Kerrie Foyle

Research Interests

Fertility and Conception Immunology and Infection Autoimmunity Cellular Immunology Immunology Reproductive Biology Tumour Immunology

Dr Kerrie Foyle

NHMRC Grant-Funded Postdoctoral Research Fellow

School of Pharmacy and Biomedical Science

College of Health

Eligible to supervise Masters and PhD - email supervisor to discuss availability.

Kerrie Foyle is a postdoctoral researcher in the Reproductive Immunology Group led by Prof Sarah Robertson. Her research investigates contributions of the immune system to fertility and conception. In pregnancy, the immune system plays critical roles in accepting the fetus, which is recognised as foreign, and facilitating tissue adaptations that support fetal and placental development. However, defective or inappropriate immune responses in pregnancy are linked to pathologies including recurrent miscarriage, preterm birth, pre-eclampsia and more. Kerrie's research uses human blood samples and mouse models to investigate how changes in the abundance or function of anti-inflammatory cells called T regulatory (Treg) cells contributes to pregnancy health, and how they can be modulated to treat recurrent implantation failure, recurrent miscarriage and preterm birth to improve fertility and pregnancy success.

Date Position Institution name
2020 - ongoing Postdoctoral researcher University of Adelaide

Date Type Title Institution Name Country Amount
2023 Award 2023 Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences (FHMS) Travel Grant to attend ASRI, USA The University of Adelaide Australia $3000
2023 Award 2023 Robinson Research Institute Travel Grant Robinson Research Institute (RRI) Australia $2000
2023 Award Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences Travel Award to attend IUIS, South Africa. The University of Adelaide Australia -
2023 Award Australian and New Zealand Society for Immunology IUIS Special Travel Award Australian and New Zealand Society for Immunology Australia -
2022 Award Australasian Society for Medical Research (ASMR) SA Scientific Meeting Best Early Career Researcher Oral Presentation Award Australasian Society for Medical Research (ASMR) Australia -
2018 Award Australasian Society for Immunology SA-NT branch-sponsored travel bursary to attend the ASI Annual Scientific Meeting in Perth Australasian Society for Immunology Australia -
2018 Award Adelaide Immunology Retreat PhD oral presentation second place award Australasian Society for Immunology Australia -
2016 Award 2016 Hospital Research Foundation/Australasian Society for Immunology SA-NT branch co-sponsored travel bursary to attend the International Congress of Immunology meeting Hospital Research Foundation/Australasian Society for Immunology Australia -
2012 Award 2012 Derrick Rowley Prize for the highest score in Honours in Microbiology and Immunology The University of Adelaide Australia 250
2011 Award Faculty of Sciences Outstanding Academic Achievement Award The University of Adelaide Australia -
2010 Award Faculty of Sciences Outstanding Academic Achievement Award The University of Adelaide Australia -

Date Institution name Country Title
University of Adelaide Australia Bachelor of Science (Molecular Biology)
University of Adelaide Australia Bachelor of Science (Honours)
University of Adelaide Australia Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Year Citation
2025 Chan, H. Y., Alesi, L. R., Dinh, D. T., Foyle, K. L., Hofstee, P., Hutchison, J. C., . . . Houston, B. J. (2025). Comparative reproductive biology, advances in reproductive health, and cultivating inclusion in the scientific community: highlights from the 2024 Annual Meeting of the Society for Reproductive Biology. Reproduction Fertility and Development, 37(17 Frontiers in Reproduction Science – Rising Stars at the Society for Reproductive Biology 2024), 13 pages.
DOI
2025 Foyle, K. L., Chan, H. Y., Tran, H. M., Breen, J., Schjenken, J. E., & Robertson, S. A. (2025). Seminal fluid expands the uterine gamma/delta T cell pool during early pregnancy in mice. Mucosal Immunology, S1933-0219(25)00126-6.
DOI
2024 Hosking, S. L., Moldenhauer, L. M., Tran, H. M., Chan, H. Y., Groome, H. M., Lovell, E. A., . . . Care, A. S. (2024). Regulatory T cells promote decidual vascular remodeling and modulate uterine NK cells in pregnant mice. JCI Insight, 10(2), e169836-1-e169836-21.
DOI Scopus10 WoS10 Europe PMC6
2024 Moldenhauer, L. M., Foyle, K. L., Wilson, J. J., Wong, Y. Y., Sharkey, D. J., Green, E. S., . . . Robertson, S. A. (2024). A disrupted FOXP3 transcriptional signature underpins systemic regulatory T cell insufficiency in early pregnancy failure. iScience, 27(2), 108994-1-108994-23.
DOI Scopus7 WoS6 Europe PMC6
2024 Foyle, K. L., & Robertson, S. A. (2024). Gamma delta (γδ) T cells in the female reproductive tract: active participants or indifferent bystanders in reproductive success?. Discovery Immunology, 3(1), kyae004-1-kyae004-12.
DOI Scopus6 Europe PMC7
2024 Foyle, K. L., Chin, P. Y., Merkwirth, C., Wilson, J., Hosking, S. L., Green, E. S., . . . Robertson, S. A. (2024). IL-2/JES6-1 antibody complex expands the maternal T regulatory cell pool and alleviates fetal loss in abortion-prone mice.. Am J Pathol, 194(11), 2128-2149.
DOI Scopus2 WoS2
2022 Moldenhauer, L. M., Hull, M. L., Foyle, K. L., McCormack, C. D., & Robertson, S. A. (2022). Immune-Metabolic Interactions and T Cell Tolerance in Pregnancy. Journal of Immunology, 209(8), 1426-1436.
DOI Scopus22 WoS21 Europe PMC15
2021 Foyle, K. L., Sharkey, D. J., Moldenhauer, L. M., Green, E. S., Wilson, J. J., Roccisano, C. J., . . . Robertson, S. A. (2021). Effect of Intralipid infusion on peripheral blood T cells and plasma cytokines in women undergoing assisted reproduction treatment. Clinical and Translational Immunology, 10(8), e1328-1-e1328-17.
DOI Scopus6 WoS6 Europe PMC6
2020 Whyte, C. E., Osman, M., Kara, E. E., Abbott, C., Foeng, J., McKenzie, D. R., . . . McColl, S. R. (2020). ACKR4 restrains antitumor immunity by regulating CCL21. Journal of Experimental Medicine, 217(6), 1-S4.
DOI Scopus29 WoS29 Europe PMC29
2019 Aung-Htut, M. T., Comerford, I., Johnsen, R., Foyle, K., Fletcher, S., & Wilton, S. D. (2019). Reduction of integrin alpha 4 activity through splice modulating antisense oligonucleotides. Scientific reports, 9(1), 12994.
DOI Scopus14 WoS19 Europe PMC16
2018 Wilson, J., Foyle, K., Foeng, J., Norton, T., Mckenzie, D., Payne, N., . . . Comerford, I. (2018). Redirecting adult mesenchymal stromal cells to the brain: A new approach for treating CNS autoimmunity and neuroinflammation?. Immunology and Cell Biology, 96(4), 347-357.
DOI Scopus8 WoS7 Europe PMC5

