IMMUNE REGULATION

Immune homeostasis is tightly regulated by a complex play between distinct populations of regulatory and effector cells, involving cell-to-cell interactions and modulation of immune function through the secretion of cytokines and chemokines. Our research focuses on the functional and phenotypical characterization of immune regulatory cell subsets, and their role in immune and autoimmune processes.

Sven Létourneau, Ph.D. Research Fellow   2007-present: Research Fellow, Division of Immunology and Allergy, CHUV, Lausanne.

2003-2007: Ph.D., The Weatherall Institute of Molecular Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, U.K. Research focus: "Pre-clinical HIV-1 vaccine development, study of vaccine-induced CD8+ T cell responses".

Selected publications:

• Krieg C., Létourneau S., Pantaleo G. and Boyman O. Improved IL-2 immunotherapy by selective stimulation of IL-2 receptors on lymphocytes and endothelial cells.Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2010, 107:11906-11911.
   
• Létourneau S., van Leeuwen E.M., Krieg C., Martin C., Pantaleo G., Sprent J., Surh C.D. and Boyman O. IL-2/anti-IL-2 antibody complexes show strong biological activity by avoiding interaction with IL-2 receptor alpha subunit CD25. Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 2010, 107:2171-2176.
   
• Boyman O., Létourneau S., Krieg C. and Sprent J. Homeostatic proliferation and survival of naïve and memory T cells. Eur J Immunol. 2010, 39:2088-2094.
   
• Létourneau S., Krieg C., Pantaleo G. and Boyman O. IL-2- and CD25-dependent immunoregulatory mechanisms in the homeostasis of T-cell subsets. J. Allergy Clin. Immunol. 2009, 123:758-762.