Jenny E. Gumperz, PhD

Professor of Microbiology and Immunology

The Gumperz lab is currently investigating how unique populations of human T lymphocytes – iNKT cells, γς T cells, and MAIT cells – participate in therapeutically-relevant immune responses.  These include virally-driven lymphomagenesis, and immune reconstitution following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.  Their studies of human innate T lymphocytes are carried out using novel “humanized” mouse models, in which immune deficient mice are engrafted with human immune cells, allowing unique opportunities to assess functions and interactions of human innate and adaptive lymphocytes in vivo.  Using these models, the Gumperz lab has identified a novel pathway of sterile inflammation resulting from the signaling interaction between iNKT cells and inflammatory DCs (Xu et al., Cell Reports 2016, PMID: 27653689) and has provided new insight into the mechanisms underlying the potent effects of γς T cells as agents of cellular immunotherapy (Zumwalde et al., J. Clin. Invest Insights 2017, PMID: 28679955), the latter in the context of EBV-associated lymphomagenesis.  She has collaborated extensively with Dr. Kenney in other preclinical studies on EBV using humanized mouse models. The Gumperz lab recently reported the critical role of the cell surface marker, LFA-1, in activating innate T lymphocytes, which are known to home to tissue suites and endothelial vessels rich in the ligand for LFA-1, ICAM-1  (Sharma et al., J Immunol. 2018, PMID: 30171164). Past trainees from the Gumperz lab have been highly successful with positions in academia (e.g., Dr. Elizabeth Bobeck, Assistant Professor at Iowa State University), medicine (e.g., Dr. Xiuxu Chen, Resident Fellow, Dept. Pathology Univ. Kansas Medical Center), and in biomedical companies (e.g., Dr. Subramanya Hegde, Senior Scientist Abbvie Corp).  Dr. Gumperz collaborates with Drs. Johannsen, Kenney, Sherer, and Striker.  She just received a new NIAID R01.