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View CV |
KEVIN P. HIGH, M.D., M.Sc.
Chief, Section on Infectious Diseases Professor of Medicine
Department of Internal Medicine
Wake Forest University School of Medicine
Medical Center Boulevard
Winston Salem, NC 27157 - 1042
Phone: 336-716-4584
Fax: 336-716-3825 |
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Clinical, Research and Educational Activities:
My clinical interests center on the immunocompromised adult. With joint appointments in Infectious Diseases and Hematology/Oncology, many of my patients are cancer patients with infectious complications, transplant recipients, HIV infected or have some other immune compromise. However, general infectious diseases patients (e.g. fever of unknown origin, osteomyelitis, endocarditis) are also seen in my clinic.
My research activities focus on nutritional modulation of immune responses. In the laboratory, the cellular mechanisms of immune modulation by fatty acids, oxidized fatty acid metabolites (called eicosanoids) and fat soluble vitamins are the focus of our studies. In collaborations with Dr. 'Ski' Chilton in Pulmonary, we are determining the T cell signaling pathways influenced by prostaglandins, leukotrienes and fatty acids. Recent investigations have focused on the presence and role of specific arachidonic acid metabolic enzymes in T cells, and the role of eicosanoids and their target proteins/pathways in aging of the immune system.
Reduction of interleukin-2 production by inhibitors of arachidonic acid metabolism:
In clinical studies, we focus on two patient groups, bone marrow transplant recipients and the elderly, determining the influence of nutritional modulation on immune responses and infection risk. We have conducted funded studies on vitamin A supplementation and the recovery of immune function in bone marrow transplant recipients as well as a variety of studies on antibacterial, antiviral and antifungal therapies in this population. In elderly subjects, we have examined the influence of dietary changes on blood lymphocyte fatty acid composition, and plan further studies to augment immune responses through modulation of lymphocyte function through nutritional means.
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Rebecca Myer, M.D., Ph.D. Candidate
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Rabab El-Mezayen, M.D., Ph.D.
Research Fellow
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