Marcin Kortylewski, Ph.D.

Cancers evolved to escape detection by the immune system by co-opting immune cells as a source of growth or angiogenic factors and protection. Targeting signaling specifically in such tumor-associated immune cells has been challenging for pharmacological drugs. We focus on understanding immune cell dysfunction in tumors and translating these findings into novel, precision cancer immunotherapies. Our group developed a platform technology to deliver DNA/RNA drugs into tumor-associated immune cells in vivo. Our synthetic oligonucleotides target the undruggable master regulators at the molecular level, which, as STAT3, NF-kB or certain miRNAs, are nodes of signaling from diverse receptors and kinases. Our two-step immunotherapeutic strategy is to disarm tumor defense systems and activate immune attacks from within using a single DNA/RNA drug.

Over the last years, we have studied the mechanism of crosstalk between cancer cells and tumor-associated myeloid cells in hematologic malignancies and solid tumors such as prostate and kidney cancers. We have also developed a series of oligonucleotide inhibitors optimized for targeting the undruggable intracellular targets such as oncogenic or tolerogenic transcription factors and miRNAs in cancer cells and tumor-associated myeloid cells.

Current studies include:

1. Targeting Transcriptional Regulators for Immunotherapy of Leukemia and Lymphoma
2. Tolerogenic Signaling Crosstalk in Solid Tumors
3. miRNA-Based Oligonucleotides for the Treatment of Cancer and Inflammatory Diseases

• Marice Alcantara
• Jacqueline Campos (administrative assistant)
• Veronica Go
• Jeremy Hall
• Chia-Yang Hung
• Yanan "Elaine" Kang
• Dongfang Wang
• Chunsong Yu

Full List of Publications