Rudi Beyaert
Molecular Signal Transduction in Inflammation
VIB Department for Molecular Biomedical Research, UGent              

PhD: Univ. of Ghent, Ghent, Belgium, '92 VIB Group leader since 1997

E-mail phone +32 9 331 37 70 ADDRESS

Current team members
Group leader: Rudi Beyaert
Staff scientist: Geert van Loo
Postdoctoral scientists: David Muyllaert, Harald Braun, Isabelle Carpentier, Jens Staal, Lynn Verstrepen, Mieke Delvaeye, Mirjam Kool, Mourad Matmati, Sandra Gardam
Ph.D. Students: Annelies Demeyer, Christina Müller, Conor McGuire, Jonathan Maelfait, Kelly Verhelst, Lars Vereecke, Lynn Elton, Marlies Galle, Tine Bekaert
Support personnel: Marja Kreike, Mira Haegman, Mozes Sze, Yasmine Driege

Keywords
TNF signal transduction - NF-kB - Toll-like receptors - immune escape - inflammation and immunity

Science
The goal of our research is to better understand the molecular mechanisms of inflammation and immunity. Nuclear factor-kB (NF-kB) is a transcription factor that plays a central role in immune responses. However, uncontrolled activation of NF-kB dependent gene expression contributes to the development of auto-immune and infectious diseases as well as cancer, implicating NF-kB as an important therapeutic target. We are using several molecular and biochemical approaches to elucidate the signaling pathways that control NF-kB activation in response to specific immune cell receptors (TNF, IL-1, TLRs, B cell and T cell receptors). Besides NF-kB activation, wes are also interested in the mechanisms that regulate the proteolytic processing and secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-1B in response to bacterial infection. Key signaling molecules are validated in vivo using mouse transgenesis and different mouse models of auto-immune (multiple sclerosis, asthma, Crohn’s disease) and infectious disease (sepsis, bacterial pneumonia).
Specific research topics include:
1. Regulation of NF-kB signaling by protein ubiquitination and phosphorylation;
2. Functional characterisation of the proteolytic activity of the paracaspase MALT1;
3. Regulation of TLR signaling by alternative splicing of MyD88;
4. Novel mechanisms of caspase-1 modulation by Pseudomonas aeruginosa;
5. IL-1B maturation initiated by TLRs

Press Release
See also press release (28/01/2008): A major step toward a more targeted treatment for auto-immune diseases? - based on a publication in Nature Immunology (Coornaert et al., Nature Immunology, 2008).

Link to Group's website for more details.

See also comment of Neil Kaplowitz in Hepatology (pdf - 102 Kb).

Wagner S, Carpentier I, Rogov V, Kreike M, Ikeda F, Löhr F, Wu C, Ashwell J, Dötsch V, Dikic I, Beyaert R
Ubiquitin binding mediates the NF-kappaB inhibitory potential of ABIN proteins
ONCOGENE 27, 3739-45, 2008



Coornaert B, Baens M, Heyninck K, Bekaert T, Haegman M, Staal J, Sun L, Chen Z, Marynen P, Beyaert R
T cell antigen receptor stimulation induces MALT1 paracaspase-mediated cleavage of the NF-kappaB inhibitor A20
NAT IMMUNOL 9, 263-71, 2008



Iha H, Peloponese J, Verstrepen L, Zapart G, Ikeda F, Smith c, Starost M, Yedavalli V, Heyninck K, Dikic I, Beyaert R, Jeang K
Inflammatory cardiac valvulitis in TAX1BP1-deficient mice through selective NF-kappaB activation
EMBO J 27, 629-41, 2008



Maelfait J, Vercammen E, Janssens S, Schotte P, Haegman M, Magez S, Beyaert R
Stimulation of Toll-like receptor 3 and 4 induces interleukin-1beta maturation by caspase-8
J EXP MED 205, 1967-73, 2008



Galle M, Schotte P, Haegman M, Wullaert A, Yang h, Jin S, Beyaert R
The Pseudomonas aeruginosa Type III secretion system plays a dual role in the regulation of caspase-1 mediated IL-1beta maturation
J CELL MOL MED 12, 1767-76, 2008

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