Kate Sulka

Aging and neurodegeneration are associated with neuroinflammation, which is primarily driven by the activation of innate immune pathways. Recent research has shown a role for interferon in choroid plexuses of aged brains which correlated to age-associated neurological decline. In the Sharma lab, there is a special focus on the role of Type I interferons (IFN-I) in response to nucleic acid sensing and how these downstream signals affect aging. I am investigating how DNA-sensing machinery in glial cells contributes to IFN-I and other inflammatory pathways during aging and neurodegenerative disease, such as Alzheimer’s Disease.