Ashley Haase

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Credentials

MD

Bio

Ashley T. Haase is a Regents' Professor and Head of the Department Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis. Dr. Haase has devoted the past 25 years of his career to investigating human (HIV-1/AIDS) and non-human primate (SIV) lentivirus infections, and his laboratory is currently investigating the globally predominant sexual route of HIV transmission in the SIV rhesus macaque model with the goal of developing effective vaccines and microbicides. Dr. Haase is an NIH NINDS Javits Awardee and two-time recipient of an NIH MERIT Award for his work on HIV, and a member of the Institute of Medicine of the National Academy of Sciences.

Research Summary

Viral pathogenesis, HIV My laboratory investigates the pathogenesis, treatment and prevention of lentiviral immunodeficiency infections caused by HIV-1 and its simian relative, SIV, using such technologies as in situ hybridization, in situ tetramer staining and quantitative image analysis to visualize infection and the hosts' cellular immune response in tissues. Much of our recent work has focused on sexual mucosal transmission and the acute stage of SIV infection, the roles of "resting" and activated CD4 T cells in establishing infection, and the mechanisms of the massive depletion of CD4 T cells in the gut. Going forward, these studies provide a foundation for studies of the correlates of protection for attenuated vaccines, and the development of vaccines and microbicides to prevent transmission. My laboratory has also undertaken a comprehensive microarray analysis of HIV-1 and SIV infections with the objectives of understanding pathogenesis and identifying novel targets for treatment and prevention. Current efforts focus on broadening the microarray analysis to encompass the early through late stages of HIV-1 infection, and mapping genes identified in the analysis to gain insight into their function in HIV-1 infected lymphatic tissues, the principal sites of virus production, persistence and pathology.