Major Areas of Research
- Mechanisms of T cell dependent host resistance and immunopathology in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection
- Study of the early events that determine the establishment of M. tuberculosis infection
- Volumetric imaging of M. tuberculosis-infected tissues to visualize immune cells in tissues in three-dimension
Program Description
Dr. Sakai’s major scientific goals are to understand how the host immune response suppresses growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the lungs without leading to excessive tissue damage. He is a leading expert in the design and execution of in vivo cellular immunology experiments using mice models of M. tuberculosis infection to develop hypotheses that can be further explored in larger animal species including non-human primates.
Biography
Dr. Sakai received his Ph.D. in 2011 from the Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Japan. In 2012, he joined the T-Lymphocyte Biology Section led by Dr. Daniel Barber in the Laboratory of Parasitic Diseases, NIAID as a Visiting Fellow and he was appointed to the position of Staff Scientist in 2018.
Selected Publications
Sakai S, Lora NE, Kauffman KD, Dorosky DE, Oh S, Namasivayam S, Gomez F, Fleegle JD; Tuberculosis Imaging Program, Arlehamn CSL, Sette A, Sher A, Freeman GJ, Via LE, Barry Iii CE, Barber DL. Functional inactivation of pulmonary MAIT cells following 5-OP-RU treatment of non-human primates. Mucosal Immunol. 2021 Sep;14(5):1055-1066.
Kauffman KD, Sakai S, Lora NE, Namasivayam S, Baker PJ, Kamenyeva O, Foreman TW, Nelson CE, Oliveira-de-Souza D, Vinhaes CL, Yaniv Z, Lindestam Arleham CS, Sette A, Freeman GJ, Moore R; NIAID/DIR Tuberculosis Imaging Program, Sher A, Mayer-Barber KD, Andrade BB, Kabat J, Via LE, Barber DL. PD-1 blockade exacerbates Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in rhesus macaques. Sci Immunol. 2021 Jan 15;6(55):eabf3861.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Oh S, Nelson CE, Barry CE 3rd, Barber DL. MAIT cell-directed therapy of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Mucosal Immunol. 2021 Jan;14(1):199-208.
Barber DL, Sakai S, Kudchadkar RR, Fling SP, Day TA, Vergara JA, Ashkin D, Cheng JH, Lundgren LM, Raabe VN, Kraft CS, Nieva JJ, Cheever MA, Nghiem PT, Sharon E. Tuberculosis following PD-1 blockade for cancer immunotherapy. Sci Transl Med. 2019 Jan 16;11(475):eaat2702.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Sallin MA, Sharpe AH, Young HA, Ganusov VV, Barber DL. CD4 T Cell-Derived IFN-γ Plays a Minimal Role in Control of Pulmonary Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection and Must Be Actively Repressed by PD-1 to Prevent Lethal Disease. PLoS Pathog. 2016 May 31;12(5):e1005667.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Schenkel JM, McBerry CC, Mayer-Barber KD, Masopust D, Barber DL. Cutting edge: control of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection by a subset of lung parenchyma-homing CD4 T cells. J Immunol. 2014 Apr 1;192(7):2965-9. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1400019.
Dr. Sakai’s major scientific goals are to understand how the host immune response suppresses growth of Mycobacterium tuberculosis in the lungs without leading to excessive tissue damage. He is a leading expert in the design and execution of in vivo cellular immunology experiments using mice models of M. tuberculosis infection to develop hypotheses that can be further explored in larger animal species including non-human primates.
Sakai S, Lora NE, Kauffman KD, Dorosky DE, Oh S, Namasivayam S, Gomez F, Fleegle JD; Tuberculosis Imaging Program, Arlehamn CSL, Sette A, Sher A, Freeman GJ, Via LE, Barry Iii CE, Barber DL. Functional inactivation of pulmonary MAIT cells following 5-OP-RU treatment of non-human primates. Mucosal Immunol. 2021 Sep;14(5):1055-1066.
