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Daniel Rotrosen, M.D., Director, DAIT
Dr. Rotrosen announced the following new staff member and scientific activities:
Ms. Judy Zuckerman joined the Division's Clinical Immunology Branch as a nurse consultant working, with the immunology trials of the Immune Tolerance Network, the Autoimmunity Centers of Excellence, and the Clinical Trials of Stem Cell Transplantation for Treatment of Autoimmune Diseases. Scientific Initiatives
Inner City Asthma Consortium: Immunologic Approaches to Reduce Asthma Severity: The NIAID recently issued an announcement of a draft project requirement to establish the Inner City Asthma Consortium, soliciting comments from interested parties with respect to the scope, design, and requirements of the proposed research program. This new research initiative will establish a network of basic scientists and clinical investigators to evaluate the safety and efficacy of a variety of promising allergen-specific and nonspecific immune-based therapies. Sex-Based Differences in the Immune Response (RFA-AI-01-005): The NIAID, in conjunction with the National Multiple Sclerosis Society and other NIH Institutes and Centers, will support a new research initiative on Sex Based Differences in the Immune Response to identify, characterize, and define differences in the immune response between males and females, including those that may account for the fact that women are disproportionately affected by autoimmune diseases. The Request for Applications (RFA) may be found at the following Web site: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-01-005.html. Non-Human Primate Immune Tolerance Cooperative Study Group (RFA-AI-01-006): This research initiative will expand the Non-Human Primate Transplant Tolerance Cooperative Study Group (NHPCSG) to enable continuation of studies of novel tolerance induction regimens in kidney and islet transplantation and the incorporation of studies focused on autoimmune diseases and asthma. The RFA may be found at the following Web site: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-AI-01-006.html Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA): In FY 2001, NIAID joined with Novartis Pharmaceutical Corporation, through a CRADA, to test an experimental treatment for asthma in children residing in the inner cities of the U.S. The experimental therapy, Xolair, is a humanized monoclonal anti-IgE antibody. The current trial will enroll 480 children at the NIAID Inner City Asthma Study sites in Boston, Chicago, Dallas, New York, Seattle, and Tucson. Bioinformatics Integration Support Contract (BISC): The Division recently issued an announcement of this new NIAID initiative to inform potentially interested individuals of a draft project requirement and to solicit comments from interested parties with respect to scope, design, and requirements of the proposed new program. This research initiative, entitled Bioinformatics Integration Support Contract (BISC), will enable scientists to easily access, generate, analyze, and exchange complex high-quality data sets. The draft Request for Proposals may be found at the following Web site: http://www.niaid.nih.gov/contract/archive/rfpdraft0216.pdf Division Activities
NIH Autoimmune Diseases Coordinating Committee (ADCC): The 106th Congress enacted the Children's Health Act, P.L. 106-310, which includes provisions to codify the existing NIH Autoimmune Diseases Coordinating Committee (ADCC) in law, and to require development of a plan for conducting and supporting research and education on autoimmune diseases through the NIH. The ADCC, created in 1998 and chaired by NIAID, recently met to discuss the development of the research plan and established the following four working groups: Etiology and pathogenesis; Clinical Studies; Epidemiology; and Health Services Research. A draft plan is scheduled to be completed in November 2001. National Institutes of Health (NIH) Stem Cell Working Group: The trans-NIH Stem Cell Working Group (SCWG), headed by the NIH Office of Science Policy, was formed in March 2001 at the request of the Acting NIH Director. A representative from DAIT serves on SCWG. This group is charged with the development of a state-of-the-science report on adult, fetal, and embryonic stem cell research. The report will highlight current and potential therapeutic and non-therapeutic applications for stem cell usage. The Acting NIH Director will provide this comprehensive report to the Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services. Federal Liaison Group on Asthma (FLGA): The Children's Health Act also calls for the establishment of FLGA to develop recommendations on strengthening coordination of asthma-related activities of the Federal Government. The NIAID, through the Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, participates in the FLGA, and has provided a summary of the Institute's directions in asthma research. The FLGA is chaired by the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. Human Immunology Think Tank: A working group of distinguished extramural scientists was convened in Chantilly, Virginia on March 13-14, 2001 by the NIAID Division of Allergy, Immunology and Transplantation, the NIAID Division of AIDS, and the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Office of AIDS Research to discuss current research gaps and opportunities to further our