The mechanisms by which animal allergens affect Toll-Like Receptor signalling (360G-Wellcome-102197_Z_13_A)

The mechanisms by which allergens are detected by the host has yet to be established. This project will focus on animal allergens. The key goals are listed below: 1. Assess the effect of animal allergens on Toll-like receptor (TLR) signalingin cell lines (mouse and human). The inflammatory effects of Fel d 1, Can f 6 and Equ c 1 will be tested. TLR-4 complex stoichiometry will be investigated for changes upon allergen stimulation. 2. Test the response of different cell types to allergen stimulation. We will test different cell populations to pin-point which cell types are sensitized by allergen exposure.3. Determine whether cells from allergic and non-allergic patients behave differently to allergen stimulation. A preliminary study will be conducted where we will stimulate cells from patients with and without specific allergies. This will indicate whether sensitization by the allergen is specific to allergic patients, or whether this is a more general response. 4. WT and TLR-4 knock-out mice will be used to assess TLR-4 dependency of different allergens tested in vitro.