Date of Award
Spring 5-9-2022
Document Type
Honors Project
University Scholars Director
Dr. Christine Chaney
First Advisor/Committee Member
Dr. Jenny Tenlen
Keywords
gene expression, peanut allergy, CD154+, CCR6, CRTH2, heatmap
Abstract
Peanut allergies can have severe and life-threatening complications. By understanding the biology of individuals struggling with this disease, better treatments can be developed. This project explores the possibility of two phenotypically distinct cell types within CD154+ cell types in patients with peanut allergy. Previous studies show that there is a Th2 cell subpopulation associated with allergies, and within effector CD4+ memory populations two distinct phenotypes have been found. This project expands upon this research at the genetic level and through bioinformatic analyses, including the production of heatmaps, the project has found evidence for differing gene expression in two cell subpopulations. One group, CRTH2+ cell type, exhibits expression patterns similar to the Th2 cell subpopulation while the other, CCR6+ cell type, expresses genes that are known to have a Th17-like or regulatory function. This is significant because very few of the genes associated with the CCR6+ cell type have been well studied, indicating a potential gap in research that may broaden our understanding of this disease.
Recommended Citation
Tekorius, Sophia R., "Heterogeneity of Gene Expression in Peanut-Allergic Cells May be Related to Differing Cell Subpopulations" (2022). Honors Projects. 167.
https://digitalcommons.spu.edu/honorsprojects/167
Copyright Status
http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/
Additional Rights Information
Copyright held by author.
Included in
Bioinformatics Commons, Genetics Commons, Other Immunology and Infectious Disease Commons
