Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology,
School of Clinical Medicine,
Centre for Trophoblast Research,
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, School of Clinical Medicine
Professor Francesco Colucci’s work has helped to understand how natural killer (NK) cells develop and function and how they recognize cancer cells. Since 2006, he has focused on how NK cells in the womb regulate healthy reproduction and fetal growth. Trained as a physician at Bari University in the late 80’s, Francesco moved to Umeå University in 1992 with a research scholarship from the Swedish Institute. There he learned to use tetraparental chimeras to study cellular mechanisms of disease. This became the subject of his PhD under the supervision of Takeshi Matsunaga and Dan Holmberg. He then moved to Jim Di Santo’s lab in Paris at the Necker Hospital in 1997. The lab relocated to the Pasteur Institute, where Francesco became associate professor in 2000. In 2004 he moved to Cambridge, UK as a group leader at the Babraham Institute to then move into his current post at the University Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology in 2010. Francesco is also fellow, director of studies in medicine and graduate tutor at King's College, manager of the Centre for Trophoblast Research in Cambridge, advisor to the advanced school of immunology Ruggero Ceppellini in Naples and visiting professor at the University of Turin.
Identification of the earliest prethymic bipotent T/NK progenitor in murine fetal liver.
Blood Jan, 2002 | Pubmed ID: 11781226
Natural cytotoxicity uncoupled from the Syk and ZAP-70 intracellular kinases.
Nature immunology Mar, 2002 | Pubmed ID: 11836527
Natural killer cell activation in mice and men: different triggers for similar weapons?
Nature immunology Sep, 2002 | Pubmed ID: 12205470
A critical role for Syk protein tyrosine kinase in Fc receptor-mediated antigen presentation and induction of dendritic cell maturation.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Jan, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 12517949
NKG2D triggers cytotoxicity in mouse NK cells lacking DAP12 or Syk family kinases.
Nature immunology Jun, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 12740576
What does it take to make a natural killer?
Nature reviews. Immunology May, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 12766763
[Relevance of the Di Bella case in the relationship between people and official medicine].
Epidemiologia e prevenzione May-Jun, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 12958740
"A Japanese gentleman of the Samurai tradition": Takeshi Matsunaga 1945-2003.
Immunogenetics Nov, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 14557899
GATA-3 promotes maturation, IFN-gamma production, and liver-specific homing of NK cells.
Immunity Nov, 2003 | Pubmed ID: 14614857
Combined deficiency in IkappaBalpha and IkappaBepsilon reveals a critical window of NF-kappaB activity in natural killer cell differentiation.
Blood Jun, 2004 | Pubmed ID: 14764534
He who laughs last laughs best--innate immunity and viral selection.
Immunity Jun, 2004 | Pubmed ID: 15189731
The absence of Grb2-associated binder 2 (Gab2) does not disrupt NK cell development and functions.
Journal of leukocyte biology Oct, 2004 | Pubmed ID: 15240750
PLCgamma2 regulates Bcl-2 levels and is required for survival rather than differentiation of marginal zone and follicular B cells.
European journal of immunology Aug, 2004 | Pubmed ID: 15259021
Roles for common cytokine receptor gamma-chain-dependent cytokines in the generation, differentiation, and maturation of NK cell precursors and peripheral NK cells in vivo.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Feb, 2005 | Pubmed ID: 15661875
Vav proteins regulate peripheral B-cell survival.
Blood Oct, 2005 | Pubmed ID: 15941910
Phospholipase C-gamma2 is essential for NK cell cytotoxicity and innate immunity to malignant and virally infected cells.
Blood Feb, 2006 | Pubmed ID: 16204312
Cmv4, a new locus linked to the NK cell gene complex, controls innate resistance to cytomegalovirus in wild-derived mice.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) May, 2006 | Pubmed ID: 16622016
E2-2 regulates the expansion of pro-B cells and follicular versus marginal zone decisions.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Nov, 2006 | Pubmed ID: 17082585
Intellectual edge can be gained in translation.
Nature Mar, 2007 | Pubmed ID: 17377560
Dormant tumor cells develop cross-resistance to apoptosis induced by CTLs or imatinib mesylate via methylation of suppressor of cytokine signaling 1.
