Our Mission
The nervous system does not just sense inflammation, it regulates it. Our mission is to redefine the conceptual and therapeutic framework of inflammation by establishing the nervous system as a central regulator of immunity. Rather than focusing on individual diseases, we seek to uncover the neuroimmune circuits that govern how immune-related processes are sensed, integrated, and controlled across tissues. By defining these upstream mechanisms, we aim to develop precise, personalized strategies that modulate inflammation at its source and enable durable control without systemic immunosuppression.
Our Research
Our research program is driven by a central question: how does the nervous system sense, encode, and control immune-related processes? We investigate this through three interconnected directions. First, we define how peripheral sensory neurons detect immune activity and orchestrate barrier tissue function through bidirectional communication. Second, we ask whether and how sensory neurons remember prior immune-related experiences. Third, we determine how peripheral immune signals are represented in the brain, asking whether they form higher-order representations and how their manipulation influences disease outcomes.
Our Approach
We integrate immunology and neurobiology across models of microbiota, barrier inflammation, infection, and neural injury spanning diverse inflammatory contexts, including skin, lung and upper airway, kidney, and systemic inflammation, to define both shared neuroimmune principles and context-specific mechanisms. In immunology, we leverage high-parameter spectral flow cytometry and single-cell and spatial multi-omics; in neurobiology, we use activity-dependent genetic approaches (TRAP systems) to capture and manipulate inflammation-engaged neurons and interrogate sensory circuits across dorsal root, vagal, and trigeminal pathways and the brain using electrophysiology, in vivo calcium imaging, optogenetics, and chemogenetics, integrating confocal and intravital microscopy with quantitative behavioral analyses to link immune states, neural activity, and organismal outcomes, with validation in human tissues.
Interested in joining our team?
The Enamorado lab is always seeking enthusiastic and passionate researchers in neuroimmunology (undergraduates, graduate students, medical students, residents, postdocs, and associate researchers) to join our team.
Prospective applicants are encouraged to send their application, comprising a cover letter detailing their scientific interests and alignment with our mission, along with a CV or Biosketch and contact information for three references, to NerisMichel.Enamoradoescalona@mssm.edu.