Year Citation
2024 Foyle, K. L., Moldenhauer, L. M., Ferguson, G. D., Robertson, S. A., & Care, A. S. (2024). Boosting Maternal Regulatory T Cells in Pregnancy Using IL-2 Antibody Complex Protects Against Fetal Loss in Mice.. In REPRODUCTIVE SCIENCES Vol. 31 (pp. 189A). CANADA, Vancouver: SPRINGER HEIDELBERG.
2023 Moldenhauer, L. M., Linthwaite, S., Foyle, K. L., Sharkey, D. J., McCormack, C. D., Robertson, S. A., & Hull, M. L. (2023). Elevated Insulin and Insulin Resistance is Associated with Altered T Regulatory Cell Parameters in Women with Recurrent Miscarriage. In REPRODUCTIVE SCIENCES Vol. 30 (pp. 98A). Brisbane, AUSTRALIA: SPRINGER HEIDELBERG.
2023 Walker, J. R., Foyle, K. L., Moldenhauer, L. M., & Robertson, S. A. (2023). Regulatory T Cell Deficiency in Periconception Impairs Late Gestation Pregnancy Outcomes and Increases Susceptibility to Inflammation Induced Preterm Birth in Mice. In REPRODUCTIVE SCIENCES Vol. 30 (pp. 49A). Brisbane, AUSTRALIA: SPRINGER HEIDELBERG.

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2024 Co-Supervisor Significance of impaired immune tolerance for infertility in men. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Shreetha Ramasubramanian
2024 Co-Supervisor Identity of seminal fluid antigens driving expansion of the female adaptive immune response after mating Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Ha Manh Tran
2024 Co-Supervisor Paternal MHC disparity and maternal immune adaptation to pregnancy. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Le Phuong Uyen Pham
2024 Co-Supervisor Identity of seminal fluid antigens driving expansion of the female adaptive immune response after mating Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Mr Ha Manh Tran
2024 Co-Supervisor Significance of impaired immune tolerance for infertility in men. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Ms Shreetha Ramasubramanian
2024 Co-Supervisor Paternal MHC disparity and maternal immune adaptation to pregnancy. Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Le Phuong Uyen Pham

Date Role Research Topic Program Degree Type Student Load Student Name
2022 - 2024 Co-Supervisor Peri-conception Contributions to the Origins of Autoimmunity Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Stacey Jasmin Savin
2021 - 2025 Co-Supervisor Regulatory T Cell Responses in Early Gestation as a Determinant of Preterm Birth Doctor of Philosophy Doctorate Full Time Miss Jessie Rose Walker

Date Role Research Topic Location Program Supervision Type Student Load Student Name
2023 - 2023 Co-Supervisor The significance of maternal T cells in disparate paternal histocompatibility outcomes The University of Adelaide Molecular & Biomedical Sciences Honours Full Time Uyen Le Phuong Pham
2023 - 2023 Co-Supervisor Determining contributions of androgen signalling to Treg cell responses and healthy pregnancy progression. The University of Adelaide Master of Biotechnology (Biomedical) Other Full Time Shreetha Ramasubramanian
2021 - 2021 Co-Supervisor Relationship between peripheral regulatory T cells and sperm parameters in men The University of Adelaide - Honours Full Time Shrestha Sharma

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