Research Award Renewed
for University of Michigan Investigator

The recipient of a new investigator award from ASBMT and ESP Pharma has submitted a mid-project progress report on his research on the role of antigen-presenting cells in mediating graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) effect after experimental allogeneic bone marrow transplantation.

Pavan Reddy, MD, an assistant professor in the adult blood and marrow transplant program at the University of Michigan Medical School, has achieved the first goal of his research:  to determine the role of host antigen-presenting cells (APCs) and pro-inflammatory cytokines in inducing a GvL response after bone marrow transplantation.  In tumor models of GvL mediated by CD8+ or CD4+ donor T-cells, the development of a GvL response required the presence of functional APCs to present tumor antigens and/or alloantigens.  Without APCs, direct presentation of antigen by tumors elicited no acute GvL effect, even though co-stimulatory molecules were expressed.

Preliminary experiments also have been performed examining the contributions of tumor antigen expression and pro-inflammatory cytokines to GvL responses.  Confirmatory studies are under way, and chimeric mice are being generated to examine the role of cytokines in mediating the GvL.

Based on his progress to date, the $25,000-per-year ASBMT/ESP Pharma New Investigator Award has been renewed for a second year for Dr. Reddy’s research.

ESP Pharma, Inc., earlier this year became a wholly owned subsidiary of Protein Design Labs, Inc.