CANDIDATE: I am a dermatologist (MD PhD) and my broad career goal is to be an independent physician- scientist in human translational skin research, particularly in the area of psoriasis. I am proposing to become a multi-disciplinary patient-oriented researcher, with an excellent grasp of a number of technologies, which will allow me to investigate therapeutic, mechanistic and pathologic questions appropriately and deeply. ENVIRONMENT: Rockefeller University is a world-renowned institution with a rich history of bench-bedside research. It provides an ideal environment to carry out this type of clinical research with a dedicated GCRC- funded research hospital, outstanding laboratories, excellent core facilities and equipment, an innovative Clinical Scholars Program for translational research trainees, and several inspiring lecture and seminar programs. There is no fee-for-service medicine at Rockefeller University, so I can dedicate 100% of my time to this career development plan. RESEARCH PROJECT: Psoriasis offers an excellent model of type 1 autoimmunity, and there there is no ideal animal model of psoriasis to study. In the context of a clinical trial with efalizumab (anti-CD11a) for psoriasis, we identified a new type of cutaneous dendritic cell (DC) (CD11c+, HLA-DR+, CD86+, CD40+), which constitutes the most abundant type of leukocyte in psoriasis lesions. It also expresses TNF and iNOS, so these cells may be the human equivalent of recently described murine TNF- and indicible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS)-producing (TIP)-DCs. I plan to begin basic characterization of complex DC subsets that exist in blood and skin of humans, using efalizumab as a tool to modulate psoriasis disease activity, so that the contribution of different DC subsets to disease pathogenesis can be better refined. Furthermore, I will determine the extent to which efalizumab has direct effects on growth, differentiation and activation of DCs versus indirect effects through T cell modulation.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS)
Type
Mentored Patient-Oriented Research Career Development Award (K23)
Project #
5K23AR052404-05
Application #
7789527
Study Section
Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases Special Grants Review Committee (AMS)
Program Officer
Cibotti, Ricardo
Project Start
2006-04-01
Project End
2011-03-31
Budget Start
2010-04-01
Budget End
2011-03-31
Support Year
5
Fiscal Year
2010
Total Cost
$135,378
Indirect Cost
Name
Rockefeller University
Department
Dermatology
Type
Other Domestic Higher Education
DUNS #
071037113
City
New York
State
NY
Country
United States
Zip Code
10065
Johnson-Huang, Leanne M; Suarez-Farinas, Mayte; Pierson, Katherine C et al. (2012) A single intradermal injection of IFN-ýý induces an inflammatory state in both non-lesional psoriatic and healthy skin. J Invest Dermatol 132:1177-87
Aubert, Pamela; Suárez-Fariñas, Mayte; Mitsui, Hiroshi et al. (2012) Homeostatic tissue responses in skin biopsies from NOMID patients with constitutive overproduction of IL-1?. PLoS One 7:e49408
Johnson-Huang, Leanne M; Pensabene, Cara A; Shah, Kejal R et al. (2012) Post-therapeutic relapse of psoriasis after CD11a blockade is associated with T cells and inflammatory myeloid DCs. PLoS One 7:e30308
Suárez-Fariñas, Mayte; Fuentes-Duculan, Judilyn; Lowes, Michelle A et al. (2011) Resolved psoriasis lesions retain expression of a subset of disease-related genes. J Invest Dermatol 131:391-400
Pettersen, Julia S; Fuentes-Duculan, Judilyn; Suarez-Farinas, Mayte et al. (2011) Tumor-associated macrophages in the cutaneous SCC microenvironment are heterogeneously activated. J Invest Dermatol 131:1322-30
Zaba, Lisa C; Fuentes-Duculan, Judilyn; Eungdamrong, Narat John et al. (2010) Identification of TNF-related apoptosis-inducing ligand and other molecules that distinguish inflammatory from resident dendritic cells in patients with psoriasis. J Allergy Clin Immunol 125:1261-1268.e9
Suárez-Fariñas, Mayte; Lowes, Michelle A; Zaba, Lisa C et al. (2010) Evaluation of the psoriasis transcriptome across different studies by gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA). PLoS One 5:e10247
Suarez-Farinas, Mayte; Shah, Kejal R; Haider, Asifa S et al. (2010) Personalized medicine in psoriasis: developing a genomic classifier to predict histological response to Alefacept. BMC Dermatol 10:1
Johnson-Huang, Leanne M; Suárez-Fariñas, Mayte; Sullivan-Whalen, Mary et al. (2010) Effective narrow-band UVB radiation therapy suppresses the IL-23/IL-17 axis in normalized psoriasis plaques. J Invest Dermatol 130:2654-63
Fuentes-Duculan, Judilyn; Suarez-Farinas, Mayte; Zaba, Lisa C et al. (2010) A subpopulation of CD163-positive macrophages is classically activated in psoriasis. J Invest Dermatol 130:2412-22

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