The immune system is a double-edged sword: we need its power to fight cancer, and viruses and bacteria that invade our bodies, but the immune response also leads to inflammation that can damage our bodies.
More than two dozen top researchers are involved in Dalhousie Medical School’s efforts to decipher the mysteries of the immune system and inflammatory diseases. They aim not only to ease people’s pain, but to stop inflammation so the body can heal – reversing such diseases as asthma, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowel disease and multiple sclerosis.
Dalhousie Medical School's researchers are also key players in the global fight against infectious diseases that threaten public health.
Donors to the 2004 Molly Appeal helped these researchers develop a High-Speed Cell-Sorting Facility for rapid analysis of genes and proteins – vital clues in solving the mysteries of the immune system. In 2008 the Molly Appeal helped purchase a Multiplex Analyzer - a vital tool for immunology research.
Click here to meet some of Dalhousie's leading inflammation, infection and immunity researchers