2016 NBF Grant Recipient Publishes Research in Cancers, iScience

Mobin Karimi, MD, PhD, recently published research in the journals Cancers and iScience. Karimi is a 2016 recipient of a National Blood Foundation (NBF) early-career Scientific Research Grant whose NBF-supported research investigated the separation of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) from graft-versus-tumor responses by modulation of T cell signaling pathways. 

In Cancers, Karimi and his colleagues evaluated the role of beta-catenin in the uncoupling of GVHD from graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effects that occur after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). Using a murine model of transgenic overexpression of human beta-catenin (Cat-Tg) in an allo-HSCT model, Karimi and his colleagues demonstrated that that T cells from Cat-Tg mice did not increase the risk for GVHD. They also determined that Cat-Tg T cells maintained the GVL effect. According to investigators, the data suggest that beta-catenin is a druggable target for developing therapeutic strategies to reduce GVHD while preserving the beneficial GVL effects following allo-HSCT treatment.

In iScience, Karimi and his colleagues published a review that examined the role of interleukin-2-inducible T-cell kinase (ITK) signaling in multiple diseases. They also reviewed the clinical potential of ITK inhibition. According to the authors, the review may facilitate more robust pre-clinical and clinical investigations into the use of ibrutinib and other ITK inhibitors for diverse pathologies. “We believe that the pre-clinical and clinical literature strongly supports further investigation into ITK inhibitors for the targeted treatment of the diseases highlighted in this review,” the authors wrote. Additional information about Karimi’s research is available online.

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