Uma Nagarajan, Ph.D.

Assistant Professor, Department of Pediatrics (Primary) and Dept. of Microbiology and Immunology (Secondary)

Molecular Immunology

Research Interest:  Regulation of host gene expression in response to Chlamydia infection.

Ph.D. Madurai Kamaraj University, India

Post doctoral: Emory University, Atlanta

Phone: 501-364-2479
Fax: 501-364-2403

E-mail   

Research Description

Chlamydia trachomatis is the most common sexually transmitted bacterial pathogen that causes Fallopian tube inflammation and subsequent tubal infertility in women. A T cell-mediated adaptive immune response is required for effective eradication of chlamydial infection. Effective adaptive immune responses are generated as a result of innate immune responses induced by pathogen-host interactions. Further, innate responses appear to play a major role in induction of oviduct pathology during chlamydial infection. A major component of the innate immune response to pathogens are the Toll-like receptors (TLRs). The recognition of pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMP) by the TLR leads to signaling events that result in the induction of chemokines, cytokines, and costimulatory molecules required for effective shaping of adaptive immunity. The overall objective of our laboratory is to delineate the TLR/PRR pathways involved in the induction of cytokines/chemokines during chlamydial infection.  At present we are studying the role and mechanism of type I IFN induction during chlamydial infection.

References

Nagarajan UM*, Prantner D, Sikes, JD, Andrews CW Jr, Goodwin AD, Nagarajan S, and Darville.  Type I IFN increases exacerbates Chlamydia muridarum genital infection and influences oviduct pathology in vivo. T. Infection and Immunity 2008. 76: 4642-4648 .

Prantner D and Nagarajan UM*. A role of the chlamydial type III secretion apparatus on host cytokine expression. Infection and Immunity 2009. 77, 76-84

Reeves. DM, Nagarajan U, O'Connell C, Andrews CA Jr., and Darville T.  Lack of an effect of antibiotic treatment on prolonged detection of chlamydial DNA in murine genital tract infection. Antimicrobial Agents and Chemotherapy 2007. 15: 2646-2648.

Nagarajan, UM, Rank RG, Darville TD.  Type I IFN increases susceptibility to Chlamydia muridarum infection and influences oviduct pathology in vivo.  Proceedings of the Eleventh International Symposium on human Chlamydial infections.  Ontario, Canada, 2006. p543-546.

Nagarajan UM, Louis-Plence P, Desandro A, Nilsen R, Bushey A and Boss JM. RFX-B is the gene responsible for the most common cause of the Bare Lymphocyte Syndrome, an MHC class II immunodeficiency (Cover page). Immunity 10: 153-162, 1999.

Desandro A, Nagarajan UM and Boss JM. The Bare Lymphocytes Syndrome: Molecular clues to the transcriptional regulation of Major Histocompatibility Complex Class II genes. American Journal of Human Genetics 65: 279-286, 1999.

Nagarajan UM*, Pdjenburg A*, Gobin S, Boss JM and Van den Elsen P. Novel mutations within the RFX-B gene and partial rescue of MHC and related genes through exogenous class II transactivator in RFX-B deficient cells. Journal of Immunology 164: 3666-3674, 2000. (*co-first author)

Nagarajan UM*, DeSandro AM*, and Boss JM. Association and interactions of the Bare Lymphocyte Syndrome factors. Molecular and Cellular Biology 20, 6587-6599, 2000 (*co-first author).

Chen R, Nagarajan S, Prince GM, Maheshwari U, Terstappen LWMM, Kaplan DR, Dunn DE, Lazarus HM and Medof ME. PIG-A+ stem cells in primary paroxysmal nocturnal hemoglobinuria exhibit impaired growth and elevated levels of Fas receptor (CD95) Journal of Clinical Investigation. 106, 689-696, 2000

Goodwin BL, Xi H, Eason DD, Ghosh N, Wright, KL, Nagarajan UM, Boss, JM and Blanck, G. Varying functions of specific MHC class II transactivator (CIITA) promoter III and IV elements in melanoma cell lines. Cell Growth Differ. 12, 327-35, 2001

Nagarajan UM, Lochamy J, Chen X, Beresford G, Nilsen R, Jensen P, and Boss JM. CIITA is required for optimal expression of HLA-DOB in B cells. Journal of Immunolgy.168, 1780-1786, 2002

Nagarajan UM, Bushey, A, and Boss JM. Modulation of Gene Expression by the MHC Class II Transactivator. Journal of Immunology. 169,5078-5088,2002

Darville T, O'Neill JM, Andrews Jr CW, Nagarajan UM, Stahl L and Ojcius DM . Toll-like Receptor-2, But Not Toll-like Receptor-4, Is Essential For Development of Oviduct Pathology In Chlamydial Genital Tract Infection. Journal of Immunology. 2003. 171, 6187-6197.

Nagarajan UM, O'Connell C, Rank RG. Molecular characterization of guinea pig (Cavia porcellus) CD8? and CD8? cDNA. Tissue Antigens 2004. 63:184-189

Nagarajan UM, Bushey A, Harreman MT, Corbett AH, and Boss JM. A hierarchy of nuclear localization signals governs the import of the RFX complex subunits and MHC class II expression (Cover page). Journal of Immunology. 2004, 173:410-419.

Nagarajan, U.M., Ojcius, D.M., Stahl, L., Rank, R.G., Darville, T. Chlamydia trachomatis Induces Expression of IFN-{gamma}-Inducible Protein10 and IFN-{beta} Independent of TLR2 and TLR4, but Largely Dependent on MyD88. J. Immunol.175: 450-460, 2005.

Gomez J, Majumder P, Nagarajan UM, and Boss JM.  Orphan X boxes in the MHC class II region maintain regulatory functions. Journal of Immunology , 2005, 175:1030-1040.

Long AB, Ferguson A, Majumder P, Nagarajan UM and Boss JM.  Conserved residues of the bare lymphocyte syndrome transcription factor RFXAP determine coordinate MHC class II expression. Molecular Immunology 2006. 43; 395-409.

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