Skip to main content
Go to the home page of the European Commission (opens in new window)
English English
CORDIS - EU research results
CORDIS

Characterisation and impact of kidney-resident Tregs in kidney physiology and pathologies

Project description

Kidney-resident regulatory T cells in health and disease

Patients suffering from chronic or end-stage renal disease often resort to kidney transplantation as a cure. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) have been proposed as a means of inducing tissue-specific tolerance as an alternative to systemic immune suppression following transplantation. At the same time, they protect from injury and promote tissue repair. However, it is yet unclear whether this effect is mediated by tissue-resident Tregs or those in circulation. The EU-funded Kidney-Treg project will characterise Tregs in the kidney using state-of-the-art molecular biology techniques and determine their impact on kidney physiology. The key objective is to explore the functions of these kidney-resident cells as novel therapeutic tools.

Objective

Tregs are a subtype of T cells exerting immunosuppressive functions that are vital to prevent autoimmunity. Recently, tissue-resident Tregs have been proposed to be phenotypically and functionally distinct from the generic Tregs in circulation. Systemic Treg supplementation and depletion studies strongly support a role for Tregs in protection from injury and promotion of tissue repair in models of kidney diseases, highlighting the potential of harnessing Tregs in these pathologies. However, due to the systemic nature of the Treg manipulation in these studies, it is unknown if the effect resides in systemic impacts or in tissue-based impacts. The aim of this project is to characterise Tregs located in the kidney and to expand the kidney-resident Treg population, without impacting the systemic population, in order to evaluate their specific impact on the physiology and pathologies of the kidney. First, I will characterise the kidney-resident Tregs using state-of-the-art molecular biology techniques, such as scRNAseq, and an innovative mouse model of cell fate mapping based on a photoactivatable Cre-recombinase. Second, I will evaluate their specific functions in physiology and pathologies of the kidney using a mouse model of tissue-specific Treg expansion uniquely available in the host laboratory. As well as the novel biology exploring the potential functions of kidney-resident Tregs, the distinction between systemic and kidney-based effects is critical to develop new therapeutic tools aiming to target kidney-resident Tregs. The induction of tissue-specific tolerance for kidney autoimmunity or transplantation, without inducing systemic immune suppression, constitute a promising and feasible alternative to existing immunosuppressive therapies. The knowledge and experience gained from this project combined with my scientific and personal development will give me all the skills I need to achieve my objective to pursue an exciting scientific career in academia.

Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)

CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.

You need to log in or register to use this function

Keywords

Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)

Programme(s)

Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.

Topic(s)

Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.

Funding Scheme

Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.

MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)

See all projects funded under this funding scheme

Call for proposal

Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.

(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2019

See all projects funded under this call

Coordinator

THE BABRAHAM INSTITUTE
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 224 933,76
Address
Babraham Hall
CB22 3AT Cambridge
United Kingdom

See on map

Region
East of England East Anglia Cambridgeshire CC
Activity type
Research Organisations
Links
Total cost

The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.

€ 224 933,76
My booklet 0 0