Adrian Liston

Research Summary

The Liston laboratory works on regulatory T cells. These are a type of white blood cell that act to suppress the rest of the immune response, preventing spontaneous autoimmune disease and acting as a rheostat to control just how active our immune system is. The number of these cells in our blood goes up as we get old, which may contribute to the immune-suppressed state of older persons. We seek to understand these cells, using both patient material and mouse models, so that we can harness their power to fine-tune the immune system for healthy ageing.

Latest Publications

Author Correction: The cellular composition of the human immune system is shaped by age and cohabitation.
Carr EJ, Dooley J, Garcia-Perez JE, Lagou V, Lee JC, Wouters C, Meyts I, Goris A, Boeckxstaens G, Linterman MA, Liston A

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Nature immunology, 1, 1, 25 Nov 2020

PMID: 33239822

Increased IL-10-producing regulatory T cells are characteristic of severe cases of COVID-19.
Neumann J, Prezzemolo T, Vanderbeke L, Roca CP, Gerbaux M, Janssens S, Willemsen M, Burton O, Van Mol P, Van Herck Y, , Wauters J, Wauters E, Liston A, Humblet-Baron S

The pandemic spread of the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2 is due, in part, to the immunological properties of the host-virus interaction. The clinical presentation varies from individual to individual, with asymptomatic carriers, mild-to-moderate-presenting patients and severely affected patients. Variation in immune response to SARS-CoV-2 may underlie this clinical variation.

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Clinical & translational immunology, 9, 11, 2020

PMID: 33209300

Adult-Onset ANCA-Associated Vasculitis in SAVI: Extension of the Phenotypic Spectrum, Case Report and Review of the Literature.
Staels F, Betrains A, Doubel P, Willemsen M, Cleemput V, Vanderschueren S, Corveleyn A, Meyts I, Sprangers B, Crow YJ, Humblet-Baron S, Liston A, Schrijvers R

STING-associated vasculopathy with onset in infancy (SAVI) is an autosomal dominant disorder due to gain-of-function mutations in , also known as , encoding for STING. It was reported as a vasculopathy of infancy. However, since its description a wider spectrum of associated manifestations and disease-onset has been observed. We report a kindred with a heterozygous STING mutation (p.V155M) in which the 19-year-old proband suffered from isolated adult-onset ANCA-associated vasculitis. His father suffered from childhood-onset pulmonary fibrosis and renal failure attributed to ANCA-associated vasculitis, and died at the age of 30 years due to respiratory failure. In addition, an overview of the phenotypic spectrum of SAVI is provided highlighting (a) a high phenotypic variability with in some cases isolated manifestations, (b) the potential of adult-onset disease, and (c) a novel manifestation with ANCA-associated vasculitis.

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Frontiers in immunology, 11, 1, 2020

PMID: 33133092