Faculty
Daniel Colley, Ph.D.
Professor of Microbiology
and Director of Center for Tropical And Emerging Diseases
Ph.D. (1968) Tulane University
Address: Department of Microbiology
330B Coverdell Building
Athens, GA 30602
Phone: (706)
542-4112
E-mail: dcolley@uga.edu
COS CV: http://myprofile.cos.com/dcolley
PubMed: colley
d
Research Interests:
Schistosomiasis is an intravascular
worm infection of approximately 200 million people. Our laboratory
uses field, whole animal, cellular and molecular approaches to
further an understanding of how this infection does or does not
lead to life-threatening disease, and how people become resistant
to re-infection after treatment. Thus, our two major areas of
research are: the immunopathogenesis and immunoregulation of schistosomiasis;
and the mechanisms of resistance, in regard to possible vaccine
development. Put simply, our laboratory asks immunologic questions
of the host/parasite relationship in both experimental (mouse)
and human schistosomiasis. The mouse work is done at the University
of Georgia, and the human studies are based at our collaborating
institution, the Kenya Medical Research Institute, near Kisumu,
Kenya. Our laboratory studies the immunologic mechanisms involved
in this granuloma formation and fibrosis, and their immunoregulation
in this setting of constant, chronic antigenic exposure. We are
currently focused on the existence and role of idiotypic/anti-idiotypic
interactions in this scenario, and how they might be involved
in differential stimulation (possibly via dendritic cells) of
regulatory cytokines and lymphocytes. In Kenya, we have described
immune resistance in some people who are occupationally exposed
to schistosomes. We are now evaluating which immune responses
or genetic mechanisms correlate with resistance vs. continued
susceptibility. Such information should contribute to efforts
to develop an effective vaccine against schistosomiasis.
