Our work focuses on the cross-talk between different arms of immune system during organ specific viral infections. In particular, the lab is interested in understanding the role of the Complement system in modulating the adaptive immunity mediated during influenza infection. Furthermore, the lab focuses on understanding the role played by the complement system during secondary bacterial infection. Work is in progress in the following areas:

• Investigating the role of complement cleavage products C3a and C5a in mediating the T cell responses during influenza viral infection.
• Understanding the role of complement system in the increased susceptibility to secondary bacterial infection post influenza infection.
• Engineering virus specific T cell immunity as a therapy for protection against influenza infection.

Biography

Dr. Baalasubramanian Sivasankar (Shiv) received his PhD from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, in the field of Complement Biology. Subsequently, he joined the Complement Biology Group at School of Medicine, Cardiff University through the award of an independent International Travelling and Research Fellowship from the Wellcome trust. During his time in Cardiff he became particularly interested in how components of complement system influenced the adaptive cellular immunity, departing from the classical role of complement system.  Together with the Immune regulation group at School of Medicine he showed negative regulatory role for CD59 on T cells and that it could be exploited for therapeutic purposes. Furthermore he has been involved in several other projects  understanding the role of complement system in various disease conditions leading to numerous publications and awards

1.       Role of complement system in the functioning  of pulmonary DCs during influenza infection

2.       Complement mediated functioning of human DC subsets during influenza infection

3.       Evaluating  complement mediated function on human monocytes during influenza infection

Tediose, Teeo; Kolev, Martin; Sivasankar, Baalasubramanian; Brennan, Paul; Morgan, B Paul; Donev, Rossen. Interplay between REST and nucleolin transcription factors - a key mechanism in the overexpression of genes upon increased phosphorylation. Nucleic Acid Research.2010 May; 38(9):2799-812.

Vadim Ten, Jun Yao, Veniamin Ratner, Sergei Sosunov, Deborah Fraser, Marina Botto, Sivasankar Baalasubramanian Bryan P. Morgan, Samuel Silverstein, Raymond Stark, Richard Polin, Susan Vannucci, David Pinsky, and Anatoly Starkov. Complement component C1q mediates mitochondria-driven oxidative stress in neonatal hypoxic-ischemic brain injury. Journal of NeuroScience 2010 Feb; 30(6):2077-87.

Baalasubramanian Sivasankar, Longhi MP, Gallagher K, Betts G Morgan BP, Godkin A and Gallimore AM. Blockade of CD59 Enhances CD4+ T Cell Responses to Tumour Associated Antigens in Patients with Colorectal Cancer. J Immunol. 2009 May 1; 182(9):5203-7.

Donev RM, Gray LC, Baalasubramanian Sivasankar, Hughes TR, Van den Berg CW and B Paul Morgan. Modulation of CD59 expression by restrictive silencer factor-derived peptides in cancer immunotherapy for neuroblastoma. Cancer Research 2008. July 68(14):5979-5987

Longhi MP, Baalasubramanian Sivasankar, Omidvar N, Morgan BP, Gallimore A. Murine CD59a modulates Anti-viral CD4+ T cell activity in a complement independent manner. J Immunol. 2005 Dec 1; 175(11):7098-102. Cutting edge.

Sivasankar Baalasubramanian , Harris CL, Donev RM, Mizuno M, Omidvar N, Song WC, Morgan BP. CD59a is the primary regulator of membrane attack complex assembly in the mouse. J Immunol. 2004 Sep 15; 173(6):3684-92.

Matheswaran Kandasamy
Research fellow

Hermi Rizal Sumatoh
Research Officer