Andrea Ablasser wins the 2018 National Latsis Prize

The medical researcher and EPFL professor Andrea Ablasser , who studies how cells defend themselves against viral and bacterial attacks, has won the 2018 National Latsis Prize in recognition of her excellent research work on immunity. In contrast to acquired immunity and its targeted, but slow, production of antibodies against specific pathogens, innate immunity reacts immediately: by means of special sensors the cell is able to check whether any DNA or RNA is in the wrong place. As this can be a sign of viral infection, the cell triggers an overall antiviral immune response. The medical researcher Andrea Ablasser has been investigating how such innate immune responses are controlled, and in doing so, has come upon a promising new therapeutic approach. On behalf of the Latsis Foundation, the Swiss National Science Foundation has awarded her the National Latsis Prize 2018 in recognition of her pioneering work.  Ablasser's research focuses on the so-called cGAS/STING signal pathway, which was only discovered ten years ago. This signal pathway, which is activated if DNA is present outside the cell nucleus, mainly boosts the production of inflammation signals, which in turn activate various immune cells that fight viruses. The signal pathway also plays a role in the immune response to tumour cells. Having already done research in this field as an undergraduate and later as a doctoral student, Ablasser was able to characterise an important transmitter substance in this chain of signals while working as a postdoc at the University of Bonn. "It was during this period that I decided to devote myself entirely to basic research instead of doing clinical work, which would have been the obvious choice as I had studied medicine," says Ablasser.  Understanding autoimmune diseases