Predicting the in vivo activation potential of Th2 cells of patients

n this project, we aim to identify reliable gene subnetwork markers,which can quantitatively predict the activation potentialof naïve and antigen-specific CD4+ T cells in vivoof patients withparticular forms of allergic diseases (e.g., insect venom allergy [44]and pollen allergy) following standard immunotherapeutic treatments[45]. The focus will be on Th2 cells, the predominancein most allergic diseases.The PhD candidatewill systematically profile genome-wide transcript expression of sorted Th2 cells shifting from a pathogenic subset to a modified tolerant subset in various patients (in cooperation with Martine Morisset).How the molecular networks gradually shift the Th2 population towards tolerance undera conventional up-dosing or an ultra-rush immunotherapeutic scheme for patients with pollen allergy or venom allergyrespectivelywill be investigated. Therefore, the PhD candidatewill perform comparative network analyses based on known interaction databasesor unknown potential interactionsto identify subnetworks involved in the toleratingprocess of these former pathogenic Th2 cellsas we demonstratedin other CD4 T-cellsubsets[46, 47]. Furthermore, prediction of the Th2 cell activation potential from the resting Th2 cells based on the dynamic transcriptomic data willbe performed by statistically comparing various subnetworksand interactions in resting Th2 cells with that instimulated Th2 cells.This project has already received ethical approval recently