Affiliation: Leiden University Medical Center

Dr. Jyaysi Desai is a postdoctoral researcher based in the Department of Rheumatology (lab of Professor R.E.M. Toes) at the Leiden University Medical Center. Her research focus is presently on understanding the role of neutrophils in driving autoimmune responses in different autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis. She is specifically interested in understanding the pathogenic role of neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) in driving chronic inflammatory responses.  Dr. Desai pursued her PhD in the lab of Professor H.J. Anders at the Ludwig-Maximillians University of Munich. During her PhD (2013-2017), she investigated how the crystals in different crystal-associated diseases elicit cytotoxicity of various immune and non-immune cells. Her research work showed that neutrophils, the first innate immune cells to get involved with crystals of monosodium urate (MSU), undergo a specific form of cell death to form neutrophil extracellular traps (NETs) in gouty arthritis. Since NETs are crucial players to induce inflammation in wide range of noninfectious and autoimmune diseases, Dr. Desai’s research about molecular insight of NET formation will help to specifically target NETs in various diseases to limit inflammation.