探究免疫细胞发育分化的调控及相关疾病的发病机制，发现抗肿瘤免疫中新的潜在药物靶点及研发新的免疫疗法
吴励教授实验室的研究重点是运用细胞及分子生物学方法研究免疫细胞发育与功能的分子调控及其在感染、肿瘤及自身免疫病发病中的作用机理。
主要研究方向包括对固有免疫细胞，如：树突状细胞、巨噬细胞及固有淋巴样细胞的发育与功能的分子调控，造血干/前体细胞向免疫细胞定向分化的调节，以及这些免疫细胞在相关疾病发生发展中的作用。实验室同时对固有免疫细胞在肿瘤微环境中的特性及其在抗肿瘤免疫应答中的作用进行探讨研究，为发现抗肿瘤免疫中新的潜在药物靶点以及新的免疫疗法的研发提供理论基础及新的思路。
主要研究成果：
1.在国际上首次鉴定及分离出小鼠胸腺中最早期淋巴细胞系的前体细胞，并证实其分化成各种淋巴细胞的多能潜力，这一发现开拓了免疫细胞定向分化调节的新的研究领域。（Wuetal.Nature1991，Wuetal.J.E.M.1991）
2.首次证实免疫系统的另一类重要细胞：具有高效抗原提呈能力的树突状细胞可由髓系和淋巴细胞的前体细胞分化而成，这一研究结果成为树突状细胞生物学研究领域的一项重要发现。为理解T-细胞如何活化并分化为针对某个特定致病原的效应性免疫细胞提供了新的理论基础。(Ardavin,Wuetal.Nature1993,Wuetal.Blood 2001, D’Amico et.al. J.E.M. 2003)。
3.分析鉴定了胸腺树突状细胞的亚群，并对各亚群的特定的功能进行了深入分析，阐明了这些亚群调节免疫应答及免疫耐受的作用机理(Proietto et.al. PNAS 2008)。
4.发现鉴定了数个对树突状细胞亚群发育具有重要调控作用的转录因子(RelB，Ikaros,PU.1)为这些细胞正常发育分化的分子调控及其对免疫应答的调节作用提供了理论基础(Wuetal.Immunity1997,WuetalImmunity1998,Carottaet.al. Immunity2010)。
5.揭示了小RNAmiR-223在调控肠道树突状细胞及巨噬细胞的功能及在维持肠道黏膜系统稳态中的重要作用，并阐明该作用是通过转录因子C/EBPb所介导的(Zhouet.al.Cell Reports 2015)。
6.分析并揭示了新合成的TLR2受体激动剂通过增强树突状细胞抗原提呈能力，提高抗肿瘤特异细胞毒性T细胞的活化及对肿瘤的杀伤作用，进而可能成为提高抗肿瘤免疫应答的潜在靶点(Guoet.al.FrontImmunol.2017)。
7.发现LRRK2在维持肺组织稳态及抑制肺纤维化发生中的关键作用，并阐明LRRK2缺失导致严重肺纤维化的过程依赖于CCL2/CCR2介导的肺泡上皮细胞与免疫细胞的cross-talk（Tian YJ, et. al.,PNAS, 2021. In press)。
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