Björn Önfelt
Research interests
We use microchip techniques for live cell imaging and screening to characterize immune response at the single cell level. T cell and natural killer (NK) cells have remarkable abilities to mediate targeted attack against virus-infected or malignant cells. In adoptive cell therapy these qualities are used to treat primary malignancies, life-threatening virus infections or leukemic relapses after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. Although this therapy has shown promising results we have only a remote understanding of how to utilize T and NK cells to their full potential. A major challenge is to select and prepare cells that mediate anti-tumor effects without causing life-threatening side effects such as graft versus host disease. By better understanding of how populations of NK cells and T cells are built up by individual cells with varying capacity to respond to stimuli we will be able to improve current methods for immunotherapy.
Group members
Björn Önfelt, Professor, PI
Karolin Guldevall, Researcher
Niklas Sandström, Postdoc
Patrick Sandoz, Postdoc
Laura Sanchez Rivera, Postdoc
Rento Alves, Postdoc
Ludwig Brandt, PhD-student
Quentin Verron, PhD-student
Valentina Carannante, PhD-student
Hanna van Ooijen , PhD-student
Karl Olofsson, PhD-student (cosupervisor)