Department of Pediatrics

Clinical Interests

Pathogenic infections result from the failure of the host immune response to prevent the spread or replication of an invading organism. The immune armamentarium includes a wide variety of innate and adaptive elements that are specifically recruited into responses according to the kind and location of the infection. Adaptive immunity provides antigen specificity, and more importantly, memory of a given infection. Adaptive immunity requires the correct development and regulation of T and B lymphocytes. T and B cell development and activity are controlled by a panoply of cell surface receptors that coordinate lymphocyte motility, adhesion, and activation. Our lab seeks to understand the intracellular molecular complexes that integrate the signals transduced from these various receptors. We are currently focused on elements of the actin cytoskeleton as coordinators of signal integration. Actin cytoskeletal elements provide platforms for the assembly of molecular signaling complexes, as well as providing the cellular structure required for the shape changes required for movement and activation. We are working with one specific actin-bundling protein called L-plastin. L-plastin is required for full T cell activation and motility. We are using mice genetically deficient for L-plastin to probe the precise requirements for L-plastin in immune function. Please see our Projects page for details.

Education

• BS, summa cum laude, Duke University, 1993
• MD, Harvard Medical School, 2002
• PhD, Harvard Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, 2002

Training

• Intern, Duke University Medical Center, 2002 - 2003
• Resident, Duke University Medical Center, 2003 - 2005
• Fellow, Washington University School of Medicine, 2005 - 2008

Licensure and Board Certification

• 2005 - PresGeneral Pediatrics, American Board of Pediatrics
• 2008 - PresMO, Physician and Surgeon
• 2009 - PresPediatric Infectious Diseases, American Board of Pediatrics

Honors and Awards

• 5th place, Westinghouse Science Talent Search (now Intel STS), 1989
• National Merit Scholarship Finalist, 1989
• IBM Watson Scholarship, 1989 - 1993
• Provost’s Award for Academic Merit, Duke University, 1989 - 1993
• Dean’s List with Distinction, Duke University, 1990 - 1992
• Barry M. Goldwater scholarship award, Duke University, 1991 - 1993
• Faculty Scholar Honorable Mention, Duke University, 1993
• Graduation summa cum laude, Duke University, 1993
• Medical Scientist Training Program award, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, 1993
• Phi Beta Kappa, Duke University, 1993
• Pre-Intramural Research Training Award, NHLBI, NIH, Bethesda, MD, 1997
• Fellowship Award for Research Excellence, NIH, Bethesda, MD, 2000
• Medical Student Teaching Award, Pediatric Residency Program, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 2003
• Alpha Omega Alpha, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 2005
• James A. Stockman III Resident Teaching Award, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, 2005
• Pediatric Infectious Diseases Society-St. Jude’s Fellowship Award in Basic Research, 2005
• David Gilstrap Memorial Award, 2006
• K08 Award, NIH, Bethesda, MD. “Integration of T Cell Receptor and Chemokine Signaling in Thymocytes.”, 2009
• Scholar, Child Health Research Center of Excellence, Washington University School of Medicine, 2009
• Children’s Discovery Institute New Faculty Scholar Award, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO, 2010
• James Sutherland Award for outstanding abstract presentation from a junior faculty member, Midwest Society for Pediatric Research Annual Meeting, Iowa City, IA., 2010
• Basil O’Connor Starter Scholar Research Award, March of Dimes, 2013
• Children’s Discovery Institute Interdisciplinary Research Initiative Award, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO., 2013
• Reappointment as a Scholar of the Child Health Research Center of Excellence in Developmental Biology at Washington University School of Medicine, 2013
• Elected to the Society for Pediatric Research, 2017

Recent Publications view all (38)

Publication Co-Authors

Megan A. Cooper, M.D., Ph.D.

Jeffrey J. Bednarski, M.D., Ph.D.

Mayte Figueroa, MD, FACC

Brian T. Edelson

David A. Hunstad, M.D.

