Pregnancy as an opportunity to explore brain-immune connections

Dr. Ina Stelzer is a molecular biologist and systems immunologist (PhD) specializing in understanding how the maternal immune system adapts to pregnancy. She is currently an Assistant Professor at the University of California San Diego and the Director of Reproductive Immunology at the Center for Perinatal Discovery. 

Her research integrates human immunology and animal models to study individual immune cells and the maternal nervous system in healthy and complicated pregnancies. Identifying determinants of the uterus-brain axis ultimately aims to improve maternal and child health through innovative applications of high-dimensional proteomics, targeted neuromodulation, and multi-omic modeling. Previously, she held research positions at Stanford University, Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, and the University of Hamburg, Germany, with key contributions published in Science Translational Medicine, Nature Communications, and Nature Reviews Immunology. She earned her Ph.D. in Human Biology (summa cum laude) and is a recipient of academic awards.

In her talk, Dr. Stelzer will discuss how we can leverage the maternal immune system to advance our understanding of the pathobiology of pregnancy complications. Using high-dimensional and spatial proteomics and targeted neuromodulation, her research investigates how the maternal brain communicates with the pregnant body, and vice versa, via neuroimmune connections.