My work focuses on autoimmune B cells of MuSK myasthenia gravis (MG) patients. MG is an autoimmune disease characterized by fatigable muscle weakness. It is caused by autoantibodies directed against proteins in the neuromuscular junction, such as muscle-specific kinase (MuSK). A striking feature is that these autoantibodies all are of the IgG4 subclass, which normally has anti-inflammatory properties. By using hypothesis-free methods such as large flow cytometry screens and single cell RNA sequencing, we hope to gain a better understanding of these autoreactive B cells, as well as IgG4-expressing B cells in general.

My project is connected to www.huijberslab.org.

Thesis: 10-10-2019, Oxygen shapes the early immune response