Assistant Professor of Immunology

Home Department: Molecular & Cell Biology

RESEARCH INTERESTS:

1) TLR cellular localization. The cell biology of TLRs has not been well defined, yet it is increasingly clear that differential localization within the cell is one way in which TLR function is regulated. We have generated TLR mutants with altered localization and are currently examining the effect of this re-localization in vivo.

2) TLR signaling specificity. TLRs induce overlapping yet distinct sets of genes based on differences in the downstream signaling pathways that they activate. The relevance of these differences in signaling for the immune response to different types of pathogens remains unclear. We have generated mice expressing chimeric TLRs with redirected signal transduction to address this question.

3) TLR expression. TLR expression varies considerably among different cell types. Importantly, these different cell types play distinct roles during the immune responses to different types of pathogens. We are using in vivo models based on altered TLR expression to address how differential TLR expression contributes to the specificity of the immune response during infection.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Office: 401B LSA
Phone: (510) 642-2083
Fax: (510) 642-1386
Email: barton@berkeley.edu

Website: http://mcb.berkeley.edu/labs/barton/index.html