NTUBST2023EN

1. Mechanisms Regulating Inflammatory Responses and Development of Anti-inflammatory Drugs

 

Microbial infection and tissue injury activate the immune system, triggering inflammatory responses that help combat infection, clear dead cells, and promote tissue repair. However, excessive inflammation can lead to excessive immune cell infiltration and overproduction of cytokines, resulting in cytokine storms, tissue damage, and organ failure—as seen in COVID-19–induced acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS). In allergic and autoimmune diseases, persistent inflammation can also cause irreversible pathological changes such as tissue damage and fibrosis. Moreover, during tumor progression, inflammatory responses within the tumor microenvironment can promote cancer cell growth and suppress immune surveillance.

 

One of our research focuses is to investigate the mechanisms that regulate inflammatory responses—for example, how inflammatory cells such as neutrophils, eosinophils, and monocytes degrade extracellular matrix components and infiltrate inflamed tissues. The key regulatory molecules identified in these studies may serve as potential targets for drug development. Our goal is to develop small-molecule, protein-based (e.g., monoclonal antibody), and nucleic acid–based (e.g., shRNA/siRNA) therapeutics to mitigate inflammation caused by infection, tissue injury, cancer, allergy, or autoimmune diseases.

 

 

2. Development of Mucosal Vaccines

 

Most pathogens invade the body through mucosal surfaces. Specialized lymphoid tissues located in mucosal organs initiate immune responses against these invading pathogens and produce IgA antibodies to neutralize and eliminate them. In vaccine design, delivering antigens through mucosal routes—such as the respiratory or gastrointestinal tracts—can induce strong local immune responses, providing more effective protection against infection and transmission. Our current research focuses on developing novel mucosal vaccine adjuvants and antigen delivery systems.

 

 

3. Development of Immune Cell-based Cancer Therapies

 

The immune system can recognize tumor-associated antigens expressed on cancer cells and eliminate these cells through cytotoxic mechanisms. Cytotoxic immune cells, such as cytotoxic T lymphocytes and natural killer (NK) cells, can be genetically engineered ex vivo to express tumor-specific receptors and then reinfused into patients to selectively attack and destroy cancer cells. Such immune cell therapies—most notably chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy—have demonstrated remarkable clinical efficacy in treating hematologic malignancies. Our research aims to further engineer T cells to enhance their therapeutic potential against solid tumors.

      (*Corresponding author)

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4. Lee HY, Chen CC, Pi CC, Chen CJ*. Aspergillus oryzae Fermentation Extract Alleviates Inflammation in Mycoplasma pneumoniae Pneumonia. Molecules 2023; 28(3): 1127.
5. Li CJ, Jiang CL, Chao TL, Lin SY, Tsai YM, Chao CS, Su YT, Chen CJ, Chang SY*, Lin FJ*, Chang SC*. Elicitation of potent neutralizing antibodies in obese mice by ISA 51-adjuvanted SARS-CoV-2 spike RBD-Fc vaccine. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 2023; 107(9): 2983-95.
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