Thomas Ferkol, M.D.

Elizabeth C. Utterson, M.D.

Maleewan Kitcharoensakkul, MD, MSCI

Charles Canter, M.D.

David A. Rosen, M.D., Ph.D.

Stephanie A. Fritz, M.D., M.S.C.I.

Washington University has a long tradition of collaboration amongst colleagues.The faculty above have co-authored publications with S. Celeste Morley, M.D., Ph.D.

1. Joshi H, Almgren-Bell A, Anaya EP, Todd EM, Van Dyken SJ, Seth A, McIntire KM, Singamaneni S, Sutterwala F, Morley SC. L-plastin enhances NLRP3 inflammasome assembly and bleomycin-induced lung fibrosis. Cell Rep. 2022;38(11):110507. PMID:35294888 
2. Joshi, H. and S.C. Morley. Efficient T cell Migration and Activation require L-plastin. Frontiers Immunology. 2022. 
3. Anaya EP, Lin X, Todd EM, Szasz TP, Morley SC. Novel Mouse Model Reveals That Serine Phosphorylation of L-Plastin Is Essential for Effective Splenic Clearance of Pneumococcus. J Immunol. 2021;206(9):2135-2145. PMCID:PMC8323710  PMID:33858961 
4. Mantravadi V, Nguyen ST, Morley SC, Bednarski JJ, Kitcharoensakkul M, Cooper MA. Recovery from COVID-19 in a Child with Chronic Granulomatous Disease and T Cell Lymphopenia. J Clin Immunol. 2021;41(1):23-25. PMCID:PMC7588587  PMID:33108551 
5. Bhatlekar S, Manne BK, Basak I, Edelstein LC, Tugolukova E, Stoller ML, Cody MJ, Morley SC, Nagalla S, Weyrich AS, Rowley JW, O'Connell RM, Rondina MT, Campbell RA, Bray PF. miR-125a-5p Regulates Megakaryocyte Proplatelet Formation Via the Actin Bundling Protein L-Plastin. Blood. 2020. PMID:32844999 
6. Gregory MH, Ciorba MA, Wiitala WL, Stidham RW, Higgins P, Morley SC, Hou JK, Feagins LA, Govani SM, Cohen-Mekelburg SA, Waljee AK. The Association of Medications and Vaccination with Risk of Pneumonia in Inflammatory Bowel Disease. Inflamm Bowel Dis. 2020;26(6):919-925. PMCID:PMC7350553  PMID:31504531 
7. Lu X, Kugadas A, Smith-Page K, Lamb J, Lin T, Ru Y, Morley SC, Fichorova R, Mittal SK, Chauhan SK, Littleton S, Saban D, Gadjeva M. Neutrophil L-Plastin Controls Ocular Paucibacteriality and Susceptibility to Keratitis. Front Immunol. 2020;11:547. PMCID:PMC7147296  PMID:32318063 
8. Chellaiah MA, Moorer MC, Majumdar S, Aljohani H, Morley SC, Yingling V, Stains JP. L-Plastin deficiency produces increased trabecular bone due to attenuation of sealing ring formation and osteoclast dysfunction. Bone Res. 2020;8:3. PMCID:PMC6976634  PMID:31993243 
9. Todd EM, Ramani R, Szasz TP, Morley SC. Inhaled GM-CSF in neonatal mice provides durable protection against bacterial pneumonia. Sci Adv. 2019;5(8):eaax3387. PMCID:PMC6693910  PMID:31453341 
10. Joshi H, Morley SC. Cells under stress: The mechanical environment shapes inflammasome responses to danger signals. J Leukoc Biol. 2019. PMID:30645000 
11. Si M, Goodluck H, Zeng C, Pan S, Todd EM, Morley SC, Qin X, Mohan S, Xing W. LRRK1 regulation of actin assembly in osteoclasts involves serine 5 phosphorylation of L-plastin. J Cell Biochem. 2018;119(12):10351-10357. PMCID:PMC6218268  PMID:30136304 
