Robert W. Keane, Ph.D.

Regulation of Innate Immunity after CNS Trauma

Innate immunity is the first line of defense against pathogens and host-derived signals of cellular stress and in sterile inflammation.  The innate immune response engages an array of receptors to detect stress signals and pathogens and activates cells of the adaptive immune response.

My research focuses on investigating mechanisms that regulate inflammasomes in the normal innate immune response and the dysregulation in central nervous system injury and inflammatory diseases.

Drug discovery for agonists and activation mechanisms of inflammasomes are being developed.  Regulatory mechanisms that potentiate or limit inflammasome activation after injury have been identified and patented, as well as emerging links between innate immunity and Alzheimer’s Disease, Parkinson’s Disease, Multiple Sclerosis and Cancer.

Our laboratory is also engaged in a robust biomarker program to identify new reliable biomarkers for a variety of inflammatory diseases.