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Kiron M. Das
Professor
UMDNJ
Department of Medicine
MEB. Room 478B
New Brunswick. NJ 08903
(732) 235-7784
FAX - 8965
daskm@umdnj.edu |
Immunopathogenesis of inflammatory bowel disease
My primary research interests are immunopathogenesis of
inflammatory bowel disease (IBD). We have focused on the autoimmune aspects
of IBD and have identified several mucosal antigens associated with the
disease. Earlier. we isolated disease-specific autoantibody in ulcerative
colitis (UC) and using this antibody. we identified an Mr 40k colon epithelial
protein (P40) which acts as an autoantigen in UC. Specific autoantibodies
to P40 were detected in patients with UC and cotton top tamarins with colitis.
Most recently. we have purified P40 to homogeneity. sequenced 2 peptides
after proteolytic digestion. and demonstrated that P40 belongs to the cytoskeletal
protein tropomyosin family. We have also developed several monoclonal antibodies
against epithelial peptides. and using one of the monoclonal antibodies. 7E12H12. we have localized the epitope to colonic enterocytes and not in
13 other epithelial tissues including small intestinal enterocytes. There
was a gradient in the expression of the 7E12H12 reactivity caudally with
maximum expression in the rectum. Using the 7E12H12 monoclonal antibody. a crossreactive. unique peptide was detected in the colon. skin and biliary
epithelium. ciliary body epithelium in the eye and chondrocytes in the joints. organs commonly involved in UC. Patients with primary sclerosing cholangitis
have autoantibody against this epitope. Current focus of the laboratory
is to fully sequence the autoantigenic protein(s). clone the gene encoding
the protein. and investigate cellular and humoral immune responses against
the peptides/epitopes derived from the protein. Development of an animal
model using the autoantigen(s) is also being pursued.
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