Julie Olson, PhD

Expertise:
The immune response that occurs in the central nervous system (CNS) with two areas of study within this interest: (a) examining the role of the CNS resident immune cells, microglia, during the immune response following virus infection, during neurological diseases, or during neuropathic pain in the CNS (b) neuroimmunology and the role of virus infection on the development and progression of autoimmune disease in the CNS.
 

My research interest is in the immune response that occurs in the central nervous system (CNS) with two areas of study within this interest. The first area of study examines the role of the CNS resident immune cells, microglia, during the immune response following virus infection, during neurological diseases, or during neuropathic pain in the CNS. My research focuses on the microglia cells which are macrophage type cells which reside in the CNS. The blood brain barrier restricts the infiltration of peripheral immune cells into the CNS until an immune response has been initiated in the CNS by resident cells. Therefore, microglia are the first line of defense against injury, infection, or disease in the CNS. My research examines how microglia respond to infection, disease, or injury; how the response by microglia contributes to the overall immune response; and whether the response is helpful or harmful to the CNS. A focus of this project is to develop agents that can alter the immune response by microglia to be used as a therapeutic strategy for treatment of neurological diseases. My second area of study in neuroimmunology is the role of virus infection on the development and progression of autoimmune disease in the CNS. Specifically, we study a virus-induced model of multiple sclerosis (MS) in mice. MS is an autoimmune demyelinating disease affecting humans, predominantly females. Strong epidemiological evidence suggests that virus infections play a role in disease development as well as disease progression. My studies utilize a mouse model of virus-induced MS, Theiler’s murine encephalomyelitis virus (TMEV). TMEV infection of mice results in the development of an autoimmune mediated demyelinating disease beginning with clinical symptoms around 35 days post infection with a chronic progression in severity, eventually leading to ascending paralysis and death. My research focuses on the role of the innate immune response in the development and progression of the autoimmune response and disease. We have demonstrated that the innate immune response initiated following virus infection plays a critical role in development and progression of the autoimmune demyelinating disease, and we have developed possible therapies based on the innate immune response which when administered to mice diminished the development and progression of the autoimmune disease.

Award: Theiler's virus RNA in exosomes secreted by infected mic
Principal Investigator: Olson, Julie Kay
Sponsoring Organization: NIH Nat'l Inst of Allergy & Infect Dis
Award Dates: 2020 - 2023

Award: Ocular Hyperalgesia in Dry Eye
Principal Investigator: Bereiter, David A
Sponsoring Organization: NATIONAL INSTITUTES OF HEALTH (NIH)
Award Dates: 2017 - 2022

Award: Role of purinergic signaling and glia in TMJ nociception
Principal Investigator: Bereiter, David A
Sponsoring Organization: NIH NIDCR NATL INST OF DENTAL
Award Dates: 2017 - 2019

Award: Microglia Activation in Neuropathic Pain during MS: Poss
Principal Investigator: Olson, Julie Kay
Sponsoring Organization: U.S. DEPARTMENT OF DEFENSE
Award Dates: 2017 - 2022

Award: Trigeminal-autonomic Relations in Ocular Homeostasis
Principal Investigator: Bereiter, David A
Sponsoring Organization: NIH NEI NATL EYE INST
Award Dates: 2015 - 2017