Gaskill Lab

Our research  explores the immunopharmacology of neurotransmitters, addictive drugs and neuropsychiatric therapeutics in neurological and inflammatory disease. Currently, our projects focus on the impact of dopamine on inflammasome activity, the role of addictive substances (cocaine, benzodiazepines) on HIV replication and associated inflammation in the brain, the impact of HIV / HBV co-infection and stimulants on HIV infection in liver and lung macrophages, and the development of iPSC models of microglia, macrophages, human cortical and mid-brain organoids to facilitate our understanding and research into neuroHIV and other neurodegenerative diseases. A common thread throughout these projects is a focus on myeloid cells, a central driver of innate inflammation as well as a primary target for HIV infection in many organ systems. We use primary human macrophages from blood and tissues as well as iPSC-derived macrophages and microglia, and many of our experiments use high-content imaging to perform unbiased, high-throughput analysis of large, heterogenous cell populations and molecular targets in response to many distinct stimuli. Combining these high content analyses with molecular and cell biology techniques enables us to focus specifically on the molecular mechanisms regulating the involvement of myeloid cells in disease processes.