Cancer
PDT for stimulation of anti-tumor immunity. The combination of acute inflammation, induction of heat shock proteins, and production of necrotic cell death is particularly effective at causing recognition of tumor associated antigens by dendritic cells and priming of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes to destroy the tumor.
Our group is developing mechanism-based combination therapies that enhance the therapeutic of PDT for the treatment of various carcinomas, including cancers of the prostate, ovaries, pancreas, head and neck, and skin. The increased tumor proliferation and metastasis associated with several sub-curative cancer treatments is being directly addressed by the use of a secondary treatment.
IEX-1 transgenic mice that express IEX-1 specifically in T cells develop T cell lymphoma as they age due to insufficient apoptosis of T cells. How IEX-1 protects cells from apoptosis is under intensive investigation in my laboratory.
