Stephen Tomlinson

Stephen Tomlinson is a Professor in the Department of Pharmacology & Immunology at the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC) College of Medicine. His research focuses on the complement system's role in inflammation, neuroinflammation, and immune responses across diseases such as ischemia-reperfusion injury, autoimmunity, cancer immunity, and central nervous system (CNS) disorders like stroke and traumatic brain injury (TBI). He leads a laboratory pioneering targeted complement inhibitors for localized therapeutic applications, including transplant immunology and brain injury mitigation.

Key research interests include:

• Complement system biology and its dysregulation in disease
• Mechanisms of neuroinflammation post-TBI and stroke
• Transplant immunology, particularly brain death-induced injury
• Development of site-specific complement inhibitors for clinical translation

Recent work emphasizes the therapeutic potential of complement inhibition in reducing cognitive decline, synaptic degeneration, and chronic inflammation in CNS injuries. Notable studies include translational approaches to mitigate reperfusion injury in stroke and the application of targeted therapies in vascularized composite allografts.