פרופ' מיכל לוטם

 
טלפון משרד: 02-6779257
פקס: 02-6427485
אימייל: [email protected]
תחום מחקר: אימונולוגיה
 

Synopsis
Development of an adjuvant autologous melanoma vaccine for macroscopic stage III disease. There is not yet an agreed upon adjuvant treatment for melanoma patients with American Joint Committee on Cancer stages III B and C. An autologous melanoma vaccine to prevent disease recurrence was developed. Improved survival in patients attaining a strong delayed type hypersensitivity response and the increased response rate with subsequent ipilimumab suggests that the autologous vaccine confers protective immunity. Development of an adjuvant genetically engineered allogeneic melanoma vaccine expressing 4-1BBL for patients at early stages, who still carry a considerable risk of recurrence, and have no satisfactory treatment alternatives. Immuno-monitoring shows detectable increase in circulating anti-melanoma CD8 T cells in most treated patients. Discovery that trogocytosis, a contact-dependent unidirectional transfer of membrane fragments between immune effector cells and their targets, takes place between melanoma-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) and their cognate tumors. Furthermore, melanoma membrane-imprinted CD8+ T cells act as antigen presenting cells, resulting in either activation or fratricide. This dual function of tumor-reactive CTLs may hint at their ability to participate in modulation of the anti-cancer immune response.

מלגות ופרסים

  • Daniel Turnberg Travel Fellowship scheme to Cambridge University, UK, entitled: Genetic and molecular diagnosis of families with inherited platelet disorders

    2014

     

  • Outstanding teacher award for the 2012 academic year, The Faculty of Medicine, Hebrew UniversityOutstanding researcher award, Hadassah Hebrew-University Hospital Jerusalem, Israel

    2011

     

  • Excellence for the MSc Thesis, entitled: Complications of central venous catheters in children and adolescents with cancer: observational multicenter prospective study

    2010

  • Hebrew University- Hadassah School of Public Health and Community Medicine, Perelman Leon award for master thesis, Incidence and risk factors for central venous line-related complication in the Israeli Pediatric Oncology Registry

    2008

  • The Israel Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Society, best presentation award in the annual meeting for an abstract entitled: Evaluation of children with suspected bleeding disorder applying the Impact. Cone and Platelet Analyzer

    2008

  • Hadassah Hebrew-University Hospital, Clinical investigator position (50% research time) awarded for 2 years

    2007

     

  • The American Society of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology, 2002 Young Investigator Award for an abstract entitled: Desmopressin (DDAVP) responsiveness in children with von Willebrand Disease

    2002

     

     

  • The Canadian Hematology Society, 2001 Wyeth –Ayerst Travel Award for travel to ASH 2001 for presentation of an abstract entitled: “ncidence of congenital prothrombotic disorders in children with venous thromboembolic disease: A prospective cohort study

    2001

     

     

  • Baxter Bioscience Pediatric Hemostasis Fellowship, The Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Canada

    2001

     

     

  • Research training competition (Restracomp) award, The Hospital for Sick Children, University of Toronto, Canada for a research project entitled: Pilot study: Low molecular weight heparin (LMWH) in association with low dose chemotherapy as an anti-angiogen

    2001

     

     

  • Pearl Foundation Grant for Fellowship, Israel

    1999

     

  • American Physicians Fellowship for medicine in Israel. APF

    1999

     

  • Louis Weingarden prize of excellence for the M.D. Thesis, entitled: Immunological parameters following a clinical trial of ambulatory cytokine mediated immunotherapy of recombinant Interferon alfa and Interleukin 2

    1994