Our lab focuses on the study of subpopulations of human and murine CD4+ T cells, which play a central role in the regulation of adaptive immunity and tolerance. The laboratory studies CD4+ T cells in humans and in mice, examining the function of CD4+ alphaß TCR T cells, antigen-specific regulatory T cells, as well as iNKT cells in regulating immune responses. We are interested in the cellular, molecular and genetic mechanisms that control the interaction of T cells with dendritic cells and that regulate cytokine synthesis in and the function of regulatory T cells and iNKT cells in the respiratory and gastrointestinal tracts. We are particularly interested in the function and immunology of the TIM family of genes, which we discovered several years ago, and which regulate the development of autoimmune and allergic diseases.