Cancer research May, 2007 | Pubmed ID: 17483365
The p110delta catalytic isoform of PI3K is a key player in NK-cell development and cytokine secretion.
Blood Nov, 2007 | Pubmed ID: 17644738
Unexpected partnership between IL-15 and DAP10.
Nature immunology Dec, 2007 | Pubmed ID: 18026080
Unique receptor repertoire in mouse uterine NK cells.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Nov, 2008 | Pubmed ID: 18941204
p110gamma and p110delta isoforms of phosphoinositide 3-kinase differentially regulate natural killer cell migration in health and disease.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Apr, 2009 | Pubmed ID: 19297623
NCRs and DNAM-1 mediate NK cell recognition and lysis of human and mouse melanoma cell lines in vitro and in vivo.
The Journal of clinical investigation May, 2009 | Pubmed ID: 19349689
Dicer-dependent microRNA pathway controls invariant NKT cell development.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Aug, 2009 | Pubmed ID: 19625646
PI3K signaling in lymphocyte migration.
Cell cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) Oct, 2009 | Pubmed ID: 19838082
A simple method to measure NK cell cytotoxicity in vivo.
Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) , 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20033651
Analysis of uterine natural killer cells in mice.
Methods in molecular biology (Clifton, N.J.) , 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20033660
Taming killer cells may halt diabetes progression.
Nature immunology Feb, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20084067
Reprogramming of T cells to natural killer-like cells upon Bcl11b deletion.
Science (New York, N.Y.) Jul, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20538915
New views on natural killer cell-based immunotherapy for melanoma treatment.
Trends in immunology Sep, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20655806
Immature NK cells, capable of producing IL-22, are present in human uterine mucosa.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Oct, 2010 | Pubmed ID: 20802153
Paternal MHC expression on mouse trophoblast affects uterine vascularization and fetal growth.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Mar, 2011 | Pubmed ID: 21300875
Inositol phospholipid signaling and the biology of natural killer cells.
Journal of innate immunity , 2011 | Pubmed ID: 21422750
How does variability of immune system genes affect placentation?
Placenta Aug, 2011 | Pubmed ID: 21665273
Guardian of the genome turns on genes that alert natural killer cells.
Cell cycle (Georgetown, Tex.) Nov, 2011 | Pubmed ID: 22142860
Impaired natural killer cell phenotype and function in idiopathic and heritable pulmonary arterial hypertension.
Circulation Aug, 2012 | Pubmed ID: 22832786
DBA-lectin reactivity defines mouse uterine natural killer cell subsets with biased gene expression.
Biology of reproduction Oct, 2012 | Pubmed ID: 22875907
Maternal uterine NK cell-activating receptor KIR2DS1 enhances placentation.
The Journal of clinical investigation Oct, 2013 | Pubmed ID: 24091323
MHC-dependent inhibition of uterine NK cells impedes fetal growth and decidual vascular remodelling.
Nature communications , 2014 | Pubmed ID: 24577131
Uterine NK cells: active regulators at the maternal-fetal interface.
The Journal of clinical investigation May, 2014 | Pubmed ID: 24789879
Medawar and the immunological paradox of pregnancy: 60 years on.
European journal of immunology Jul, 2014 | Pubmed ID: 25042825
Enrichment of CD56(dim)KIR + CD57 + highly cytotoxic NK cells in tumour-infiltrated lymph nodes of melanoma patients.
Nature communications , 2014 | Pubmed ID: 25472612
A KIR B centromeric region present in Africans but not Europeans protects pregnant women from pre-eclampsia.
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Jan, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25561558
Maternal uterine natural killer cells nurture fetal growth: in medio stat virtus.
Trends in molecular medicine Feb, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25618773
Immunomodulation of Selective Naive T Cell Functions by p110δ Inactivation Improves the Outcome of Mismatched Cell Transplantation.
Cell reports Feb, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25660021
An oral commensal associates with disease: chicken, egg, or red herring?
Immunity Feb, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25692696
IL-12/15/18-preactivated NK cells suppress GvHD in a mouse model of mismatched hematopoietic cell transplantation.
