We think we know everything, but we don't know most things.
We've been looking into the area which was believed to be, immunologically, a very active area of the brain.
How do immune cells get into the brain and how do they get out of the brain?
And, so what Antoine did is say, O.K. if we see these major changes in the meninges why don't
we just look at the meninges, but not, you know, piece-by-piece.
Let's take the whole thing and put it on a slide.
And, then here it was. We found these beautiful lymphatic vessels going along the sinuses.
You know how sometimes you see it and you know that this is something very, very, very, cool?
Most neurological disorders have an immune component: Autism,
Parkinson's, Alzheimer's, Glaucoma.
So what we are suggesting is, if the immune system has such a prominent effect on the brain,
Can we harness this immune system and maybe target it?
Because it's so easily accessible, so is it druggable? Even replaceable!
Can we maybe target the immune system for the benefit of the brain? That's what we are going after.
University of Virginia is now being recognized for its strength in
Neuroimmunology. So in five years when everybody will want to be in Neuroimmunology,
UVA will be the place!
I believe that to do good science, you need one thing, a passion.
So if you're excited about your question you'll find something interesting,
because we don't know most things.
But if you are passionate about it,
it will lead you somewhere!