Andrea Cerutti, MD, PhD, is an ICREA Research Professor since 2010 and leads the B Cell Biology Group at FIMIM, which is a research center located in the PRBB complex. He serves as grant reviewer for the European Research Council and the National Institutes of Health, and as manuscript reviewer for journals such as Cell, Science, Nature, Immunity, Nature Immunology, Nature Medicine, Nature Communications, The Journal of Experimental Medicine, etc. He is a member of The American Society for Clinical Investigation, The American Association of Immmunologists, and The Henry Kunkel Society and serves as Associate Editor of Mucosal Immunology. He contributed to the organization of 2014 and 2016 Keystone Symposia meetings, published over 130 research articles in top-ranked immunology journals, and regularly lectures in international meetings as well as American and European universities.

Research interests

The splenic marginal zone and gut mucosa can be viewed as interfaces between the immune system and the circulation or external environment, respectively. My group studies how B cells strategically positioned in these “frontline” areas make antibodies against circulating or intraluminal antigens, including intestinal microbes. We are particularly interested in the mechanism whereby splenic stromal cells or splenic innate immune cells, including neutrophils, dendritic cells, macrophages and innate lymphoid cells, facilitate the activation of splenic marginal zone B cells. We are also analyzing how intestinal B cells generate antibodies to commensal bacteria and how these antibodies shape the composition of the gut microbiota. Finally, we study the alterations of B cells in patients with primary antibody deficiency, including selective IgA deficiency and common variable immunodeficiency. Our research is relevant to infections, inflammation, autoimmunity, immunodeficiency, and vaccine development.