Avinash R. Shenoy

Biography

My laboratory is housed at the MRC CMBI at the South Kensington campus, and studies the role of inflammasome signalling networks in host immunity and inflammation. Inflammasomes are large multimeric signalling scaffolds that activate caspase-1. Inflammasome activation can also require assistance from caspase-4 (also called caspase-11 in the mouse), and caspase-8. Together, these inflammatory caspases launch a robust host defence programme by acting on their targets. My laboratory studies inflammasomes in the context of infection by enteric bacterial pathogens such as Salmonella, Listeria and pathogenic E. coli. In addition, the same pathways can also instigate autoinflammation associated with various modern-day diseases, including the metabolic syndrome, diabetes and cancer. Therefore studying them is important not only for obtaining a better understanding of the fundamental principles of the host response, but also for designing better therapeutics in the future.

Research Interest

Molecular Bacteriology and Infection