About EMINENT
The aim of the EMINENT cohort is to unveil the precise composition and activation of respiratory mucosal immune cells, with a particular focus on B-cells and innate lymphoid cells, and to measure cell-derived immune markers in non-invasive respiratory samples. This is a Dutch study conducted in three hospitals, in which children aged under 18 years who undergo routine ear nose throat (ENT) surgery are included for collection of mucosal tissue, that is subsequently analyzed in several in vitro models of mucosal immunity.
This project will unveil the precise composition of mucosal immune cells in the respiratory tract of young children to develop urgently needed intervention strategies, including mucosal vaccinations, cell-based immunotherapeutics and immunomodulatory approaches.
The EMINENT team
Principal investigator and primary affiliation
Dr. Lilly Verhagen
(Radboudumc, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)
Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Radboudumc, Nijmegen
Prof. Marien de Jonge
Drs. Geert van Weelden
Annemijn Arns
Manon Kolkman
ENT physicians
Dr. Niels van Heerbeek (Radboudumc, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)
Dr. Bas van den Borne (Canisius-Wilhelmina Ziekenhuis, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)
Dr. Rutger Plantinga (Canisius-Wilhelmina Ziekenhuis, Nijmegen, The Netherlands)
Dr. Caroline Verhagen (Rijnstate ziekenhuis, Arnhem, The Netherlands)