YAMASHITA
  • Hiroshi WATARAI

Hiroshi Watarai – Elucidation and control of the mechanisms underlying chronic inflammation mediated by natural killer T cellsl

Researcher

Hiroshi Watarai
Associate Professor, Center for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine, The Institute of Medical Science, The University of Tokyo
http://www.ims.u-tokyo.ac.jp/imsut/en/lab/stemcell/
Research Theme
Elucidation and control of the mechanisms underlying chronic inflammation mediated by natural killer T cellsl

Although the presence of Th2 cells and eosinophils can explain many features of allergic asthma, this paradigm cannot account for many observations in non-allergic asthma. Natural killer T (NKT) cells have been proposed to contribute immensely to the development of not only allergic but also non-allergic asthma especially induced with viral infection or air pollution. These NKT cells can be categorized into Th2- or Th17-like subtypes, which mediate acute and chronic inflammation by secretion of cytokines and recruitment of other immune cells. The importance of NKT cells especially in non-allergic asthma will be studied and elucidated which are widely accepted to be Th2 independent.

Research Results
The 5 Cardinal Signs of Inflammation