Our research
Understanding the contributions of autoimmune regulator (Aire) TO skin biology
Role for Aire in skin biology
Autoimmune regulator (Aire) is a unique transcriptional regulator. Classically, Aire is known as a master regulator of autoimmunity and is abundantly expressed in a subset of medullary thymic epithelial cells. Specifically, Aire regulates the transcriptional expression of self antigens so that these antigens can be processed and presented to naive T-lymphocytes. Loss of function mutations in Aire are causative for the disease autoimmune-polyendocrinopathy-candidiasis-ectodermal dystrophy (APECED). These patients often present with many skin abnormalities including hair loss, nail dystrophy, vitiligo, and oral mucocutaneous candidiasis.
Recently published data indicate Aire becomes abundantly expressed in skin keratinocytes in response to acute and chronic stressors (Hobbs et al., Nature Genetics, 2015). A central focus of the Hobbs Lab is to elucidate when, where, how, and why Aire is expressed and functional in skin.
Guiding hypotheses for the Hobbs Lab
1) Aire has an intrinsic role in skin biology, under both physiological and pathological conditions.
2) Understanding Aire function and regulation will reveal novel mechanisms for potential therapeutic targeting.
Current Projects
Mechanisms of non-melanoma skin carcinogenesis
Molecular regulation and function of Aire in skin keratinocytes
Subcellular localization and regulation of Aire