Objective
With more than 10 million cases annually, tuberculosis (TB) remains a global health problem. TB epidemic is exacerbated by the spread of multidrug-resistant TB. Host-directed therapies (HDTs) can improve immune mechanisms by augmenting the ability of host cells to kill M. tuberculosis (Mtb) or by modulating the immune response to prevent excessive inflammation, cell death and tissue damage. Progress with HDT development has been slowed down by the limited understanding of host-pathogen interactions during Mtb infection. Screens of the whole human genome can identify novel genes involved in the immune responses to Mtb infection and susceptibility to TB. Previously, we successfully used genome-wide association studies to identify human genes associated with susceptibility to TB. Here, we will for the first time use the groundbreaking CRISPR technology to screen the human genome in macrophages infected with Mtb and discover genes that are critically involved in host-pathogen interactions. Then, we will comprehensively characterise pathways that mediate impacts of these genes on both the human macrophage and the intracellular Mtb bacilli using dual transcriptome analyses and high-throughput microscopy assays. This novel approach will dissect crucial mechanisms of host-pathogen interaction during Mtb infection and will point to new targets for HDTs of TB.
Field of science
- /natural sciences/biological sciences/genetics and heredity/genome
- /medical and health sciences/health sciences/public and environmental health/epidemics prevention/immunisation
- /medical and health sciences/clinical medicine/pneumology/tuberculosis
Topic(s)
Call for proposal
ERC-2018-ADG
See other projects for this call
Funding Scheme
ERC-ADG - Advanced GrantHost institution
1081 HV Amsterdam
Netherlands
Beneficiaries (2)
1081 HV Amsterdam
CB2 1TN Cambridge
