Ivan De Araujo

Ivan E de Araujo, DPhil Direktor
Max-Planck-Institut fūr biologische Kybernetik
Honorarprofessor
Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen

Website

Title

Psychological States and the Regulation of Mucosal Immunity

Abstract

Despite initial skepticism, it has been established that psychological states generated in the brain can affect critical body functions, such as immunity and mucosal barrier integrity. However, circuit models for such mechanisms are generally lacking. This presentation discusses recent developments in deciphering body-brain neuronal pathways, specifically those involved in the regulation of immune organs and defense against pathogens. The circuitry that enables the parasympathetic nervous system, via the vagus nerve, to regulate gut microbiome composition, mucosal permeability, and peripheral immunity will be emphasized. These circuits represent potential entry points for novel neural therapies that target the immunological effects of psychological distress.

Biosketch

Ivan De Araujo is a director at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen, Germany, and an Honorary Professor of Medicine at the University of Tübingen. He is known for his investigations on sugar preference and reward functions of the gut-brain axis. After describing the taste-independent reward phenomenon, he conducted pioneering studies linking the intestine to the brain dopamine system. He defended his doctoral (DPhil) thesis at the University of Oxford, where he studied cortical mechanisms linked to pleasurable perceptions induced by food in humans. After his doctoral studies, he held a postdoctoral research position at Duke University. He then took up an assistant professor position at Pierce Laboratories at Yale University, where he was eventually appointed Professor of Psychiatry. Between 2018 and 2023, he served as a Professor of Neuroscience at Mount Sinai Hospital in New York. In May 2023, the Max Planck Society announced his appointment as a Director at the Max Planck Institute for Biological Cybernetics in Tübingen.