12. Stewart-Hutchinson PJ, Szasz TP, Jaeger ER, Onken MD, Cooper JA, Morley SC. Technical Advance: New in vitro method for assaying the migration of primary B cells using an endothelial monolayer as substrate. J Leukoc Biol. 2017;102(3):941-948. PMCID:PMC5557643  PMID:28637896 
13. McFarland M, Szasz TP, Zhou JY, Motley K, Sivapalan JS, Isaacson-Schmid M, Todd EM, Hogan PG, Fritz SA, Burnham CD, Hoffmann S, Morley SC. Colonization with 19F and other pneumococcal conjugate vaccine serotypes in children in St. Louis, Missouri, USA. Vaccine. 2017;35(34):4389-4395. PMID:28687405 
14. Todd EM, Zhou JY, Szasz TP, Deady LE, D'Angelo JA, Cheung MD, Kim AH, Morley SC. Alveolar macrophage development in mice requires L-plastin for cellular localization in alveoli. Blood. 2016;128(24):2785-2796. doi:10.1182/blood-2016-03-705962  PMCID:PMC5159703  PMID:27758872 
15. Zhou JY, Szasz TP, Stewart-Hutchinson PJ, Sivapalan J, Todd EM, Deady LE, Cooper JA, Onken MD, Morley SC. L-Plastin promotes podosome longevity and supports macrophage motility. Mol Immunol. 2016;78:79-88. PMCID:5205537  PMID:27614263 
16. Xu X, Wang X, Todd EM, Jaeger ER, Vella JL, Mooren OL, Feng Y, Hu J, Cooper JA, Morley SC, Huang YH. Mst1 Kinase Regulates the Actin-Bundling Protein L-Plastin To Promote T Cell Migration. J Immunol. 2016;197(5):1683-91. PMCID:PMC4992580  PMID:27465533 
17. Rosen DA, Hilliard JK, Tiemann KM, Todd EM, Morley SC, Hunstad DA. Klebsiella pneumoniae FimK Promotes Virulence in Murine Pneumonia. J Infect Dis. 2016;213(4):649-58. PMCID:PMC4721909  PMID:26347570 
18. Zhou JY, Isaacson-Schmid M, Utterson EC, Todd EM, McFarland M, Sivapalan J, Niehoff JM, Burnham CD, Morley SC. Prevalence of nasopharyngeal pneumococcal colonization in children and antimicrobial susceptibility profiles of carriage isolates. Int J Infect Dis. 2015;39:50-52. PMCID:PMC4620696  PMID:26327122 
19. Morley SC. HIV-1 Nef drives macrophages into hiding. Blood. 2015;125(10):1512-3. PMID:25745180 
20. Deady LE, Todd EM, Davis CG, Zhou JY, Topcagic N, Edelson BT, Ferkol TW, Cooper MA, Muenzer JT, Morley SC. L-plastin is essential for alveolar macrophage production and control of pulmonary pneumococcal infection. Infect Immun. 2014;82(5):1982-93. doi:10.1128/IAI.01199-13  PMCID:PMC3993441  PMID:24595139 
21. Rodriguez M, Nelson M, Kelly JE, Elward A, Morley SC. Successful use of temocillin as salvage therapy for cervical osteomyelitis secondary to multidrug-resistant Burkholderia cepacia. J Ped Infect Dis. 2014;3(1):77-80. 
22. Morley SC. The actin-bundling protein L-plastin supports T-cell motility and activation. Immunol Rev. 2013;256(1):48-62. PMCID:PMC3801223  PMID:24117812 
23. Todd EM, Deady LE, Morley SC. Intrinsic T- and B-cell defects impair T-cell-dependent antibody responses in mice lacking the actin-bundling protein L-plastin. Eur J Immunol. 2013;43(7):1735-44. PMCID:PMC3794664  PMID:23589339 