understanding of human immunology. Discussions focused on the regulation of mucosal immunity, chemokines and lymphocyte migration, the neonatal and aged immune systems, and innate mechanisms of immunity. American Association of Immunologists (AAI) Annual Meeting: The 17th annual Symposium on Contemporary Topics in Immunology, cosponsored by NIAID and the AAI, was held as part of the Annual AAI Meeting, held in Orlando, Florida from March 30 through April 4, 2001. This year's symposium focused on immunoregulation, and included presentations on cytokine roles in protection against parasite infection, CD8 T cell networks and memory to viruses, signal transduction in T cell selection, and novel technologies for the study of protein kinases. Alliance for Cellular Signaling Meeting: A meeting of the Alliance for Cellular Signaling (AFCS), a large-scale collaborative program cofunded by NIAID, the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, the National Cancer Institute, several pharmaceutical companies, and private sources, was held at the NIH campus on May 24-25, 2001. The goal of the AFCS is to dissect G protein-coupled receptor signaling pathways in B cells and cardiac myocytes in order to understand how cells interpret and respond to external signals. More information about the AFCS can be found at the following Web site address: http://www.cellularsignaling.org. Gene Therapy for Primary Immunodeficiencies August 29-30: This upcoming workshop will involve discussions by primary immunodeficiency clinicians, transplant clinicians, ethicists, and gene therapy experts to explore the need for clinical trials of gene therapy in primary immunodeficiencies and to determine the optimal approaches to assess the value of this new therapy. The meeting will be co-chaired by Drs. Rebecca Buckley and Hans Ochs and held at 6700-B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, Maryland. The NIH Office of Rare Diseases and several NIH Institutes and private foundations with an interest in primary immunodeficiencies will co-sponsor this event. The Role of Innate Immunity in the Etiopathology of Autoimmune Diseases; September 4-5, 2001: The purpose of this meeting is to bring together researchers working in the field of innate immunity and autoimmune diseases to identify gaps in knowledge regarding the role of the innate immune system in the etiology, pathology, and treatment of autoimmune diseases. The meeting will be chaired by Dr. Michael Carroll and will include investigators conducting research on innate immunity and autoimmune diseases. NIAID, the NIH Office of Research on Rare Diseases, the NIH Office or Research on Women's Health, and the American Autoimmune Related Diseases Association are co-sponsoring the meeting, to be held in the Natcher Conference Center on the NIH campus in Bethesda, Maryland. Animals in the Study of Autoimmune Diseases; September 20-21, 2001: The purpose of this meeting is to bring together experts in each of the animal models for autoimmune diseases with clinical researchers to explore the strengths and deficiencies of existing models and to determine if other models can and need to be developed to allow more efficient translation of animal studies to humans. This meeting, co-chaired by Drs. Chella David and Ed Leiter, will provide recommendations for the most useful and practical approaches to utilize animal models for the transition of therapeutic approaches to humans. The meeting will be held at 6700-B Rockledge Drive, Bethesda, Maryland. Class II MHC Gene Control and Disease Relevance Conference, March 22-25, 2001: NIAID sponsored the conference entitled "Class II MHC Gene Control and Disease Relevance," held at Kiwah Island, South Carolina. The meeting was organized and chaired by Division-supported grantees Drs. Jenny Ting (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) and Jeremy Boss (Emory University). This meeting brought together basic and clinical researchers with complementary interests in the molecular biology and clinical manifestations of aberrant MHC class II gene expression for the purpose of developing collaborations that will accelerate research in the field. The meeting was co-sponsored by the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, and the NIH Office of Rare Diseases. Program Review: The Immune Tolerance Network
Guest and staff presented a most interesting discussion on current issues in The Immune Tolerance Network program. Moderator, and discussant Stephen Rose, Ph.D., Chief, Transplantation Immunobiology Branch opened the discussion with an overview of What is the Immune Tolerance Network (ITN). Marshall Plaut, M.D., Acting Chief, Asthma, Allergy and Inflammation Branch, Elaine Collier, M.D., Acting Chief, Clinical Immunology Branch and Stephen Rose, Ph.D, presented an overview of the ITN Supported Clinical Trials and Tolerance Assay Developments in Asthma and Allergic Diseases, Autoimmuity and Islet and Kidney Transplantation respectively. Dr. Stephen Rose also presented Why liver Transplantation is now Amenable to Tolerance Induction Clinical Trials. Finally, Vicki Seyfert, Ph.D., Director, Tolerance Assay Group, ITN closed the discussion with the ITN core laboratories: What is Available and Access for Non-ITN NIH Clinical Trials: ELISPOT, Gene Expression, Bioinformatics, Tetramers, Flow Cytometry, Autoantibody, SNP, Infectious Diseases, and CMV/EBV. back to top |