Inflammation Immunity & Tumour Biology Lab

Nucleotide-binding leucine-rich repeats (NLRs) are pattern recognition receptors present in innate immune cells and can sense pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs) and damage-associated molecular patterns (DAMPs). This allows the release of pro-inflammatory cytokines that cause inflammation. NLR proteins, specifically NLRP3 and NLRP12, have been reported to have pro-tumorigenic and anti-tumorigenic effects in various cancers like colorectal cancer, colitis-associated cancer, prostate cancer, etc. NLRP12 has been reported to be a potential prognostic marker in GBM (Sharma et al. 2019). However, the signaling pathway related to the disease is not well understood. We are studying the role of NLRP3 and NLRP12 in Glioblastoma (GBM). Using a 3D matrix-free organoid model, trying to understand the roles of NLRP3 and NLRP12 in glioblastoma using cell lines and from patient-derived tissues.