S. MARK TOMPKINS
Assistant Professor

My laboratory focuses on understanding the immune response to influenza virus infection and developing novel vaccines and treatments for use against human and avian influenza strains. Influenza virus infects about 10% of the world population annually. In the United States alone, influenza infection is responsible for about 36,000 mortalities. Moreover, avian influenza continues to pose the threat of a pandemic that the world is unprepared for. New vaccines and therapeutic strategies are needed.

In general, my research is centered on understanding the immune response to influenza infection. By understanding how immunity to influenza in initiated and maintained we can better design new vaccines and therapies. Additionally, influenza infection is often followed with other respiratory infections that can lead to additional pathology and clinical symptoms. Understanding how the immune system responds to polymicrobial infections and how the multiple pathogens impact the immune response is critical for designing effective treatments for these diseases.

My vaccine and therapeutic research is focused in two areas. The first area is centered on using RNA interference as a therapy to inhibit viral replication in vivo and protect animals against lethal influenza virus challenge. Using an established murine model of influenza infection, we have demonstrated that treatment in vivo with influenza-specific small, interfering RNAs can suppress viral replication and protect animals from lethal infection. Future studies are directed toward development of this technology as a viable therapy with particular interest in its efficacy in immunocompromised individuals and against pandemic influenza. The second focus involves vaccination studies using modified plasmid and viral vectors. These vectors can induce immunity against highly conserved influenza antigens and provide broadly cross-reactive protection against influenza infection. Previous studies have shown that vaccination with vectors expressing conserved components of the influenza virus can provide protection against influenza challenge, including highly pathologic avian influenza viruses. Continuing vaccine studies are directed toward enhancing and fully characterizing this protection, using novel adjuvants and delivery systems, with the ultimate goal of developing a universal influenza vaccine.

RECENT PUBLICATIONS

Search PubMed for "tompkins, sm"

Tompkins S.M., Lin Y., Leser G.P., Kramer K.A., Haas D.L., Howerth E.W., et al. Recombinant parainfluenza virus 5 (PIV5) expressing the influenza A virus hemagglutinin provides immunity in mice to influenza A virus challenge. 2007 Virology. E-pub. Jan 22.

Tompkins, S. M., Z. Zhao, C. Y. Lo, J. A. Misplon, T. Liu, Z. Ye, R. J. Hogan, Z. Wu, K. A. Benton, T. M. Tumpey, and S. L. Epstein. 2007. Matrix Protein 2 Vaccination and Protection against Influenza Viruses, Including Subtype H5N1. Emerg.Infect.Dis. 3:426-435.

Tompkins, S. M., Lo, C. Y., Tumpey, T. M. and Epstein, S. L. 2004. Protection against lethal influenza virus challenge by RNA interference in vivo. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 101: 8682-8686.

Tompkins, S. M., Padilla, J., Dal Canto, M. C., Ting, J. P., Van Kaer, L. and Miller, S. D. 2002. De novo central nervous system processing of myelin antigen is required for the initiation of experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. Journal of Immunology, 168:4173-4183.

S. M. and S. D. Miller. 2002. An array of possibilities for multiple sclerosis. Nature Medicine, 8:451-453.

Tompkins, S. M., Fuller, K. G. and Miller, S. D. 2002. Theiler's virus-mediated autoimmunity: local presentation of CNS antigens and epitope spreading. Annals of the New York Academy of Sciences, 958:26-38.

Email
smt@uga.edu

Office
112B AHRC
706-542-4716

Degrees
PhD, Emory University, 1997