Adrianus van der Velden, Ph.D.

STONY BROOK, N.Y., December 30, 2008 – Adrianus (Ando) W. M. van der Velden, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Departments of Molecular Genetics and Microbiology, Pathology, and Center for Infectious Diseases at Stony Brook University School of Medicine, is a 2008 recipient of the Astellas Young Investigator Award. Sponsored by the Astellas USA Foundation, the award is given to only two individuals each year and provides funding to scientists who have demonstrated outstanding research in any current area of interest within the field of infectious diseases.

Dr. van der Velden is investigating the mammalian T cell response to Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium (S. Typhimurium), intracellular bacteria that are a leading cause of worldwide morbidity and mortality in humans. Jointly given by the Infectious Diseases Society of America Education and Research Foundation and the National Foundation for Infectious Diseases, the award provides Dr. van der Velden with a one-year $50,000 grant to continue his research.

According to Dr. van der Velden, T cells are a key lymphocyte subset required for eliminating S. Typhimurium. Dr. van der Velden, however, has found in his research that the development of T-cell mediated adaptive immunity to  S. Typhimurium is slow and inefficient. In addition, his experiments have shown that S. Typhimurium act directly on T cells to inhibit their proliferation and to down-modulate expression of the T cell receptor beta chain (TCR), a molecule required for antigen recognition and T cell function.

The goal of his experiments funded by the Astellas Young Investigator Award is to further characterize the mechanism by which S. Typhimurium inhibit T cells. Dr. van der Velden expects that through new experiments he will be able to identify and characterize a T cell inhibitor produced or induced during bacterial infection. The research could lead to the development of new therapeutics or vaccines for the treatment and prevention of human diseases caused by S. Typhimurium, and possibly other microbial pathogens.

Dr. van der Velden’s research interests focus on the interface of host immunity and microbial pathogenesis. He and Stony Brook University colleagues work within this area of infectious diseases, as well as research other aspects of infectious diseases immunology.

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