I was at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute for 23 years since 1987, firstly as a PhD student, then a postdoc research fellow. I became a faculty member from 1997 as a research fellow and then senior research fellow.
My PhD study was to identify the earliest precursors for T cell development in thymus. By analyzing the status of TcR gene rearrangement and the developmental potential of various precursor populations in vitro and in vivo, I successfully identified for the first time the earliest lymphoid restricted precursor population in mouse thymus, which could differentiate into both T and B cells.
My postdoctoral research project was to determine the origin of dendritic cells of lymphoid tissues, i.e. thymus and spleen. Interestingly we found that the intrathymic earliest precursor cells we identified could also differentiate into thymic and splenic dendritic cells. In collaboration with Dr Steve Nutt’s lab, we also revealed an essential role of transcription factor PU.1 in dendritic cell development.
All these important findings have been published in journals including Nature, Immunity, Journal of Experimental Medicine and Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. The period I spent at the Institute was the most exciting time during my career development.
