Project

Synthesis of a-GalCer analogues as tools to elucidate the mechanisms of NKT cell polarization.

Code
3F004914
Duration
01 October 2014 → 30 September 2018
Funding
Regional and community funding: Special Research Fund, Research Foundation - Flanders (FWO)
Research disciplines
  • Natural sciences
    • Organic chemistry
  • Medical and health sciences
    • Biomarker discovery and evaluation
    • Drug discovery and development
    • Medicinal products
    • Pharmaceutics
    • Pharmacognosy and phytochemistry
    • Pharmacology
    • Pharmacotherapy
    • Toxicology and toxinology
    • Other pharmaceutical sciences
Keywords
x-GalCer cytokine release NKT cells
 
Project description

Modulation of natural killer T (NKT) cells is an attractive and relatively underexplored strategy for the prevention and treatment of cancer and auto-immune diseases.This project aims to synthesize -GalCer analogues that will allow further elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for a desirable cytokine polarization. Towards this end synthetic modifications of -GalCer will be judiciously chosen as to investigate the role of the stability of the glycolipid-CD1d complex, as well as the stability of the ternary CD1d-glycolipid-TCR complex on the cytokine outcome.