European journal of immunology Jun, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 25778912
To Feel or Not to Feel When My Group Harms Others? The Regulation of Collective Guilt as Motivated Reasoning.
Personality & social psychology bulletin Sep, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26130597
Co-evolution of NK receptors and HLA ligands in humans is driven by reproduction.
Immunological reviews Sep, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26284484
Tissue-Specific Education of Decidual NK Cells.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Oct, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26320253
Composition, Development, and Function of Uterine Innate Lymphoid Cells.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Oct, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26371244
HLA class I downregulation is associated with enhanced NK-cell killing of melanoma cells with acquired drug resistance to BRAF inhibitors.
European journal of immunology Nov, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26564811
Disrupted PI3K p110δ Signaling Dysregulates Maternal Immune Cells and Increases Fetal Mortality In Mice.
Cell reports Dec, 2015 | Pubmed ID: 26711346
The Residual Innate Lymphoid Cells in NFIL3-Deficient Mice Support Suboptimal Maternal Adaptations to Pregnancy.
Frontiers in immunology , 2016 | Pubmed ID: 26925058
Activating KIR2DS4 Is Expressed by Uterine NK Cells and Contributes to Successful Pregnancy.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) 12, 2016 | Pubmed ID: 27815424
Uterine Natural Killer Cells: Functional Distinctions and Influence on Pregnancy in Humans and Mice.
Frontiers in immunology , 2017 | Pubmed ID: 28484462
The role of KIR and HLA interactions in pregnancy complications.
Immunogenetics 08, 2017 | Pubmed ID: 28695287
Killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptors on the cusp of modern immunogenetics.
Immunology 12, 2017 | Pubmed ID: 28755388
Decidualisation and placentation defects are a major cause of age-related reproductive decline.
Nature communications 09, 2017 | Pubmed ID: 28874785
High-Resolution Genetic and Phenotypic Analysis of KIR2DL1 Alleles and Their Association with Pre-Eclampsia.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950) Nov, 2018 | Pubmed ID: 30249807
A comparative analysis of immune privilege in pregnancy and cancer in the context of checkpoint blockade immunotherapy.
Seminars in oncology 06, 2018 | Pubmed ID: 30262396
Report from the Killer-cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors (KIR) component of the 17th International HLA and Immunogenetics Workshop.
Human immunology Dec, 2018 | Pubmed ID: 30321631
Molecular definition of group 1 innate lymphoid cells in the mouse uterus.
Nature communications 10, 2018 | Pubmed ID: 30374017
Placentation and antitumor immunity regulated by a scaffolding protein in NK cells.
Science immunology 08, 2019 | Pubmed ID: 31375527
The immunological code of pregnancy.
Science (New York, N.Y.) 08, 2019 | Pubmed ID: 31467207
Microbes, immunity and cancer in Capri: Another successful course of the EFIS-EJI Ruggero Ceppellini Advanced School of Immunology founded by Serafino Zappacosta.
European journal of immunology 12, 2019 | Pubmed ID: 31814128
Distinctive phenotypes and functions of innate lymphoid cells in human decidua during early pregnancy.
Nature communications 01, 2020 | Pubmed ID: 31959757
Sharing Knowledge With Young and Established Students of Immunology by the Neapolitan Gulf at the Ruggero Ceppellini Advanced School.
Frontiers in immunology , 2020 | Pubmed ID: 32047501
Variations in killer-cell immunoglobulin-like receptor and human leukocyte antigen genes and immunity to malaria.
Cellular & molecular immunology 08, 2020 | Pubmed ID: 32541835
The CD94/NKG2A inhibitory receptor educates uterine NK cells to optimize pregnancy outcomes in humans and mice.
Immunity 06, 2021 | Pubmed ID: 33887202
Maternal natural killer cells at the intersection between reproduction and mucosal immunity.
Mucosal immunology 09, 2021 | Pubmed ID: 33903735
How Do Uterine Natural Killer and Innate Lymphoid Cells Contribute to Successful Pregnancy?
Frontiers in immunology , 2021 | Pubmed ID: 34234770
Biology and pathology of the uterine microenvironment and its natural killer cells.
Cellular & molecular immunology Sep, 2021 | Pubmed ID: 34426671