January 2010 Newsletter

Craig A. Mullen, M.D., Ph.D.

The Mullen laboratory works on cancer immunobiology and transplant immunology. The goal of their research is to use murine models of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) transplantation to identify immunological mechanisms that can be used to design therapies that will reduce the likelihood of leukemia relapse after allogeneic HCS transplant in children with leukemia. They have recently demonstrated that allogeneic HSC transplant recipients treated after transplant with cellular tumor vaccines exhibit prolonged survival but do not experience exacerbations of graft vs. host disease. The mechanism of this vaccine effect is under investigation.