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Glenn Cruse PhD

Associate Professor

Biomedical Partnership Center 20004

Bio

Glenn Cruse completed his Ph.D. under the supervision of Professor Peter Bradding at Glenfield Hospital, The University of Leicester, UK in 2009. He then moved to the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland in January 2010 to start a visiting postdoctoral fellowship in the Laboratory of Allergic Diseases, NIAID, under the supervision of Dr. Dean Metcalfe. In January 2015, Dr. Cruse was appointed as a Research Fellow in the same laboratory. Dr. Cruse joined the Department of Molecular Biomedical Sciences at NCSU in January 2016 as an Assistant Professor.

Dr. Cruse is a mast cell biologist that has authored and co-authored over 30 publications including articles in top journals such as the New England Journal of Medicine, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA and Immunity. The Cruse lab is interested in the role that mast cells play in allergic and inflammatory diseases and identifying novel therapeutics that target mast cells. Since mast cells act as sentinel cells that participate in both innate and acquired immunity, particularly at biological barriers, emphasis on diseases in tissues at the interface with the environment such as the lung, skin, gastrointestinal tract and even the neuro-immune axis are the main focus of the lab.

AFFILIATIONS

Member of the American Association of Immunologists
Member of the American Thoracic Society
Member of the American Academy of Asthma, Allergy & Immunology

CERTIFICATIONS

2009 Ph.D. University of Leicester Medical School, Leicester, UK

Area(s) of Expertise

BIOLOGICAL BARRIERS, GENETICS, IMMUNOLOGY, PHARMACOLOGY
The Cruse lab is interested in molecular immunology with particular focus on basic and translational research on allergy and inflammation. The mast cell is a critical regulator of allergic inflammation and thus a central focus of research in our lab. We have recently identified a method to specifically target mast cells by modifying gene splicing to eliminate expression of the high affinity IgE receptor on the mast cell surface, resulting in mast cells that are unresponsive to allergens. In addition to developing this therapeutic approach, our research goals include identifying other novel therapeutic targets and developing more effective treatments of allergic diseases, which have an unmet clinical need.

The key to achieving these goals is better understanding of the molecular mechanisms that trigger and promote allergic inflammation. Studies on mechanisms of activation and phosphorylation of different receptors in immune cells, and determining how they differ in signal transduction and protein trafficking pathways that regulate cytoskeletal reorganization and ionic conductance are of particular interest.

Publications

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