Carol Artlett, Ph.D.
Drexall University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pa.

"Role of the Inflammasome in Early Systemic Sclerosis Lesions"

Established Investigator

Scleroderma is a disease caused by uncontrolled accumulation of collagen in the soft tissues. Its cause is unknown and the progression of the disease is not well understood. Recent research has identified a new inflammatory pathway that does not reflect traditional T cell activation. This pathway senses danger signals from the tissues that are external to the cells. The goal of this application is to understand the role of this new inflammatory pathway in early scleroderma skin lesions and investigate the signaling in several mice models that have had pertinent proteins in this new pathway deleted.