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  • Copyright: Max Planck Research Group for Systems Immunology
Systemimmunologie Würzburg

Immune-Matrix Dynamics (Jobin Lab)

Forschung

Urinary tract infections (UTIs) are among the most common infections worldwide, affecting over 500 million women and 40 million men every year. The primary culprit behind these infections is uropathogenic Escherichia coli, a bacterium that is becoming increasingly resistant to antibiotics—a growing global concern. This alarming trend highlights the urgent need for innovative, host-directed therapies to combat UTIs.

While most UTIs remain confined to the lower urinary tract, some infections can escalate, spreading to the kidneys and even entering the bloodstream. In fact, UTIs are the second leading cause of sepsis globally, underscoring their serious health impact. The progression of infection typically involves two critical steps: first, bacteria ascend from the bladder to the kidneys; second, they can disseminate from the kidneys into the bloodstream.

To defend against these threats, the urinary tract employs a sophisticated arsenal of protective mechanisms. Our research focuses on two key defenses:

1.           The protective extracellular matrix (ECM) that covers urinary tract tissues

2.           The resident and infiltrating immune cells that detect and neutralize invading bacteria

By leveraging advanced techniques such as flow cytometry and confocal and intravital microscopy, we aim to unravel the decision points of immune-ECM interaction that prevent bacteria from spreading beyond the urinary tract. Our ultimate goal is to pave the way for the development of groundbreaking host-directed therapies, offering new hope in the fight against UTIs and antibiotic resistance.

Publications

  • Jobin K, Seetharama D, Rüttger L, Fenton C, Kharybina E, Wirsching A, Huang A, Knöpper K, Kaisho T, Busch D, Vaeth M,  Saliba AE, Graw F, Pulfer A, González SF, Zehn D, Liang Y, Ugur M, Gasteiger G, Kastenmüller W., 2025. A distinct priming phase regulates CD8 T cell immunity by orchestrating paracrine IL-2 signals. Science

  • Ugur M, Labios RJ, Fenton C, Knöpper K, Jobin K, Imdahl F, Golda G, Hoh K, Grafen A, Kaisho T, Saliba AE, Grün D, Gasteiger G, Bajénoff M, Kastenmüller W., 2023. Lymph node medulla regulates the spatiotemporal unfolding of resident dendritic cell networks. Immunity.
  • Goldspink A, Schmitz J, Babyak O, Brauns N, Milleck J, Breloh AM, Fleig SV, Jobin K, Schwarz L, Haller H, Wagenlehner F, Bräsen JH, Kurts C, von Vietinghoff S. 2023. Kidney medullary sodium chloride concentrations induce neutrophil and monocyte extracellular DNA traps that defend against pyelonephritis in vivo. Kidney Int.
  • Jobin K, Müller DN, Jantsch J, Kurts C. 2021. Sodium and its manifold impact on our immune system. Trends Immunol.
  • Jobin K, Stumpf NE, Schwab S, Eichler M, Neubert P, Rauh M, Adamowski M, Babyak O, Hinze D, Sivalingam S, Weisheit C, Hochheiser K, Schmidt SV, Meissner M, Garbi N, Abdullah Z, Wenzel U, Hölzel M, Jantsch J, Kurts C. 2020. A high-salt diet compromises antibacterial neutrophil responses through hormonal perturbation. Sci Transl Med.
  • Breitbach M, Kimura K, Luis TC, Fuegemann CJ, Woll PS, Hesse M, Facchini R, Rieck S, Jobin K, Reinhardt J, Ohneda O, Wenzel D, Geisen C, Kurts C, Kastenmüller W, Hölzel M, Jacobsen SEW, Fleischmann BK, 2018. In Vivo Labeling by CD73 Marks Multipotent Stromal Cells and Highlights Endothelial Heterogeneity in the Bone Marrow Niche. Cell Stem Cell
  • Schwab S, Jobin K, Kurts C, 2017. Urinary tract infection: recent insight into the evolutionary arms race between uropathogenic Escherichia coli and our immune system. Nephrol. Dial. Transplant.
  • Rieck M, Kremser C, Jobin K, Mettke E, Kurts C, Gräler M, Willecke K, Kolanus W, 2017. Ceramide synthase 2 facilitates S1P-dependent egress of thymocytes into the circulation in mice. Eur. J. Immunol.
  • Jobin K, Heuser C, Kurts C, 2016. A grain of salt on kidney dendritic cell function in allograft rejection. Kidney Int.
  • Bajwa A, Rosin DL, Chroscicki P, Lee S, Dondeti K, Ye H, Kinsey GR, Stevens BK, Jobin K, Kenwood BM, Hoehn KL, Lynch KR, Okusa MD, 2015. Sphingosine 1-phosphate receptor-1 enhances mitochondrial function and reduces cisplatin-induced tubule injury. J. Am. Soc. Nephrol.
  • Jaworska K, Ratajczak J, Huang L, Whalen K, Yang M, Stevens BK, Kinsey GR, 2015. Both PD-1 ligands protect the kidney from ischemia reperfusion injury. J. Immunol.
  • Li L, Huang L, Ye H, Song SP, Bajwa A, Lee SJ, Moser EK, Jaworska K, Kinsey GR, Day YJ, Linden J, Lobo PI, Rosin DL, Okusa MD, 2012. Dendritic cells tolerized with adenosine A₂AR agonist attenuate acute kidney injury. J. Clin. Invest.
     
  • Kinsey GR, Huang L, Jaworska K, Khutsishvili K, Becker DA, Ye H, Lobo PI, Okusa MD, 2012. Autocrine adenosine signaling promotes regulatory T cell-mediated renal protection. J. Am. Soc. Nephrol.

Neue Phase der Immunantwort entdeckt

Das Immunsystem vermehrt seine Abwehrzellen viel gezielter als gedacht: bislang unbekannte Phase im T-Zell-Priming entdeckt.

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Nadine Knoch

HiWi / Jobin lab