Pj Lachmann

Biography

Professor Lachmann is a distinguished immunologist who has made many significant contributions to our knowledge of the complement system. He was the first to describe the fixation of autologous complement components in diseased human tissue. He worked out the reaction mechanisms of the alternative complement pathway and of "reactive lysis"a pathway that allows the terminal complement pathway to be activated in isolation. In recent years he has defined the mechanisms underlying the association of complement deficiency with autoimmune complex disease and has also described a membrane bound protein that protects cells from complement lysis. Similar proteins have also been shown to occur in certain parasites. In another work, he brought out the unusual immunological properties of tuberculin PPD which make it a good carrier for vaccination, particularly for peptides and synthetic vaccines.

Research Interest

Immunology