Dr. Huston is Professor of Medicine and of Microbial & Molecular Pathogenesis, Vice Dean for the College of Medicine, and Director for the Clinical Science and Translational Research Institute, Texas A&M Health Science Center. The overall goal of his laboratory is to understand mechanisms regulating inflammation and thereby develop strategies for modulating immune responses.One project focuses on the role of the cytokine thymic stromal lymphopoietin (TSLP) as the master switch in the pathobiology of allergic inflammation and asthma. The role of allergens and respiratory viruses on the induction of TSLP transcription by mast cells and epithelial cells is being studied in vitro and in human subjects.
A second project focuses on defining the structure and function of interleukin-5 (IL-5), which is an eosinophil-specific cytokine that is important in the pathogenesis of allergies and asthma. These studies address the interactions between IL-5 and its heterodimeric receptor, signal transduction, and regulation of signaling. A third project focuses on the mechanisms regulating mast cell activation. Studies address the interactions between human mast cells, T cells, and eosinophils, utilizing in vitro systems and human subjects. These studies should provide insight into physiologic mechanisms regulating allergic inflammation and enable development of novel therapeutics.
The laboratory is dynamic with graduate school and medical school trainees. Funding for these studies include a NIH/NIAID Asthma and Allergic Diseases Cooperative Research Center grant. Dr. Huston serves on the NIH Hypersensitivity Autoimmunity and Immune-mediated Diseases Study Section, and on the Board of Directors for the American Academy of Allergy Asthma and Immunology, the American Board of Allergy and Immunology, and the American Board of Internal Medicine.