This research examines how macrophages shift between tumor-fighting and tumor-supporting roles in breast cancer. By identifying signals in the tumor microenvironment and engineering molecular cues to promote tumor-destroying behavior, the work aims to reprogram immune responses and improve therapeutic outcomes for breast cancer patients.

This research shows that doxorubicin disrupts immune signaling between the spleen and heart, priming inflammatory cells that worsen cardiac damage when hypertension develops later in life. Using a two-hit mouse model, the work reveals a heart–spleen axis and identifies immune cells as targets to protect childhood cancer survivors from heart failure.

PCBs, toxic “forever chemicals” found in older school buildings, accumulate in body fat and trigger harmful inflammation. This research shows that PCB-exposed fat cells recruit excessive immune cells, creating an uncontrolled inflammatory response that contributes to obesity and diabetes. Understanding this mechanism opens pathways for treatments targeting fat–immune cell communication.

This research investigates brain circuits that regulate sodium appetite and salt preference. By manipulating sodium-sensitive neurons and immune signaling pathways in mice, the study demonstrates how sodium craving can be altered without changing food composition, opening new possibilities for treating excessive sodium consumption and sodium-related cardiovascular and metabolic disorders.

This research targets the earliest stage of allergic and asthmatic immune reactions by blocking key cytokine “messages” sent from T cells to B cells. Using drug-discovery techniques, the project identifies compounds that prevent immune overreaction before symptoms begin, aiming to develop a new class of long-lasting preventative allergy and asthma treatments.