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Welcome to the Huang Lab
Christene Huang, PhD
Research Interests
The Huang laboratory studies transplantation immunology with a focus on developing novel therapeutic strategies to prevent transplant rejection while reducing infectious complications. Dr. Huang's research involves using basic immunologic approaches to regulate inflammation, overcome transplant rejection and induce transplantation tolerance.
Active Research Projects
A-dmDT390-bisFv(UCHT1) Fusion Protein (VG712) for Induction Therapy in Transplantation
Despite advances in maintenance immunosuppressive therapy, rejection and infectious complications remain significant causes of graft failure. The Huang lab is studying CD3 immunotoxin as a novel tolerogenic transplant induction therapy with unique properties beneficial for preventing acute rejection while allowing rapid immune reconstitution in patients. (Patents US17/820,808; EP21756843.5A)
Advancement of a tissue oxygenation measurement device and evaluation of galectin-3 as novel non-invasive prognostic biomarkers for monitoring Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation (VCA) rejection (Huang: Initiating PI; Evans: Partnering PI)
The Huang/Mathes lab has developed swine VCA surgical models to validate novel approaches for frequent non-invasive monitoring of VCA recipients. Frequent non-invasive assessment would allow clinical adjustments to immunosuppressive drug therapy early enough to avoid clinically significant rejection episodes and prevent the progression to chronic rejection. (DOD RTRP W81XWH2210927)
Total Human Eye-allotransplantation Innovation Advancement (THEIA) (Washington: Lead PI; Huang: Co-PI)
Team THEIA will develop complementary platforms to preserve human donor eyes and advance chemical, cellular, genetic, and electrical therapeutics to achieve donor retinal ganglion cell survival and optic nerve regeneration following eye transplantation at a level sufficient to restore visual function to patients. The Huang lab will focus on development of local immunomodulatory and tolerogenic approaches in the preclinical swine model to prevent eye transplant rejection without the need for high dose chronic immunosuppression. (ARPA-H 1AY2AX000042)