In this webinar, you’ll learn about a novel, approach to HTP analysis of:
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) remains one of the most treatment-resistant cancers, largely due to its highly immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Myeloid cells, including macrophages, dendritic cells, and neutrophils, play central roles in shaping this environment, but their diverse functions are still not well understood. To address this challenge, we developed an optimized workflow for studying myeloid biology in PDAC, combining improved tumor dissociation methods with a 39-marker mass cytometry profiling panel. This approach revealed distinct myeloid cell populations and functional states across different tumor sites, as well as variable responses to immune checkpoint inhibitors. To directly connect immune cell phenotype with function, we established DEFINE (Direct Evaluation of Functional Immune Networks via Ex vivo co-culture), a high-throughput microwell-based co-culture system (TROVO, Enrich Biosystems) integrated with imaging mass cytometry. Using DEFINE, we identified specific myeloid subsets that either suppress or enhance T cell-mediated tumor killing. Together, this integrated approach provides new insights into the immunosuppressive mechanisms of myeloid cells in PDAC and offers a versatile platform for studying myeloid-driven resistance to immunotherapy.
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Dr. Won Jin Ho, MD
Associate Professor of Oncology
Dr. Won Jin Ho is a physician-scientist at Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins who focuses on cancer immunology and tumor microenvironment research. He eceived his BS and MS in Biomedical Engineering from University of California, Los Angeles, and his MD from Wayne State University School of Medicine. Dr. Ho’s overarching research interest is to develop novel immunotherapeutic strategies even against immune-resistant cancers by first understanding the immune responses to current therapeutics.
Dr. Sahajpal is a Laboratory Genetics and Genomics (LGG) fellow at the Greenwood Genetic Center. Before joining GGC, Dr. Sahajpal worked as a post-doctoral fellow at Augusta University, GA, US, where he was involved in pioneering optical genome mapping for investigating prenatal, postnatal, and hematological malignancies and solid tumor applications. As the world struggled with the COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Sahajpal played a key role in establishing COVID-19 FDA-EUA approved diagnostic testing and research at Augusta University and is a key contributor of the COVID-19 host genome SV consortium.
Kornelia Neveling, PhD, is a scientific researcher at the Human Genetics department at the Radboud UMC in Nijmegen, the Netherlands. She earned her degree in Biology at the Heinrich-Heine-University Düsseldorf, Germany. Subsequently, she performed her PhD in Human Genetics at the Julius-Maximilians-University Würzburg, Germany, investigating the molecular causes and consequences of genetic instability syndromes, with a special interest in Fanconi anemia. In 2009, she started as a postdoc at the Dept of Human Genetics of the Radboud UMC, where she learned all about NGS. From 2011-2018 she worked at the sequencing facility and since 2018 she joined the Translational Genomics group, both at Genome Diagnostics Nijmegen. Kornelia’s main interest is in the implementation of new technologies into diagnostic routines, with long-read sequencing and long read optimal mapping being her current passion.
