Metabolic characterization of innate lymphoid cells in small cell lung cancer (B08*)

• Subject Area: Immunology ; Biochemistry ; Hematology, Oncology ; Cell Biology
• Term: since 2023
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 413326622

L. Surace and her team will analyze the role of innate lymphoid cells (ILCs) in SCLC. Tumor-resident ILCs play an important role supporting and shaping adaptive anti-tumor immunity and contribute to regulating the tumor microenvironment (TME) metabolism. As SCLC patients poorly respond to T cell-based immunotherapy, it is crucial to understand how tissue-resident innate subsets influence SCLC progression, shape tumor metabolism and influence tumor-specific immune responses. The team will determine ILC and T cell metabolic profiles in human and murine SCLC using mass spectrometry. Furthermore, they will perform in-depth analyses of tumor-infiltrating ILCs to characterize their phenotype and metabolic state, ultimately with the goal of identifying novel routes for therapeutic intervention.

• DFG Programme: Collaborative Research Centres
• Subproject of: SFB 1399: Mechanisms of drug sensitivity and resistance in small cell lung cancer
• Applicant Institution: Universität zu Köln
• Project Head: Laura Surace, Ph.D., since 7/2023