Prof. Zuri A Sullivan

In animals, host defense has two modes: antimicrobial programs, which kill pathogens directly; and sickness, a state of altered physiology and behavior that is actively generated by brain-immune system interactions. Professor Sullivan's lab is interested in (1) how and (2) why infections make us sick – the neuroimmune interactions that lead to sickness, and their impact on host fitness. The goal is to understand the mechanistic basis of sickness as a host defense strategy.