PEDRO HERNANDEZ CERDA

I initially worked in Chile using the zebrafish model to study sensory neuron development, damage, and regeneration. During my PhD in Germany, I worked with the mouse to understand how novel leukocytes, named innate lymphoid cells (ILCs), safeguard intestinal epithelial integrity upon damage via the cytokine IL-22. During my postdoc in France, I combined my skills and revealed the existence and diversity of ILCs in zebrafish. Today, at Institut Curie in Paris, my team works at the intersection of immunology and developmental biology. Using mainly the zebrafish, we study how immune signals such as cytokines crosstalk with microbial and environmental signals to control the development, maturation and physiology of mucosal tissues, with particular focus on the gut.