Luisa Morales-Nebreda, MD
Assistant Professor, Medicine, Pulmonary Division
Research Program
Cancer-Focused Research
My research program focuses on determinants of recovery from viral pneumonia in aged hosts. In the context of viral-induced lung injury, my laboratory aims to identify novel inter-cellular signaling pathways between immune cell subsets and the injured alveolar endothelium that promote tissue repair throughout the lifespan. Recently, our group uncovered that during recovery from influenza pneumonia, age determines the tissue protective function of regulatory T (Treg) cells in a cell-autonomous manner. Moreover, our preliminary work has identified the transcriptional signature of human alveolar Treg cells as predictors of clinical outcomes in patients with respiratory failure from severe viral pneumonia. Stemming from these observations, we are interested in elucidating how Treg cells orchestrate endothelial cell repair and accelerate resolution of lung inflammation in aged hosts. To address these questions, we leverage multi-¬parameter flow cytometry, microscopy-based imaging and multi-omic technologies to investigate the molecular-level underpinnings of cell-cell interaction biology in our innovative murine models and human samples.