Posts by Wayne G. Shreffler, MD, PhD
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Key Allergic Mediators of Eosinophilic Esophagitis Identified
Massachusetts General Hospital researchers have provided insight into the mechanisms that drive inflammation in eosinophilic esophagitis, including a novel pathway that may lead to recruitment of pathogenic effector T helper 2 cells to the esophagus and how these cells mediate eosinophilic inflammation.
Biography
Dr. Shreffler received his MD and PhD degrees from New York University and his Pediatrics training at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. He completed his fellowship in Allergy & Immunology at the Mount Sinai School of Medicine in 2003 where he was mentored by Drs. Hugh Sampson and Lloyd Mayer, and established himself as a researcher of immune mechanisms of food allergy and asthma. He joined Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School in late 2009 to establish a new translational research and clinical care center focused on food allergy, and he became Division Chief of Pediatric Allergy and Immunology in 2011.
The Food Allergy Center at MGH is a highly integrated research and clinical program to better understand the pathogenic mechanisms of food allergy and asthma and provide the best current and future care. The Shreffler laboratory focuses on the characterization of cellular and humoral immune response to dietary antigens and the mechanisms of allergen-induced Th2 sensitization and oral tolerance. Areas of active investigation include 1) the mechanisms of allergenic dendritic cell (DC) activation by allergens and the DC signals that induce Th2 differentiation; 2) the role of regulatory T cells in natural and immunotherapy-induced oral tolerance; 3) the role of IgE diversity and basophil activation and their regulation in both the effector response and in adaptive immune deviation in the context of food allergy and asthma.
Dr. Shreffler has authored more than 70 papers, maintained continuous NIH and other research funding since 2007, served on the editorial board of the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology and as reviewer for numerous journals and grant study sections / committees. He was elected a Fellow of the AAAAI in 2009.
Endocrinology Division
The Endocrinology Division at Massachusetts General Hospital offers a comprehensive integrated program of clinical services for both primary and tertiary care of adults with endocrine disorders.