MS Australia has recognised the work of University of Adelaide's Dr Iain Comerford with a $25,000 Incubator Grant.
Dr Comerford, of the School of Biological Sciences, and his team are investigating how immune cells interact in the hope of discovering a new treatment for people with Multiple Sclerosis.
More than 2.8 million people across the world, about 33,300 of which are Australian, live with the disease.
"MS is a chronic condition caused by harmful immune responses that attack the body's own nerve cells and how these immune responses are controlled is still not fully understood," Dr Comerford said.
"However, recent evidence suggests that certain immune cells, including neutrophils and T cells, play important roles in this process."
Neutrophils are a type of white blood cell that typically help protect against infection, but in MS, they may contribute to nerve cell damage. T cells are another type of immune cell involved in coordinating the body's immune response, and one type, called pathogenic Th17 cells, is known to contribute to MS.
"We are investigating how neutrophils interact with T cells in MS to drive inflammation in the brain and spinal cord," said Dr Comerford.
"Our preliminary findings in a model of MS suggest that neutrophils may prompt T cells to adopt a 'pro-inflammatory' profile that worsens MS-related damage.
"This project will study the specific signals between neutrophils and T cells to better understand how this harmful interaction occurs.
"By identifying the molecules involved in neutrophil and T cell communication, we hope to reveal new therapeutic targets that could reduce inflammation in MS, potentially leading to treatments that limit immune cell damage and protect nerve cells in people with MS."
