| Citation | Siamon Gordon and his group have discovered new macrophage-restricted plasma membrane antigens and receptors and/or demonstrated their functions in differentiation, adhesion, phagocytosis, immune activation and secretion. These surface molecules are important in innate immunity to microbial and fungal infection, in tissue homeostasis and in pathogenesis of a range of inflammatory and metabolic diseases. In particular, he identified and developed F4/80 as the standard marker for tissue macrophages, and elucidated the role for b-glucan as a specific ligand for Dectin-1, an essential receptor for uptake of fungi, eg Candida albicans and Pneumocystis carinii. His is the first demonstration of collaboration between a direct pattern recognition receptor and a Toll-like receptor, both required for signalling. |