Research
CRYOSTEM supports fundamental, translational and clinical research projects in the field of HSCT complicationsProvide a safer transplant for patients
As part of its missions, CRYOSTEM provides scientists with a collection of biological resources unique in Europe to promote the development of research and medical innovation projects on hematopoietic stem cell transplantation and complications.
Getting access to the CRYOSTEM’s collection of biological resources allowed us to validate the reliability of all of our experimental data. Without this essential step, we could not have completed this research work. Dr. David Michonneau, researcher in immunology and hematology at Saint-Louis hospital.
The scientific valorization of the collection follows a two-year embargo period necessary for the creation of a critical mass of samples and their associated data. The projects selected by the CRYOSTEM Scientific Committee which benefited from access to the collection have thus contributed to broadening knowledge on GvHD as well as on the many other forms of transplantation complications . These projects have also fostered interdisciplinary collaborations by involving international players in academic and private research operating around strategic themes such as immunology, bioinformatics, virology and hematology.
All results and discoveries thus obtained will have a strong impact on the future practices of bone marrow transplantation and, more importantly, on the care and quality of life of transplant patients through the development of new diagnostic strategies and the implementation of personalized transplant protocols focused on the best compatibility between donor and recipient.
Project focus
Deciphering the biological mechanisms involved in the regulation of the anti-tumor response after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) by azithromycin (AZM).
Initiated in 2018 by Anne Bergeron, head of the Pulmonology Division at the University Hospitals of Geneva (HUG), and researchers David Michonneau and Nicolas Vallet from the HIPI “Human Immunology, Pathophysiology, Immunotherapy” Lab at the Saint-Louis Research Institute (IRSL), this project benefited from financial support of CRYOSTEM for access to samples (cryopreserved cells in DMSO, cell pellets and plasma) and patient consents.
Our research focuses on understanding the immunological mechanisms behind complications following allo-HSCT: acute or chronic Graft versus Host Disease (GvHD) and relapse (…)
For a better understanding of the mechanisms of alloreactivity responsible for complications following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Initiated in 2017 by Alice Aarnink and Marie-Thérèse Rubio, respectively Head of the HLA laboratory and Head of the Hematology Department’s Transplant Unit within the Nancy University Hospital Center, this project benefited from financial support from CRYOSTEM for access to biological resources and the consents of 50 geno-identical donor/recipientpairs. It is currently being carried out by IMoPA‘s “Cellular Engineering, Cellular Immunotherapy and Translational Approaches (CImIND)” team, with the contribution of Doctor Adèle Dhuyser, university hospital assistant and doctoral student, and benefits from the support of Laurent Mesnard, Head of the Nephrology and Acute Kidney Intensive Care Service (SINRA) and Hugues Richard, bioinformatician at the Robert Koch Institute in Berlin.
The Major Histocompatibility Complex (MHC) system, specifically known as the Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) system in humans, is a tissue compatibility system. Tissue transplants – whether of solid organs or blood tissue – require a certain level of compatibility between donor and recipient to be tolerated by the latter, whatever the level of immunosuppression prescribed.
In allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, the compatibility of a potential donor/recipient pair is assessed by means of HLA compatibility. In clinical practice, the classic HLA class I molecules – HLA-A, -B and -C – and classic class II molecules – HLA-DR, -DQ – are taken into account, i.e. a total of five molecules, each contributed by the father and mother. Compatibility is thus based on 10 HLA molecules, or 12, if the classic class II molecule HLA-DP is also taken into account (…)
Investigating the EBV replication activation by measuring the circulating Epstein-Barr Virus transcription factor ZEBRA, as predictor of pejorative events in HSCT patients (viral syndromes, GvHD, PTLD).
Interview with Dr. Emmanuel DROUET, pharmacist-biologist, Professor at the Grenoble-Alpes Faculty of Pharmacy (UGA)
I teach microbiology to students at the Faculty of Pharmacy and the Faculty of Science in Grenoble (UGA, Université Grenoble Alpes). Attached to the Structural Biology Department of the Unité Mixte de Recherche (UMR UGA-CNRS), I lead a team working on human persistent viruses (RNA and DNA viruses) and their balance with the host immune system.
Most of our research work has been carried out over the past 10 years within the framework of our affiliation with Grenoble University Hospital. In 2022, the results of a study conducted in collaboration with Strasbourg and Nantes Hospitals, the CRYOSTEM Association and the Microbiology Department of UMC Utrecht in the Netherlands were published in the journal Pathogens (…)
