Jose Villadangos is a Profesor of the University of Melbourne with a dual appointment in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology (M&I) and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology (BMB). He has a laboratory in the main campus (Bldg, 505, M&I) and another in Bio21 (BMB).
His work straddles biochemistry, cell biology and immunology. He has contributed to elucidate the function of dendritic cells, important components of the immune system involved in infection, immunity and cancer, and the mechanisms employed by immune cells to capture, process and present antigens.
Jose obtained his Ph. D. from the Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in 1994 under the supervision of Prof. Jose A. Lopez de Castro, studying the role of MHC polymorphism in peptide selection and T cell recognition. He then joined the laboratory of Prof. Hidde Ploegh in the USA, first at MIT and later at Harvard Medical School, where he contributed to the identification of proteases involved in MHC class II antigen presentation. In 1998, he joined the laboratory of Prof. Ken Shortman at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute (WEHI) in Melbourne, Australia, to apply his expertise to the study of dendritic cells. He started his own laboratory at the WEHI in 2001 and moved to The University of Melbourne in November 2011.
Jose has authored over 80 original articles, reviews and book chapters and is regularly invited to speak at major National and International conferences. He has received awards from the Human Frontiers Science Program and the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society and is currently a NH&NMC Senior Research Fellow. Jose has been awarded research grants from the Humans Frontiers Science Program (2x), the Anti-Cancer Council, the Australian Research Council and the NH&MRC (3x Program and 8x Project grants). He regularly reviews grants for multiple National and International funding organisations, is invited to review manuscripts for leading journals and is the Editor-in-Chief of Molecular Immunology. Jose was the Secretary of the Australasian Society for Immunology between 2005 and 2009 and steered the successful bid of the Society to host the International Congress of Immunology in Melbourne in 2016. He lectures at the RMIT and The University of Melbourne.
As a Professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology and the Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Jose continues to apply his expertise in Biochemistry, Cell Biology, Proteomics, Microscopy and Immunology to carry out his own research and to foster collaborations between the two Departments. His current research interests include: (i) the mechanisms of antigen presentation in dendritic cells; (ii) the regulation of proteostasis by membrane ubiquitin ligases; (iii) the mechanisms controlling the dimerisation of the amyloidogenic protease inhibitor Cystatin C; (iv) autophagy and (v) the development of adoptive cell therapy for the treatment of cancer.
Find out more about Jose Villadangos' experience
Jose Villadangos' highlights
FEATURED Journal article
Endoplasmic reticulum chaperones stabilize ligand-receptive MR1 molecules for efficient presentation of metabolite antigens.
Read moreJose Villadangos' selected work
ANTIGEN PRESENTATION RECOGNITION AND THE IMMUNE SYSTEM
Research Grant
Understanding the response of our immune system’s powerful army
NEWS ARTICLE
Ubiquitination of MHC Class II Is Required for Development of Regulatory but Not Conventio..
Journal article
ANTIGEN PRESENTATION, RECOGNITION AND THE IMMUNE RESPONSE
Research Grant
Why flu can be fatal
NEWS ARTICLE
Absence of mucosal-associated invariant T cells in a person with a homozygous point mutati..
Journal article
Jose Villadangos' selected work
Projects
Displaying the 10 most recent projects by Jose Villadangos.
Project Types
27
Research Grant
4
Research Contracts
1
Internal Research Grant
Additional Information
Previously Held Grants
Anti-Cancer Council of Victoria (ACCV)
Chief Investigator
Title: “Role of endosomal proteases in MHC class II presentation and MHC I cross-presentation”
Duration: June 2001-December 2002
Amount: $50,000 p.a.
Program Grant of the Human Frontiers Science Program Organization (HFSPO)
Principal Investigator
Title: “Role of proteolysis in MHC class II antigen presentation by dendritic cells”
Co-PI: Prof. Hidde L. Ploegh (USA), and Prof. Christoph Peters (Germany).
Duration: January 2002-December 2004
Amount: US$250,000 p.a. (I received US$83,333 p.a.)
Program Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator
Title: “The development and immunological function of mouse and human dendritic cells”.
Co-CI: Prof. Ken Shortman (WEHI, Melbourne), Dr. Li Wu (WEHI, Melbourne) and Dr. Eugene Maraskovsky (The Ludwig Institute, Melbourne and CSL inc.).
Duration: January 2002-December 2006
Amount:
Anti-Cancer Council of Victoria (ACCV) Grant-in-Aid
Principal Investigator
Title: “Mechanisms of cross-presentation in dendritic cells”
Duration: January 2003-December 2005
Amount: $60,000 p.a.
Medical Bioinformatics, Genomics and Proteomics Program (MBGPP) Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator
Title: “Genomic and Proteomic Profiling of Dendritic Cell Heterogeneity”.
Co-CIs: Prof. K. Shortman (WEHI, Melbourne), Dr W Heath (WEHI, Melbourne), Dr M Lahoud (WEHI, Melbourne), Dr M Wright (The Burnett Institute, Melbourne), Prof. R Simpson (The Ludwig Institute, Melbourne), and Dr S. Amigorena (Curie Institute, Paris, France)
Duration: January 2006-December 2010
Amount: $394,000 p.a. (one-half was allocated to the “Proteomics” component, which I directed).
Project Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator (no other CIs)
Title: “Regulation of synthesis, dimerisation and secretion of the amyloidogenic protease inhibitor Cystatin C”
Duration: January 2007-December 2009
Amount: 35,625 p.a.
Project Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator (no other CIs)
Title: “Characterisation of the biochemical and cell biological mechanisms of cross-presentation in dendritic cells”
Duration: January 2007-December 2009
Amount: $97,250 p.a.
Project Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator (no other CIs)
Title: “Contribution of dendritic cell paralysis to the immunosuppression associated with systemic infections”
Duration: January 2007-December 2009
Amount: 57,125 p.a.
Current Grants
Project Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator (no other CIs)
Title: “Immunoescape Mechanisms in a Mouse Model of Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma”
Duration: January 2009-December 2011
Amount: $94,750 p.a.
Project Grant of the National Health and Medical Research Council (NH&MRC)
Chief Investigator
Title: “Functional suicide of selected dendritic cells by Cytochrome C: an in vivo model lacking cross-presentation”
Co-CIs: Prof. Andrew Lew and Dr. Yifan Zhan (WEHI).
Duration: January 2009-December 2011
Amount: 91,250 p.a.
Scholarly Works
Displaying the 10 most recent scholarly works by Jose Villadangos.
Keyword Analysis
News
Displaying the 2 most recent news articles by Jose Villadangos.
Honours, Awards and Fellowships
Achievement Award for the Highest-Scoring Program Grant of the 2010 Funding Round (McCluskey, Heath, Carbone, Brooks, Rossjohn, Villadangos, Shortman)
Senior Research Fellowship (Level B)
Scholar Award
Special Fellow Award
Post-doctoral Fellowship
Post-doctoral Fellowship
Post-doctoral Fellowship
(Declined)
Credentials
Positions
Positions
Professor Of Biochem & Molecular Bio & Micro & Imm
Biochemistry And Molecular Biology
Professor Of Biochem & Molecular Bio & Micro & Imm
Microbiology And Immunology
Member
American Association of Immunologists
Member
National Association of Research Fellows
Member
Spanish Society of Immunology
Secretary
Australasian Society for Immunology
Member
International Proteolysis Society
Member
Australasian Society for Immunology
Education
Education
Doctor of Philosophy
Autonomous University of Madrid
Masters in Biological Sciences
Autonomous University of Madrid