The role of mast cells in early immunity to viral infection

Mast cells are an immune cell type found throughout the body and particularly common at sites of potential infection such as the airways, skin and intestine. Most mast cell research has focused on their important role in allergic disease. However, they also help to fight infection. In the current proposal we are seeking to better understand how mast cells might help us to fight virus infections. This area has not been widely studied previously and our recent research suggests it is very important. For these studies we will be doing experiments using two virus models. The first, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is a common infection of the airways which is a major cause of hospital admissions in young children and to which our immune response is thought to often be inadequate. The second is reovirus a common infection to which we develop a very vigorous and effective immune response. This virus is being used in new cancer therapies. We propose to examine the importance of mast cells in producing anti-viral substances and helping the body recruit natural killer cells and plasmacytoid dendritic cells at the sites of early viral infection. Natural killer cells have the ability to directly kill virally infected cells, even very early in infection. Plasmacytoid dendritic cell responses are important since these cells produce large amounts of proteins, known as interferons, which can protect neighbouring cells from viral infection. Overall, these studies will greatly increase our understanding of the importance of mast cells in viral infection. An increased understanding of these processes will allow us to develop strategies to modify mast cell function appropriately to enhance effective anti-viral responses