UMass Amherst: NRE Year in Review

Juan Anguita

Could tick saliva be helping Lyme's disease get a foothold in its hosts? A recently discovered protein in tick saliva, Salp 15, has been found to inhibit immune cells. Assistant Professor Juan Anguita is studying the protein and the ways it discourages early events in the body's development of immune responses. His focus is on the protein's function in T cells and its effect on interleukin 2, a gene that plays an essential role in the body's immune response to antigens. Juan's research on Salp 15's mechanisms may be helpful in developing therapies for other immune-suppressing diseases, such as multiple sclerosis and HIV.