The body’s immune system regularly protects us from viruses, bacteria, parasites and fungi. A complex network of cells, proteins and organs, the immune system responds to pathogens and infection, working to keep us healthy and defend our bodies against disease. However, our immune system may not always dependably guard us. Serious diseases can alter the effectiveness of the immune response, as in the case of cancer, immune deficiencies and some genetic disorders. Associate Research Professor Laijun Lai in the Department of Allied Health Sciences is studying the immune system’s reaction to these diseases on a molecular level, through investigation of the production and function of T-cells, a type of white blood cell. Lai aims to manipulate the behavior of T-cells using a gene engineering approach and stem cells to fight the many incurable forms of cancers, autoimmune and genetic diseases that afflict millions around the world.
Lai has spent over two decades researching these deadly and debilitating diseases. Funding support for his work has come from the National Institutes of Health, American Cancer Society, Connecticut Department of Public Health and Connecticut Innovation’s Regenerative Medicine Research Fund, formerly the Connecticut Stem Cell Program. His previous gene engineering research has resulted in two patents related to producing a recombinant hybrid cytokine rIL-7/HGFβ protein that consists of IL-7, a cytokine involved in early T-cell development, and HGFβ, which directs many cell functions. A cytokine is a type of protein that controls communication between cells, affecting the behavior of cells in immune response. The recombinant protein rIL-7/HGFβ has shrunk and eliminated tumors caused by colon cancer and melanoma in lab mice through manipulating T-cell response.
“Cancers shield themselves from the immune system by inhibiting T-cell functions,” says Lai. “Checkpoint molecules tightly control T-cell responses, which stimulates or inhibits activity in the cell. Tumor progression often accompanies a profound immune suppression that interferes with an effective anti-tumor response and tumor elimination. In the past several years, many new drugs for targeting T-cell checkpoint molecules have received approval by the FDA [Food and Drug Administration] for the treatment of cancer and autoimmune diseases. We believe our studies will eventually lead to new drugs to treat these diseases.”
