Gail Chan
PhD Candidate
gchan@fas.harvard.edu

Education

M.S. Engineering Sciences
Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 2008

B.S. Biomedical Engineering
Brown University, Providence, RI, 2005

Research Focus

Immunotherapy

My research aims to elucidate the insoluble cues that promote or inhibit leukocyte (white blood cell) activation, particularly dendritic cells, and to apply this knowledge to immunotherapy design. Many soluble cues (cytokines, chemokines, and pathogen-associated molecular patterns) that influence leukocyte behavior have been identified, but it is increasingly apparent that other contributing factors exist. It is well-established that the insoluble microenvironment (i.e. the extracellular matrix (ECM)) affects the growth, migration, and differentiation of many cell types. This principle has yet to be firmly validated with leukocytes, but there is growing evidence for a role of the ECM in controlling leukocyte behavior. As immunotherapies utilizing biomaterials evolve it will be necessary to increase our understanding of leukocyte-ECM interactions. This understanding will help build better therapies and may possibly elucidate the pathology underlying many diseases of the immune system.

Publications

• Chan, G. and Mooney, D.J. (2008) New materials for tissue engineering: towards greater control over the biological response. Trends Biotechnol 26, 382-392.