Dr. Peter Doherty is Laureate Professor at the University of Melbourne. He and Dr. Rolf Zinkernagel, the co-recipient of the 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, discovered how T cells recognize their target antigens in combination with major histocompatibility complex proteins. Beyond this, Dr. Doherty has made significant contributions to studying viral immunity, with a strong focus on how the immune system responds to influenza and other respiratory viruses.

In this episode, he talks about beginning his career as a veterinarian studying sheep and his seminal discoveries on the mechanisms of T cell antigen recognition. He also discusses his ventures into science communication. (38:08)

Microbes on the International Space Station – Researchers generated a 3D map of the microbes and metabolites on surfaces of the International Space Station. (3:40)

T Cell Specificity During Infection – Self-peptide-specific Treg cells promote self-nonself discrimination during infection. (9:15)

Skin Pathogens in Nursing Homes – Scientists investigated the genomic epidemiology of the multidrug-resistant Candida auris in a nursing home. (23:40)

Metabolic Recycling – Phagocytosed bacteria can serve as an alternative nutrient source for macrophages. (29:14)

Image courtesy of Dr. Peter Doherty

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Dr. Luke O’Neill is a Professor and Chair of Biochemistry at Trinity College Dublin, where his research group is focused on exploring the molecular basis of inflammation. His lab endeavors to provide a better understanding of the metabolic regulation of immune cell function and the innate immune system, with the aim of developing novel therapies to treat inflammatory diseases.

A Phage Counter-Defense – An orphan antitoxin counter-defense element has been discovered in phages that can overcome a bacterial toxin-antitoxin phage defense system. (5:40)

Pathogenic Memory T Cells – Researchers uncover a pathogenic subset of CD8+ memory T-cells that promote tissue inflammation. (14:05)

The Role of Macrophages in Graft-Versus-Host Disease – Scientists show that IL-34 reprograms macrophages to mitigate gastrointestinal complications in GVHD. (23:41)

A New Treatment Path for Nerve Damage – Research suggests that macrophages may play a protective role in preventing neuropathy from developing. (30:19)

Image courtesy of Dr. Luke O’Neill

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Dr. Wilfried Ellmeier is a Co-Chair of the Scientific Planning Committee at the International Union of Immunological Societies (IUIS) and Professor of Immunobiology and Head of the Institute of Immunology at the Medical University of Vienna. Dr. Laurence Zitvogel is a Keynote Speaker at IUIS 2025 and a Professor and Group Leader at Gustave Roussy. Dr. Dan Littman is also a Keynote Speaker at IUIS 2025 and Professor of Cell Biology and Helen L. and Martin S. Kimmel Professor of Molecular Immunology at NYU Langone. This episode features a discussion on  the upcoming IUIS 2025 Congress taking place August 17-22 in Vienna, Austria. They talk about what to expect at the meeting, highlights from this year’s program, and where to explore in Vienna. (42:25)

An African Microbiome Atlas – A cross-sectional gut microbiome study sampled 1,801 women from Burkina Faso, Ghana, Kenya, and South Africa. (3:33)

Understanding Transplant Rejection – Inducing tolerance to immunodominant indirect CD4+ T cells prolongs graft survival. (7:38)

SARS-CoV-2 Evolution – A modeling approach predicts SARS-CoV-2 variant dynamics on the basis of immunity and cross-neutralization. (25:00)

Tregs in the Meninges – Meningeal Tregs are a multifaceted safeguard of brain homeostasis at steady state. (31:01)

Images courtesy of Drs. Wilfried Ellmeier, Laurence Zitvogel, and Dan Littman

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Dr. Erica Saphire is President and CEO of La Jolla Institute. Her research explains, at the molecular level, how and viruses are pathogenic and provides the roadmap for medical defense. She talks about the capabilities of cryo-electron microscopy and how it can help illuminate the mechanisms of measles viral fusion. She also discusses her role leading La Jolla Institute. (36:45)

ILC2s in Pancreatic Cancer – IL-33 induced tertiary lymphoid structures in a mouse model of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma. (4:35)

Precursors of Exhausted T Cells – Precursor T cells with at least two distinct phenotypes are preemptively generated regardless of infection outcome. (9:10)

T Cells in Chronic Infections – A population of stem-like CD8+ T cells can adapt their differentiation trajectory to either an acute or chronic viral infection. (10:45)

ILC2 Migration in the Gut – Researchers identified a role for immune cells in regulating blood glucose levels in mice. (29:13)

Image courtesy of Dr. Erica Saphire

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Dr. Nicole Quinn is the Director of Brand and Scientific Communications at STEMCELL Technologies, where as part of her role, she develops and oversees programs that help scientists keep current with the latest scientific advances and innovations in their field. In this episode, she discusses the upcoming second season of the Lab Coats & Life Podcast, which aims to help scientists thrive by keeping listeners informed about useful soft skills and relevant trends in the scientific community. She talks about her role as a co-host, what she’s learned about podcasting, key takeaways from conversations about science mentorship, and what to expect in Season 2. (38:33)

The Aging Mouse Immune System – Researchers delineated the landscape of cell-type-specific transcriptomic changes associated with normal aging in mouse brains. (3:00)

Neoepitopes for Adoptive T Cell Therapy – Conventional T cell therapy can benefit from targeting tryptophan to phenylalanine neoepitopes. (9:16)

Gut Microbiota and Lung Disease –  A commensal protozoan tunes pulmonary immunity via a gut-operated lung immune network. (20:25)

Lymphocyte Migration – Inflamed lymph nodes switch CCR7 ligand mediating lymphocyte recruitment from CCL21 to CCL19. (28:35)

Image courtesy of Dr. Nicole Quinn

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Dr. Gail Bishop is a Professor of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Iowa, where her lab studies the molecular mechanisms underlying lymphocyte activation and tolerance.  She talks about TRAF signaling, the NFκB pathway, and effects on B and T lymphocytes. She also discusses her role as Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Immunology.