24. Watson Jr M E, Morley SC. Streptococcus Intermedius Brain Abscesses in an Adolescent Male with Histoplasma Infection. Pediatric Oncall [serial online] 2012 [cited 2012 October 1]; 9. Art # 62. Available from: http://www.pediatriconcall.com/fordoctor/casereports/BrainAbscesses.asp 2012. 
25. Morley SC. The actin-bundling protein L-plastin: a critical regulator of immune cell function. Int J Cell Biol. 2012;2012:935173. PMCID:PMC3238366  PMID:22194750 
26. Todd EM, Deady LE, Morley SC. The actin-bundling protein L-plastin is essential for marginal zone B cell development. J Immunol. 2011;187(6):3015-25. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1101033  PMCID:PMC3169714  PMID:21832165 
27. Wang C, Morley SC, Donermeyer D, Peng I, Lee WP, Devoss J, Danilenko DM, Lin Z, Zhang J, Zhou J, Allen PM, Brown EJ. Actin-bundling protein L-plastin regulates T cell activation. J Immunol. 2010;185(12):7487-97. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1001424  PMCID:PMC3027212  PMID:21076065 
28. Morley SC, Wang C, Lo WL, Lio CW, Zinselmeyer BH, Miller MJ, Brown EJ, Allen PM. The actin-bundling protein L-plastin dissociates CCR7 proximal signaling from CCR7-induced motility. J Immunol. 2010;184(7):3628-38. doi:10.4049/jimmunol.0903851  PMCID:PMC2855624  PMID:20194718 
29. Wambach J, Morley SC. Visual Diagnosis: Skin Ulcerations in a Preterm Newborn NeoReviews. 2009;10:e575. 
30. Morley SC, Weber KS, Kao H, Allen PM. Protein kinase C-theta is required for efficient positive selection. J Immunol. 2008;181(7):4696-708. PMCID:PMC2645034  PMID:18802072 
31. Morley SC, Allen PM. Taking a toll road to better vaccines. Immunity. 2008;28(5):602-4. PMID:18482564 
32. Morley SC, Sung J, Sun GP, Martelli MP, Bunnell SC, Bierer BE. Gelsolin overexpression alters actin dynamics and tyrosine phosphorylation of lipid raft-associated proteins in Jurkat T cells. Mol Immunol. 2007;44(9):2469-80. doi:10.1016/j.molimm.2006.09.024  PMCID:PMC1945820  PMID:17178161 
33. Celeste Morley S, Sun GP, Bierer BE. Inhibition of actin polymerization enhances commitment to and execution of apoptosis induced by withdrawal of trophic support. J Cell Biochem. 2003;88(5):1066-76. doi:10.1002/jcb.10449  PMID:12616543 
34. Morley SC, Bierer BE. The actin cytoskeleton, membrane lipid microdomains, and T cell signal transduction. Adv Immunol. 2001;77:1-43. PMID:11293114 
35. Posey SC, Martelli MP, Azuma T, Kwiatkowski DJ, Bierer BE. Failure of gelsolin overexpression to regulate lymphocyte apoptosis. Blood. 2000;95(11):3483-8. PMID:10828033 
36. Posey SC, Bierer BE. Actin stabilization by jasplakinolide enhances apoptosis induced by cytokine deprivation. J Biol Chem. 1999;274(7):4259-65. PMID:9933626 
37. Palanivel V, Posey C, Horauf AM, Solbach W, Piessens WF, Harn DA. B-cell outgrowth and ligand-specific production of IL-10 correlate with Th2 dominance in certain parasitic diseases. Exp Parasitol. 1996;84(2):168-77. doi:10.1006/expr.1996.0102  PMID:8932766 
38. Todd EM, Ramani R, Szasz TP, Morley SC. Inhaled GM-CSF in neonatal mice provides durable protection against bacterial pneumonia. Sci. Adv.