Research Bio
Dr. Beck's research interests are in three interrelated areas. First, we are interested in characterizing the epithelial tight junction defects at the molecular level in atopic dermatitis, the most common inflammatory skin disease in man. Numerous projects radiate from that central theme and include – 1) how do these defects differ in other inflammatory skin diseases such as chronic urticaria, psoriasis, CTCL, 2) what effects do various pharmacologic agents have on TJ function and structure, 3) can protease containing allergens or microbes affect TJ function and if so how. A second area of focus is evaluating the magnitude and character of the microbial responsiveness of keratinocytes (cutaneous epithelial cells) from atopic dermatitis subjects compared to nonatopic healthy controls.
When differences are noted we are trying to determine the basis for these differences and believe this line of inquiry may explain AD subjects' susceptibility to colonization and infection with numerous bacteria, viruses and even yeast. Our third area has been to understand why there is such a paucity of tissue neutrophils in lesions from subjects with atopic dermatitis. These studies are not as advanced but suggest that there are phenotypic differences in AD neutrophils' responsiveness to the potent chemoattractant, IL-8 (CXCL8) compared to nonatopic controls.
| Dermatology Faculty Teaching Award | University of Rochester Medical Center |
2008 |
| Mentor for NEASE Skin Research Grant Recipient | NEASE |
2007 |
| Mentor for AAAAI Summer Research Grant Recipient | AAAAI |
2007 |
| Mentor for Astellas Skin Research Grant Recipient | Astellas |
2006 |
| Mentor for Fujisawa AAAAI Research Grant Recipient | Fujisawa |
2005 |
| Mentor for Howard Hughes Summer Fellowship Recipient | Howard Hughes |
1997 |
| Physician-Scientist Award | National Institute of Health |
1994 |
| Research Award | Dermatology Foundation |
1994 |
| Teaching Appreciation Award | Johns Hopkins University | Dermatology Department |
1992 |
| Internal Medicine Teaching Award | Francis Scott Key Medical Center |
1992 |
2010 Nov
Lee FE, Georas SN, Beck LA. "IL-17: important for host defense, autoimmunity, and allergy?" The Journal of investigative dermatology. 2010 Nov 0; 130(11):2540-2. |
2010 Jun
Gao PS, Rafaels NM, Mu D, Hand T, Murray T, Boguniewicz M, Hata T, Schneider L, Hanifin JM, Gallo RL, Gao L, Beaty TH, Beck LA, Leung DY, Barnes KC. "Genetic variants in thymic stromal lymphopoietin are associated with atopic dermatitis and eczema herpeticum." The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology. 2010 Jun 0; 125(6):1403-1407.e4. Epub 2010 May 13. |
2010 Mar
Georas SN, Rezaee F, Lerner L, Beck L. "Dangerous allergens: why some allergens are bad actors." Current allergy and asthma reports. 2010 Mar 0; 10(2):92-8. |
2009 Sep
Gao PS, Rafaels NM, Hand T, Murray T, Boguniewicz M, Hata T, Schneider L, Hanifin JM, Gallo RL, Gao L, Beaty TH, Beck LA, Barnes KC, Leung DY. "Filaggrin mutations that confer risk of atopic dermatitis confer greater risk for eczema herpeticum." The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology. 2009 Sep 0; 124(3):507-13, 513.e1-7. |
2009 Aug
Beck LA, Boguniewicz M, Hata T, Schneider LC, Hanifin J, Gallo R, Paller AS, Lieff S, Reese J, Zaccaro D, Milgrom H, Barnes KC, Leung DY. "Phenotype of atopic dermatitis subjects with a history of eczema herpeticum." The Journal of allergy and clinical immunology. 2009 Aug 0; 124(2):260-9, 269.e1-7. Epub 2009 Jun 27. |
