Synthesis of a-GalCer analogues as tools to elucidate the mechanisms of NKT cell polarization.

Modulation of natural killer T (NKT) cells is an attractive and relatively underexplored strategy for the prevention and treatment of cancer and auto-immune diseases.This project aims to synthesize -GalCer analogues that will allow further elucidation of the mechanisms responsible for a desirable cytokine polarization. Towards this end synthetic modifications of -GalCer will be judiciously chosen as to investigate the role of the stability of the glycolipid-CD1d complex, as well as the stability of the ternary CD1d-glycolipid-TCR complex on the cytokine outcome.