• Post-doctoral fellow, Dept of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of Manitoba (1989-1991)
• Post-doctoral fellow, Division of Clinical Immunology, John's Hopkins University School of Medicine (1986-1988)
• M.Sc. in Immunology, Shanghai First Medical University (1979-1982)
• M.D. Shanghai First Medical University (1962-1968)

Mailing Address

Department of Pediatrics and Child Health
University of Manitoba
Room 532, 715 McDermot Ave.
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Canada R3E 3P4

Phone: (204) 789-3815 (office) or (204) 789-3813 (lab)
Fax: (204)-789-3937
E-mail: zpeng@ms.umanitoba.ca

Main Research Interests/Projects

1. Immune mechanisms and down-regulation of allergic and autoimmune responses

   (a) Vaccines against cytokines and IgE
   
   Allergic diseases including asthma are characterized by an increase in serum IgE antibodies and other characteristics of atopic disease, which are up-regulated by Th2 cytokines such as IL-4, and IL-13. While in autoimmune diseases such as inflammatory bowel disease, one or more Th1 and Th17 cytokines are significantly elevated and are associated with the severity of the diseases.

   To down-regulate excessive immune responses, we have investigated a new area of active immunization with IgE or cytokine peptide-based virus-like particle vaccines for the treatment of these disorders. To date, we have developed and in vivo tested vaccines against IgE, IL-4, IL-13, IL-12/IL-23p40, IL-18, TGFß and TNF in animal models of asthma and/or colitis. We found that antibodies against the endogenous target, induced by a vaccine, are effective in suppressing airway allergic inflammatory responses in asthmatic mice or intestinal inflammatory responses in experimental acute and chronic murine colitis, suggesting that the vaccine strategy may provide a potential approach to the long-term treatment of allergic and autoimmune diseases, as well as other disorders associated with cytokine dysfunction.

   (b) AMPK activation in inhibiting immune responses
   
   We have examined the role of AMP-activation protein kinase (AMPK) in the downregulation of immune responses in murine colitis. Our data show that activation of AMPK initiated by 5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside (AICAR) attenuates both acute and chronic experimental colitis, representing a promising alternative to our current approaches to suppress inflammatory responses.

   The role of caveolin-1 in experimental mouse colitis. We have found that caveolin-1 may play an important role in the protection of experimental colitis. Further studies regarding the mechanisms and possible anti-inflammatory effects are being explored.

2. Mosquito allergy

   Around the world, allergic reactions to mosquito bites are an increasing clinical concern which decreases the quality of life. Dr. Peng’s laboratory is considered to be the leading facility in the world for the study of mosquito allergy at the molecular level. Research includes studies on immune mechanisms of the development of sensitization and subsequent desensitization to mosquito bites; immune responses involved, cloning, expression, and characterization of mosquito salivary allergens; and development of new diagnostic assays.

Publications

See http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez.   Search for “Peng Z, Winnipeg”

Selected publications

Guan QD, Ma Y, Hillman C-L, Qing G, Ma AG, Weiss CR, Zhou G, Bai A, Warrington R, Bernstein CN, Peng Z. Targeting IL-12/IL-23 by employing a p40 peptide-based vaccine ameliorates TNBS-induced acute and chronic murine colitis. Mol Med 2011;17(7-8):646-56 (Epub 2011 Mar 11)

Bai A, Ma AG, Yong M, Ma Y, Weiss RC, Guan Q, Bernstein CN, Peng Z. AMKP agonist downregulates innate and adaptive immune responses in TNBS-induced murine acute and relapsing colitis. Biochem Pharmacol 2010;80(11):1708-17

Bai A, Yong M, Ma AG, Ma Y, Weiss CR, Guan Q, Bernstein CN, Peng Z. Novel anti-inflammatory action of 5-Aminoimidazole-4-carboxamide ribonucleoside with protective effect in DSS-induced acute and chronic colitis. J Pharmacol Exp Ther 2010;333(3):717-25.

Zhou G, Ma Y, Jia P, Guan QD, Uzonna JE, Peng Z. Enhancement of IL-10 Bioactivity by Using an IL-10 Peptide-based Vaccine Exacerbates Leishmania major Infection and Improves Airway Allergic Inflammation in Mice. Vaccine 2010;28:1838-1846

Ma Y, Guan QD, Bai A, Weiss CR, Hillman C-L, Ma AG, Zhou G, Qing G, Peng Z. Targeting TGF-ß1 with a vaccine ameliorates fibrosis in murine chronic colitis. Inflamm Bowel Dis 2010;16:1040-1050

Peng Z. Vaccines targeting IgE in the treatment of asthma and allergy. Human vaccines 2009;18(5):302-309

Peng Z, Liu Q, Wang Q, Rector E, Ma Y and Richard Warrington. Novel IgE peptide-based vaccine prevents the increase of IgE and down-regulates elevated IgE in rodents. Clin Exp Allergy 2007;37:1040-48.

Ma Y, HayGlass K, Becker AB, Fan Y, Basu S, Yang X, Srinivasan G, Simons FER, Halayko AJ, and Peng Z. Novel IL-13 peptide-based vaccine suppresses airway allergic inflammatory responses in mice. Am J Respir Crit Care Med 2007;176:439-445.

Ma Y, HayGlass K, Becker AB, Halayko AJ, Basu S, Simons FER and Peng Z. Novel recombinant cytokine peptide-based vaccines: administration of an IL-4 vaccine suppresses airway allergic responses in mice. Allergy 2007;62(6):675-82.

Peng Z, Simons FER. Advances in mosquito allergy. Curr Opin Allergy Clin Immunol 2007;7:350-354.

Peng Z, Xu W, Lam H, Cheng L, James AA, Simons FER. A new recombinant mosquito salivary allergen, rAed a 2: allergenicity, clinical relevance and cross-reactivity. Allergy 2006; 61:485-490.

Peng Z, Beckett AN, Engler RJM, Hoffman DR, Ott NL, Simons FER. Immune responses to mosquito saliva of 5 species in 14 individuals with systemic allergic reactions to mosquito bites. J Allergy Clin Immunol 2004;114:1189-94.

Peng Z and Simons FER. Mosquito allergy: immune mechanisms and recombinant salivary allergens. Int Arch Allergy Immunol 2004;113:198-209.

Peng Z, Wang H, Mao XJ, HayGlass KT, Simons FER. CpG Oligodeoxynucleotide vaccination suppresses IgE induction but may fail to downregulate ongoing IgE response in mice. Int Immunol. 2001;13(1):3-11.

Peng Z, Arthur G, Rector ES, Kierek-Jaszczuk D, Simons FER, Becker AB. Heterogeneity of polyclonal IgE characterized by differential charge, affinity to protein A, and antigenicity. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1997;100:87-95.

Peng Z, Naclerio RM, Norman PS, and Adkinson NF, Jr. Quantitative IgE- and IgG- subclass responses during and after long-term ragweed immunotherapy. J Allergy Clin Immunol 1992;89:519-529.

Funding received in the past 5 years from:

• Canadian Institutes of Health Research
• Manitoba Health Research Council
• Children's Hospital Foundation of Winnipeg, Inc.

Graduate students currently supervised: