Dr Jayne Hope
	Tel:	+44 (0) 1635 577 239
	E-mail:	jayne.hope@bbsrc.ac.uk
	Address:	Institute for Animal Health Compton Newbury Berks RG20 7NN
	Website:	http://www.iah.ac.uk/research/BovCelImm/BovCelImm_jh.shtml

Principal areas of research
Bovine immune mechanisms, dendritic cell biology, tuberculosis vaccines.

Biography
Dr Hope obtained a BSc (Hons) degree in Biological Sciences (Microbiology) from the University of Birmingham, UK in 1991, and a PhD degree from the University of Manchester, UK, in 1994. She then carried out postdoctoral research at the University of Manchester (1994-1996) and Kings College School of Medicine and Dentistry (1996-1997). In 1997 she began employment as a postdoctoral researcher at the Institute for Animal Health. Dr Hope is now a group leader focusing on research into innate and adaptive immune mechanisms in cattle. Her group is currently carrying out research into bovine tuberculosis (TB) with the aim of understanding immune mechanisms that lead to protective immunity.

Research programme
Dr Hope’s research group is funded by both BBSRC and DEFRA. A major goal of Dr. Hope’s research, in collaboration with Professor G Hewinson and Dr M Vordermeier at the Veterinary Laboratories Agency is to assess the protective efficacy of TB vaccines and to define correlates of protective immunity in cattle that might be targeted by effective vaccination strategies. The incidence of TB in cattle is increasing rapidly causing major economic losses and increasing human health risks from this zoonotic disease. It is recognized that elimination of the disease in both cattle and humans will depend on effective vaccines and sensitive, specific diagnostic tests. The development of new vaccines for TB has been the subject of intense research for many years since the development of the attenuated Bacille Calmette Guerin (BCG) strain of M. bovis almost 100 years ago. Despite the development and testing of subunit vaccines, DNA vaccines, attenuated and modified M. tuberculosis strains and more, BCG remains the gold standard and is still most effective vaccine particularly against TB in children.

Vaccination of neonatal humans with BCG induces significantly better immune responses than vaccination of adults. BCG vaccination of neonatal calves also induces a significant level of protection against experimental M. bovis infection. The duration of immunity induced by BCG vaccination of neonatal calves is currently being assessed and has been shown to be at least 12 months. Why neonates are protected more effectively than adults is a major area of research in Dr Hope’s group. It is known that neonatal calves have significantly higher levels of circulating innate immune cells, natural killer (NK) cells and γδ T cells, than adult cattle. Each of these cell populations can interact with M. bovis infected antigen presenting cells and secretes high level interferon gamma (IFNγ), a key cytokine in protective immune responses. Whether NK cells or γδ T cell responses can be boosted by vaccination and the role these cells play in protection is currently being explored. How mycobacteria interact with dendritic cells (DC) and the interaction of DC with NK cells and γδ T cells is also under investigation.

The capacity to analyze ex vivo DC in cattle following cannulation of afferent lymphatic vessels has enabled detailed characterization of the properties of DC subsets. Only a small proportion of afferent lymph DC interact with mycobacteria. Mechanisms to target expression of mycobacterial antigens by a greater proportion of DC, and the effects of such targeting on the induction of antigen-specific immune responses, are being explored.

Development of reagents allowing detailed immunological analysis in cattle has been a long term goal of the IAH. Dr Hope’s group is part of the multi-site, multi-species BBSRC funded Immunological Toolbox consortium (http://www.immunologicaltoolbox.co.uk/). Provision of reagents from such a consortium will enhance future studies of immune mechanisms in veterinary species.

Key publications

Price SJ, Hope JC (2009) Enhanced secretion of IFNγ by bovine γδ T cells induced by co-culture with Mycobacterium bovis infected dendritic cells: evidence for reciprocal activating signals
Immunology 126: 201

Sopp P, Coad M, Whelan A, Vordermeier HM, Hewinson G, Howard CJ, Harris J, Ni Cheallaigh C, J Keane, Hope JC (2008) Development of a Simple, Sensitive, Rapid Test which Accurately Discriminates BCG Vaccinated from Mycobacterium bovis Infected Cattle. Vaccine 26: 5470-5476

Thom ML, Howard CJ, Villarreal-Ramos B, Mead EB, Vordermeier HM, Hope JC (2008) Consequence of prior exposure to environmental mycobacteria on BCG vaccination and diagnosis of tuberculosis infection. Tuberculosis 88: 324-334

Sopp P, Howard CJ, Hope JC (2006) Flow cytometric detection of gamma interferon can effectively discriminate Mycobacterium bovis BCG-vaccinated cattle from M. bovis-infected cattle. Clin Vaccine Immunol. 13: 1343

Hope JC, Thom ML, Villarreal-Ramos B, Vordermeier HM, Hewinson RG, Howard CJ (2005)
Exposure to Mycobacterium avium induces low-level protection from M. bovis infection but compromises diagnosis of disease in cattle. Clin. Exp. Immunol. 141 432

Hope JC, Thom ML, Villarreal-Ramos B, Vordermeier HM, Howard CJ (2005) Vaccination of neonatal calves with Mycobacterium bovis BCG induces protection against challenge with virulent Mycobacterium bovis. Clin. Exp. Immunol. 139 48

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