Christian
Lood
PhD
Education & Training:
MSc in Biomedicine, Lund University , Sweden (2003-2007)
PhD in Rheumatology, Lund University , Sweden (2008-2012)
Postdoctoral Associate, Lund University, Sweden (2012-2013)
Visiting Scientist, University of Washington, Seattle, WA (2013-2016)
Research Interests:
Dr. Christian Lood studies the role of neutrophils in inflammation and autoimmunity with an emphasis on the contribution of neutrophils to systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) and rheumatoid arthritis (RA) pathogenesis. Neutrophils are the main immune cells in the circulation, participating in host defense through mechanisms including production of reactive oxygen species (ROS), phagocytosis and formation of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs), a recently identified neutrophil cell death process in which DNA is extruded together with cytoplasmic and granular content to trap and eliminate extracellular pathogens. Although beneficial from a host-pathogen perspective, exaggerated neutrophil activation and NET formation has been linked to autoimmunity, in particular SLE and RA.
Dr. Lood’s Lab is currently pursuing three main research aims, a) assessing how neutrophil-derived mitochondria and mitochondrial DNA are cleared to avoid unwarranted inflammation and autoimmunity, b) investigating the interplay between TLR8 and FcgRIIA in skewing neutrophils towards an inflammatory phenotype and c) identifying novel neutrophil- and mitochondrial-derived biomarkers related to disease activity and severity, including cardiovascular disease, a leading cause of mortality in young SLE women.
PubMed:
Publications:
Selected-
Duvvuri B, Baddour AA, Deane KD, Feser ML, Nelson JL, Demoruelle MK, Lood C. Mitochondrial N-formyl methionine peptides associate with disease activity as well as contribute to neutrophil activation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. J Autoimmun. 2021 May;119:102630. doi: 10.1016/j.jaut.2021.102630. Epub 2021 Mar 10.PMID: 33713887 Free PMC article.
Duvvuri B, Pachman LM, Morgan G, Khojah AM, Klein-Gitelman M, Curran ML, Doty S, Lood C. Neutrophil extracellular traps in tissue and periphery in juvenile dermatomyositis. Arthritis Rheum 2020;72:348-358.
Bach M, Moon J, Moore R, Pan T, Nelson JL, Lood C. A neutrophil activation biomarker panel in prognosis and monitoring of patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum 2020;72:47-56.
Duvvuri B, Lood C. Cell-free DNA as a biomarker in autoimmune rheumatic diseases. Front Immunol 2019;10:502.
Lood C, Arve S, Ledbetter J, Elkon KB. TLR7/8 activation in neutrophils impairs immune complex phagocytosis through shedding of FcgRIIA. J Exp Med 2017;214:2103-2119.
Lood C, Blanco LP, Purmalek MM, Carmona-Rivera C, De Ravin SS, Smith CK, Malech HL, Ledbetter JA, Elkon KB, Kaplan MJ. Neutrophil extracellular traps enriched in oxidized mitochondrial DNA are interferogenic and contribute to lupus-like disease. Nat Med 2016;2:146-53.