Research

The Center for Immunity, Inflammation and Regenerative Medicine (CIIR) was inaugurated on July 1, 2007, to advance research initiatives, education, and clinical applications in new and essential directions at the University of Virginia (UVA). Research programs focus on the immune system in health and disease, as well as on basic and translational research in immunity, autoimmunity, inflammation, and regenerative medicine. The immune system is an important key to health and disease prevention. It is also a cornerstone for many scientific disciplines within the biological and biomedical sciences.

The CIIR comprises basic immunologists, clinical investigators, and affiliated members who facilitate the translation of immunological concepts underlying human disease into clinical trials. The CIIR and the Divisions of Nephrology and Rheumatology are linked thematically through common research in basic and clinical immunology. Through this linkage, CIIR research programs interface with and complement established UVA School of Medicine research programs, including the Beirne Carter Center for Immunology Research, the Cardiovascular Research Center, Morphogenesis and Regenerative Medicine, the Department of Medicine, and other basic science departments, as well as the Department of Biomedical Engineering. The Center is also an important training ground for undergraduate, graduate, and medical students, postdoctoral fellows, and visiting scientists.

The Center is located in 13,000 sq ft of recently renovated space within the Division of Nephrology and the Center for Immunity, Inflammation, and Regenerative Medicine (CIIR).

1. To create a vibrant, collaborative research environment that advances individual and common areas of research direction in autoimmunity, inflammation, infections, and regenerative medicine.
2. To translate basic concepts on the immunological basis of disease into clinical trials.
3. To translate basic concepts in tissue engineering that will permit the development of novel therapies to regenerate damaged tissues and relieve debilitating chronic disease.
4. To establish specialty clinics in the areas of lupus nephritis and other rheumatological diseases, and polycystic kidney disease and other renal diseases. These clinics will complement laboratory-based basic immunology in the development of a human database, identification of genetic markers for human disease states, and establishment of the infrastructure for clinical trials.
5. To support the training of students, residents, and fellows in basic and translational aspects of immunology, regenerative medicine, and disease.
6. To recruit and mentor junior faculty members of the CIIR.

Interest Group: Extracellular Vesicles
Focus: a multidisciplinary group interested in the roles of extracellular vesicles, also invites international speakers.
Meetings: Twice a month, on Thursdays at 11:00 a.m.
Format/Location: in person or virtual
Contact: Uta Erdbruegger (ue2u@uvahealth.org)