Dr. André Veillette and His Team Identify a New Immunotherapeutic Target
Work carried out in the laboratory of Dr. André Veillette, Director of the Molecular Oncology Research Unit at the Montreal Clinical Research Institute (IRCM) and Full Professor in the Department of Medicine at the Université de Montréal, in collaboration with scientists from several countries, and published in the journal Nature Communications, represents a major breakthrough in the fight against treatment-refractory cancers.
Immunotherapy has revolutionized cancer treatment by mobilizing the immune system to attack tumour cells. Major advances, such as immune checkpoint inhibitors (notably against the PD-1 protein), have produced impressive results against certain types of cancer, including melanoma and kidney cancer.
In a way, these treatments “take the brakes off” the immune system, increasing its ability to detect and destroy cancer cells. However, despite their effectiveness, these treatments do not work for all patients or all types of cancer. This realization has prompted researchers around the world to search for new therapeutic targets.
Dr. André Veillette's research group, led by doctoral student Jiaxin Li, has discovered a new molecule of interest called CD200R1.
This protein is present on the surface of certain immune cells called macrophages, which play a key role in detecting and destroying abnormal cells. Researchers have shown that blocking CD200R1 with specific antibodies activates macrophages, helping to eliminate blood cancers such as leukemia and lymphoma in preclinical mouse models.
These results pave the way for a new therapeutic approach for cancers that are resistant to current treatments. The next step for Dr. Veillette and his team is to develop collaborations aimed at proving that this strategy can also work in humans, which could transform treatment options for many patients.
Read full article: CD200R1-CD200 checkpoint inhibits phagocytosis differently from SIRPα-CD47 to suppress tumor growth
Acknowledgements
Dr. Veillette's work is supported by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) and the Terry Fox Research Institute, two major players in the funding of health research in Canada.
