Current Research
We have pioneered research in a historically understudied area of ophthalmology, the ocular microbiome and its effect(s) on ocular disease. Normally a highly contentious topic in ophthalmology, the ocular microbiome does, indeed, tune local immunity to prevent fungal and bacterial infection. Now, the St. Leger lab aims to extend those findings to explore how ocular resident bacteria may modulate immunity against viral infections like herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1), which have the potential cause blindness. To this end, the laboratory uses Corynebacterium masitidis as a candidate colonizer to explore how the ocular immunity is developed and maintained. Further, the lab has a keen interest in understanding mechanisms controlling gd T cells, which are critical for protection of the ocular surface from disease.
Selected Recent Publications
St Leger AJ, Hansen AM, Karauzum H, Horai R, Yu CR, Laurence A, Mayer-Barber KD, Silver P, Villasmil R, Egwuagu C, Datta SK, Caspi RR. STAT-3-independent production of IL-17 by mouse innate-like αβ T cells controls ocular infection. J Exp Med. 2018 Apr 2;215(4):1079-1090. PubMed PMID: 29490936.
St Leger AJ, Desai JV, Drummond RA, Kugadas A, Almaghrabi F, Silver P, Raychaudhuri K, Gadjeva M, Iwakura Y, Lionakis MS, Caspi RR. An Ocular Commensal Protects against Corneal Infection by Driving an Interleukin-17 Response from Mucosal γδ T Cells. Immunity. 2017 Jul 18;47(1):148-158.e5. PubMed PMID: 28709803; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5553552 (Highlighted by JAMA, Time Magazine, F1000, and others).
St Leger AJ, Jeon S, Hendricks RL. Broadening the repertoire of functional herpes simplex virus type 1-specific CD8+ T cells reduces viral reactivation from latency in sensory ganglia. J Immunol. 2013 Sep 1;191(5):2258-65. PubMed PMID: 23878317; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3779892.
St Leger AJ, Peters B, Sidney J, Sette A, Hendricks RL. Defining the herpes simplex virus-specific CD8+ T cell repertoire in C57BL/6 mice. J Immunol. 2011 Apr 1;186(7):3927-33. PubMed PMID: 21357536; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC3308013.