Natural killer cell education : acquisitions, anti-tumor properties, and tolerance to self

Baptiste Jaeger is studying blood cells that patrol our body to identify and remove tumor cells. ­Understanding how they differentiate between healthy and unhealthy cells may help develop drugs specifically targeting tumor cells.
Natural Killer (NK) cells are lymphocytes of the innate immune system involved in the control of microbial infections and tumors. The aim of my PhD is to understand the mechanisms by which NK cells acquire their capacity to kill other cells and secrete soluble factors that regulate the immune response. I am also interested in the mechanisms that govern NK cell activation to ensure that only infected or tumor cells are killed and not healthy cells.