Kauffman KD, Sakai S, Lora NE, Namasivayam S, Baker PJ, Kamenyeva O, Foreman TW, Nelson CE, Oliveira-de-Souza D, Vinhaes CL, Yaniv Z, Lindestam Arleham CS, Sette A, Freeman GJ, Moore R; NIAID/DIR Tuberculosis Imaging Program, Sher A, Mayer-Barber KD, Andrade BB, Kabat J, Via LE, Barber DL. PD-1 blockade exacerbates Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection in rhesus macaques. Sci Immunol. 2021 Jan 15;6(55):eabf3861.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Oh S, Nelson CE, Barry CE 3rd, Barber DL. MAIT cell-directed therapy of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection. Mucosal Immunol. 2021 Jan;14(1):199-208.
Barber DL, Sakai S, Kudchadkar RR, Fling SP, Day TA, Vergara JA, Ashkin D, Cheng JH, Lundgren LM, Raabe VN, Kraft CS, Nieva JJ, Cheever MA, Nghiem PT, Sharon E. Tuberculosis following PD-1 blockade for cancer immunotherapy. Sci Transl Med. 2019 Jan 16;11(475):eaat2702.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Sallin MA, Sharpe AH, Young HA, Ganusov VV, Barber DL. CD4 T Cell-Derived IFN-γ Plays a Minimal Role in Control of Pulmonary Mycobacterium tuberculosis Infection and Must Be Actively Repressed by PD-1 to Prevent Lethal Disease. PLoS Pathog. 2016 May 31;12(5):e1005667.
Sakai S, Kauffman KD, Schenkel JM, McBerry CC, Mayer-Barber KD, Masopust D, Barber DL. Cutting edge: control of Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection by a subset of lung parenchyma-homing CD4 T cells. J Immunol. 2014 Apr 1;192(7):2965-9. doi: 10.4049/jimmunol.1400019.
- Mechanisms of T cell dependent host resistance and immunopathology in Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection
- Study of the early events that determine the establishment of M. tuberculosis infection
- Volumetric imaging of M. tuberculosis-infected tissues to visualize immune cells in tissues in three-dimension
Collection of Human Biospecimens for Basic and Clinical Research into Globin Variants
Contact Information
Office:
Phone: 301-761-5667
TTY:
Email: alpha.study@nih.gov
Rocky Mountain Laboratories-Bethesda Postdoctoral Fellowship - Current Fellows and Alumni
Basic and Preclinical Coronavirus Research
The initial research response to the COVID-19 pandemic enabled the rapid identification of the human cellular receptor for SARS-CoV-2 (angiotensin converting enzyme 2, known as ACE-2) and the characterization of the structure of the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein, which sits on the surface of the virus and facilitates entry to human cells. NIAID-supported research helped quickly identify targets for potential treatments and vaccines, leading to numerous effective countermeasures.
Coronavirus Treatment
NIAID experts and collaborators rapidly initiated scientifically rigorous clinical trials to evaluate the most promising candidate therapeutics for COVID-19. NIAID scientists and NIAID-supported researchers continue to conduct basic, translational and clinical research aimed at identifying effective therapeutics for early COVID-19 infection and for hospitalized patients with more advanced disease.
Coronavirus Vaccines and Prevention
Coronavirus Diagnostics and Serology
Long COVID and Multisystem Inflammatory Syndrome in Children (MIS-C)
Coronavirus Strategic Planning
NIAID Strategic Plan for COVID-19 Research
The NIAID Strategic Plan for COVID-19 Research details the institute’s priorities for controlling and ultimately ending the spread of SARS-CoV-2 and the disease it causes (COVID-19). The plan focuses on four key research areas to accomplish this:
Origins of Coronaviruses
Research evidence suggests that SARS-CoV and MERS-CoV originated in bats. SARS-CoV then spread from infected civets to people, while MERS-CoV spreads from infected dromedary camels to people. To date, the origin of SARS-CoV-2 which caused the COVID-19 pandemic has not been identified.