Welcome to the DFG-funded Graduate School RTG 3095: “Protective and pathogenic antibody responses at barrier organs”

Research Programme

Protective and Pathogenic Antibody Responses at Barrier Organs

The skin, intestine and lungs form essential interfaces between our bodies and the environment. They are continuously exposed to microorganisms, allergens and other external influences. At these barriers, the immune system must provide effective protection while limiting responses that can damage our own tissues.

Antibodies play a central role in this balance. They help prevent infection and regulate interactions with the microbiota, but they can also trigger allergic reactions and contribute to chronic inflammation. Other antibodies can suppress these processes and protect against disease. Understanding what determines these contrasting effects is the central aim of RTG 3095 “Protective and pathogenic antibody responses at barrier organs.”

Our research training group brings together researchers from the University of Lübeck and Kiel University, combining expertise in B-cell biology, antibody function, clinical immunology and bioinformatics. Together, we investigate how antibody responses develop, how they persist and why they can have such different consequences for health and disease.

What Makes an Antibody Protective or Pathogenic?

The effects of an antibody depend on much more than its abundance. Its target, binding strength, class and molecular structure influence how it interacts with immune cells and tissues. Of particular interest are the sugar structures attached to antibodies, known as glycosylation, which can alter their inflammatory properties.

We investigate how these characteristics are established during B-cell activation and differentiation. This includes responses within germinal centres, where B cells undergo selection and maturation, as well as extrafollicular responses that develop outside these structures. By examining these pathways together, we aim to identify the mechanisms that favour protective, inflammatory or allergy-promoting antibody responses.

A key question is how antibodies with opposing functions coexist within the same individual—and what shifts the balance between them.

Understanding the Persistence of Antibody Responses

Antibody responses can last from a few weeks to many years. This persistence is essential for lasting protection after infection or vaccination, but it can also sustain harmful responses in allergic and inflammatory diseases.

Our research therefore examines the generation and maintenance of antibody-producing plasma cells, including their interactions with the surrounding tissue environment. We also investigate how B cells and plasma cells influence other immune cells and contribute to local inflammation.

Across complementary experimental and clinical settings, we seek to distinguish mechanisms shared by different barrier organs from those specific to individual tissues or diseases.

Connecting Experimental Research, Clinical Questions and Bioinformatics

Our nine interconnected projects link fundamental questions in immunology with research into allergic and inflammatory diseases. Shared methods, model systems and research infrastructure support collaboration across projects and between Lübeck and Kiel.

Bioinformatics is an integral part of this approach. Single-cell analyses, B-cell receptor repertoire studies and multiparameter flow cytometry generate complex datasets that can reveal previously hidden differences between immune cells. The programme also develops machine-learning approaches to identify and analyse rare cell populations relevant to antibody responses.

Structured training in bioinformatics enables our doctoral researchers to connect experimental findings with computational analysis and to work effectively across disciplinary boundaries.

Towards More Precise Prevention and Treatment

By identifying the mechanisms that distinguish protective from pathogenic antibody responses, we aim to provide a scientific foundation for improved diagnostics, vaccination strategies and more targeted treatments for allergic and inflammatory diseases. Our long-term perspective is to understand how harmful antibody responses might be controlled while preserving their protective functions.

RTG 3095 builds on the longstanding collaboration in inflammation research between Lübeck and Kiel, developed through the Cluster of Excellence “Inflammation at Interfaces” and continued within “Precision Medicine in Chronic Inflammation” (PMI). Within this research environment, we combine a focused scientific programme with structured doctoral training to prepare the next generation of researchers in antibody and barrier-organ immunology.

Explore our individual research projects to learn more about the questions, approaches and teams contributing to this programme.