Gabrielle Belz
| Gabrielle Belz | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Fields |
Medicine Immunology Veterinary Science |
| Institutions | Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research |
| Alma mater | University of Queensland |
| Doctoral advisor | Professor Trevor Heath |
| Notable awards |
Burnet Prize Gottschalk Medal NHMRC Elizabeth Blackburn Fellowship |
Gabrielle Belz is an Australian molecular immunologist and viral immunologist. She is a faculty member of the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research, within the Molecular Immunology division.[1] Belz has made important contributions to the understanding of immune system function, especially in relation to the molecular and cellular signalling pathways of immune response to viruses. Her research has focused on understanding the signals that drive the initial development of protective immunity against pathogen infections, such as influenza and herpes viruses.[2] This includes research into how cytotoxic T cells (a type of T lymphocyte that destroys virally infected cells and tumor cells) recognise and remove virally-infected cells from the body following infection. Research into the description of the specific factors and response during infection will contribute towards the long term development of vaccines for infectious disease, and the development of better treatments for autoimmune diseases.
Education
Belz trained as a veterinarian and completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Queensland graduating with a Bachelor of Veterinary Biology in 1990, then a Bachelor of Veterinary Science with First Class Honours in 1993. She completed a PhD in 1997 at the University of Queensland. Following her PhD, she took up a Postdoctoral Fellowship in viral immunology with Nobel Laureate Professor Peter Doherty at St Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, USA. She returned to Australia to take up a position with the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in 2000.
Awards
In 2007, Belz was awarded the Burnet Prize (recognising the Australian virologist Sir Macfarlane Burnet) for her research into how dendritic cells and cytotoxic T cells work together to defend the body from viral infections.[3] In 2008, Belz was awarded the Gottschalk Medal by the Australian Academy of Science for her contribution to a series of pioneering discoveries illuminating how the immune system deals with viruses.[4] In 2012, Belz was awarded the NHMRC Elizabeth Blackburn Fellowships award (recognising the Australian-American biological researcher and Nobel Laureate, Professor Elizabeth Blackburn).
Selected publications
- Seillet C, Huntington ND, Gangatirkar P, et al. (March 2014). "Differential requirement for Nfil3 during NK cell development". Journal of Immunology 192 (6): 2667–76. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1302605. PMID 24532575.
- Rankin LC, Groom JR, Chopin M, et al. (April 2013). "The transcription factor T-bet is essential for the development of NKp46+ innate lymphocytes via the Notch pathway". Nature Immunology 14 (4): 389–95. doi:10.1038/ni.2545. PMC 4076532. PMID 23455676.
- Masson F, Minnich M, Olshansky M, et al. (May 2013). "Id2-mediated inhibition of E2A represses memory CD8+ T cell differentiation". Journal of Immunology 190 (9): 4585–94. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1300099. PMC 3631715. PMID 23536629.
- Seillet C, Jackson JT, Markey KA, et al. (February 2013). "CD8α+ DCs can be induced in the absence of transcription factors Id2, Nfil3, and Batf3". Blood 121 (9): 1574–83. doi:10.1182/blood-2012-07-445650. PMID 23297132.
- Allan RS, Zueva E, Cammas F, et al. (July 2012). "An epigenetic silencing pathway controlling T helper 2 cell lineage commitment". Nature 487 (7406): 249–53. doi:10.1038/nature11173. PMID 22763435.
- Belz GT, Nutt SL (February 2012). "Transcriptional programming of the dendritic cell network". Nature Reviews. Immunology 12 (2): 101–13. doi:10.1038/nri3149. PMID 22273772.
- Jackson JT, Hu Y, Liu R, et al. (July 2011). "Id2 expression delineates differential checkpoints in the genetic program of CD8α+ and CD103+ dendritic cell lineages". The EMBO Journal 30 (13): 2690–704. doi:10.1038/emboj.2011.163. PMC 3155298. PMID 21587207.
- Kallies A, Xin A, Belz GT, Nutt SL (August 2009). "Blimp-1 transcription factor is required for the differentiation of effector CD8(+) T cells and memory responses". Immunity 31 (2): 283–95. doi:10.1016/j.immuni.2009.06.021. PMID 19664942.
- Allan RS, Smith CM, Belz GT, et al. (September 2003). "Epidermal viral immunity induced by CD8alpha+ dendritic cells but not by Langerhans cells". Science 301 (5641): 1925–8. doi:10.1126/science.1087576. PMID 14512632.
- Belz GT, Smith CM, Kleinert L, et al. (June 2004). "Distinct migrating and nonmigrating dendritic cell populations are involved in MHC class I-restricted antigen presentation after lung infection with virus". Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America 101 (23): 8670–5. doi:10.1073/pnas.0402644101. PMC 423253. PMID 15163797.