Pyroptotic Cell Corpses – Cells assemble filopodia before cell rupture to serve as a posthumous mark for a cell that has died by gasdermin-induced pyroptosis.

Engineering Synthetic T Cell Receptors – T-Switch identifies therapeutic TCR variants with enhanced potency and specificity.

Macrophages in Muscle – Macrophages in muscle spindles express the machinery for synthesizing and releasing glutamate.

Synthetic Suppressor T Cells – Researchers engineered human T cells to make a synthetic receptor that recognized overactive T cells.

Image courtesy of Dr. Gail Bishop

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Dr. Lili Yang is a Professor of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics at the University of California, Los Angeles. Her research centers on deciphering the molecular mechanisms regulating anti-cancer immune responses, exploiting knowledge to develop novel immunotherapies for treating cancer, and translating these new cancer immunotherapies from bench to bedside. She talks about engineering off-the-shelf immunotherapies to fight cancer and generating CAR-NKT cells from hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells. She also discusses the role of serotonin and how SSRIs can affect cancer therapy efficacy.

Preventing Apoptosis – Apoptosis inhibition by NLRP3 activators is due to their effects on mitochondria rather than inflammasome activation.

SARS-CoV-2 Spike Proteins in the Brain – SARS-CoV-2 spike protein persists in the skull-meninges-brain axis in COVID-19 patients.

CAR T to Protect Transplanted Beta Cells – hPSCs and Tregs can be co-engineered to protect hPSC-derived cells from immune rejection upon transplantation.

Endogenous Retrovirus Antibodies – An antibody produced by endogenous retrovirus-reactive B cells recognized glycans of a broad range of enveloped viruses.

Image courtesy of Dr. Lili Yang

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Dr. Rahul Roychoudhuri is a Professor of Cancer Immunology at the University of Cambridge (Department of Pathology) and Director (Non-Clinical) of the CRUK Cambridge Centre Training Programme. His lab studies immunoregulatory mechanisms in inflammation and cancer. He talks about enhancing cell therapy with new payloads and targeting cancer cells during metastasis.

Colonizing the Human Microbiome – Researchers identified a phylogenetically distinct group of microbiome-associated, viroid-like RNAs.

Immune Privilege of the Central Nervous System – Regulatory self-peptides bind to MCH II molecules at the central nervous system border.

Heart Attacks and Sleep – Monocytes are recruited to the brain after myocardial infarction to augment sleep and promote healing.

The Circadian Rhythm in Immune Homeostasis – IL-17-producing γδ T cells rely on the molecular clock to maintain adipose tissue homeostasis.

Image courtesy of Dr. Rahul Roychoudhuri

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Dr. Pascal Meier is a Professor and Group Leader at the Institute of Cancer Research in London, England. His group investigates the complex relationship between cell death, immunity, and tumorigenesis. Particularly, they are focused on the role of cell death and inflammation in adaptation to tissue stress, treatment resistance, and tumour surveillance.

New Potential for Cancer Immunotherapy – Researchers have identified a new type of immune cell called stem-like CD4 T cells that play an important role in anti-tumor immunity.

An Improved Treg Therapy – Human OX40 ligand-specific CAR-Tregs may be a potent cellular therapy to control allo- and autoimmune diseases.

Chronic Inflammation Worsens Heart Failure – Blocking the molecular signals between inflammation-causing immune cells and fibroblasts can prevent fibrosis.

Programmable Bacteria – Scientists have engineered a strain of bacteria to express cytokine IFN-γ within the tumor core.

Image courtesy of  Dr. Pascal Meier

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Dr. Marcelo Hill is the Head of the Laboratory of Immunoregulation and Inflammation at the Institut Pasteur de Montevideo. He is also the Founder and Chief Scientific Officer of ARDAN ImmunoPharma. His research focuses on immune regulation in cancer, and how T cells respond to immunotherapy in melanoma. He talks about improving immunotherapy efficacy by activating the inflammasome, and how he is pushing this research towards the clinic by collaborating with industry and creating a spin-off company.

He is then joined by Drs. Marion Brunck and María Julia Lamberti, who discuss the upcoming meeting of the Latin American and Caribbean Association of Immunology, taking place November 4-8 in Buenos Aires. They discuss the challenges and opportunities in the Latin American immunology community, and how this conference aims to promote collaborations and empower early-career researchers.

Staphylococcus aureus Biofilm – Scientists studied tissue microenvironments in models of S. aureus craniotomy and prosthetic joint infections.

T Helper Cell Differentiation – Researchers found that RAMP3 has a cell-intrinsic role in TH1 cell fate determination.

Probiotic Immunotherapy – Researchers used E. coli to deliver neoepitopes that drive T cell-mediated anticancer immunity.

Microglia in Alzheimer’s Pathology – APOE internalization is regulated by cholesterol metabolism in microglia.

Image courtesy of Dr. Marcelo Hill

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