Carla Cuda, PhD
Assistant Professor, Medicine
Research Program
Cancer-Focused Research
As a cellular immunologist with a focus on the role of innate immune cells in the pathogenesis of SLE, my lab has considerable experience in animal models of inflammation and autoimmune disease. Further, as Assistant Manager of the Northwestern University Robert H. Lurie Cancer Center (NU RHLCC) Flow Cytometry Core Facility, we also have expertise in flow cytometric analysis and cell sorting for subsequent genomic analyses. Microglia have now been recognized as key players in the pathogenesis of both NP-SLE and glioma. Thus, in conjunction with the core facilities available at the NU RHLCC, we intend to compare microglia-specific genomic profiles in models of NP-SLE and glioma, in addition to Alzheimerâs disease and multiple sclerosis, to determine whether overlapping causal mechanisms exist. As we attempt to delve further into comparing microglia-associated mechanisms underlying multiple brain pathologies, the cores provided by the NU RHLCC will be invaluable to my research program.