Texas Biomed Graduate Fellowship (Douglass Foundation)

Increased inflammation affects the immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis (M.tb) infection in old and young mice in ways not yet understood. The project objective is to determine the mechanisms in which inflammation influences the response to early M.tb infection in young and old mice. The goal of the project is to determine ways inflammation can be modulated with anti-inflammatory treatment to improveM.tb infection outcome in young and old mice, and to apply this knowledge to benefit tuberculosis disease outcome in elderly persons and persons with increased inflammation.