Maddie Lee, PhD

Maddie Lee, PhD

Postdoctoral fellow at the University of Minnesota interested in natural killer cell biology in health and disease

Publications

NK cell-monocyte crosstalk underlies NK cell activation in severe COVID-19

Published in Journal of Immunology, 2024

This paper interrogates communication between NK cells and other peripheral immune cells in severe COVID-19 and demonstrates that monocytes from severe COVID-19 patients are capable of inducing activating in healthy donor NK cells.

Recommended citation: Lee, M. J. et al. NK cell-monocyte crosstalk underlies NK cell activation in severe COVID-19. J Immunol 2024.6.1 212 (11): 1693–1705. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.2300731. https://journals.aai.org/jimmunol/article/212/11/1693/266801/NK-Cell-Monocyte-Cross-talk-Underlies-NK-Cell

SARS-CoV-2 escapes direct NK cell killing through Nsp1-mediated downregulation of ligands for NKG2D

Published in Cell Reports, 2022

This paper demonstrates that healthy NK cells are unable to efficiently lyse SARS-CoV-2-infected cells, likely due to their loss of the ligands for the activating receptor NKG2D. These effects are mediated by the viral protein Nsp1.

Recommended citation: Lee MJ, Leong MW, Rustagi A, et al. SARS-CoV-2 escapes direct NK cell killing through Nsp1-mediated downregulation of ligands for NKG2D. Cell Rep. 2022;41(13):111892. doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2022.111892 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9742201/

Single-cell RNA-seq methods to interrogate virus-host interactions

Published in Seminars in Immunopathology, 2022

This paper reviews how various single-cell RNA sequencing technologies can be leveraged to interrogate virus-host interactions. It aims to provide readers with a comprehensive framework that can assist them in designing scRNA-seq experiments involving viral samples, virally-infected cells, or host cells from infected individuals.

Recommended citation: Ratnasiri K, Wilk AJ, Lee MJ, Khatri P, Blish CA. Single-cell RNA-seq methods to interrogate virus-host interactions. Semin Immunopathol. 2023;45(1):71-89. doi:10.1007/s00281-022-00972-2 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9684776/

Deep Phenotypic Analysis of Blood and Lymphoid T and NK Cells From HIV+ Controllers and ART-Suppressed Individuals

Published in Frontiers in Immunology, 2022

This paper used CyTOF profiling of paired blood and lymph node samples from aviremic HIV+ individuals to identify unique phenotypic profiles in elite controllers versus ART-suppressed individuals.

Recommended citation: George AF, Luo X, Neidleman J, et al. Deep Phenotypic Analysis of Blood and Lymphoid T and NK Cells From HIV+ Controllers and ART-Suppressed Individuals. Front Immunol. 2022;13:803417. Published 2022 Jan 27. doi:10.3389/fimmu.2022.803417 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8829545/

Multi-omic profiling reveals widespread dysregulation of innate immunity and hematopoiesis in COVID-19

Published in Journal of Experimental Medicine, 2021

This paper uses single-cell profiling to explore how dysregulation of the innate immune system is associated with COVID-19 severity. Severe COVID-19 is associated with hyperactivation of neutrophils and NK cells, while monocytes take on tolerogenic phenotypes. Meanwhile, mild COVID-19 is associated with limited, or rapidly resolved, immune perturbation.

Recommended citation: Wilk AJ, Lee MJ, Wei B, et al. Multi-omic profiling reveals widespread dysregulation of innate immunity and hematopoiesis in COVID-19. J Exp Med. 2021;218(8):e20210582. doi:10.1084/jem.20210582 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8210586/

Integrated analysis of multimodal single-cell data

Published in Cell, 2021

This paper presents a framework that allows for the integration of multiple data types using single cells. This framework can be applied to understand distinct immune cell states, previously unidentified immune populations, and to interpret immune responses to vaccinations.

Recommended citation: Hao Y, Hao S, Andersen-Nissen E, et al. Integrated analysis of multimodal single-cell data. Cell. 2021;184(13):3573-3587.e29. doi:10.1016/j.cell.2021.04.048 h[ttp://academicpages.github.io/files/paper3.pdf](https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8238499/)

Stage-Specific Requirement for Eomes in Mature NK Cell Homeostasis and Cytotoxicity

Published in Cell Reports, 2020

This paper investigates the role of the transcription factor Eomes in the regulation of mature NK cell homeostasis and cytotoxicity. it finds that inducible deletion of Eomes in mature Ncr1+ cells impairs NK cell maturation from Stage II to Stage III and partially abrogates cytotoxic responsiveness.

Recommended citation: Wagner JA, Wong P, Schappe T, et al. Stage-Specific Requirement for Eomes in Mature NK Cell Homeostasis and Cytotoxicity. Cell Rep. 2020;31(9):107720. doi:10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107720 https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7265846/