PhD student
Floortje van Haften
Research
Every year, millions of cancer patients are treated with chemotherapeutic agents. Although, the effect of chemotherapy on tumors has been investigated intensively, the direct and indirect effects of these chemotherapeutics on the immune system is often unknown. During my PhD, I aim to understand how chemotherapeutic agents like anthracyclines impact the activation and differentiation of the innate and adaptive immune cells. I will make use of in vivo mouse models and CRISPR-Cas technology. The ultimate goal is to use this knowledge to improve current therapies and develop new ones, in which we rationally combine chemotherapy with immunotherapy.
Curriculum vitae
I studied Biomedical Sciences at the University of Amsterdam. My research internships were completed in the group of Jannie Borst at the Netherlands Cancer Institute and in the group of Ramon Arens at the LUMC. Currently, I am a PhD student in the group of Ramon Arens on an Institute for Chemical Immunology (ICI) project in collaboration with Jacques Neefjes.
Publications
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OX40 agonism enhances PD-L1 checkpoint blockade by shifting the cytotoxic T cell differentiation spectrum
van der Sluis TC, Beyrend G, van der Gracht ET, Abdelaal T, Jochems SP, Belderbos RA, Wesselink TH, van Duikeren S, Haften FJ, Redeker A, Beyranvand Nejad E, Camps M, Franken KL, ....Ossendorp F, Arens R.
Cell Rep Med. 2023; 100939. doi: 10.1016/j.xcrm.2023.100939
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Memory CD8+ T cell heterogeneity is primarily driven by pathogen-specific cues and additionally shaped by the tissue environment.
van der Gracht ET, Beyrend G, Abdelaal T, Pardieck IN, Wesselink TH, van Haften FJ, van Duikeren S, Koning F, Arens R.
iScience. 2021; 24(1): 101954.
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Chemically engineered glycan-modified cancer vaccines to mobilize skin dendritic cells
Duinkerken S, Li RE, van Haften FJ, de Gruijl TD, Chiodo F, Schetters ST, van Kooyk Y.
Current Opinion Chemical Biology. 2019; 53, 167-172.
Groups:
Arens Lab / T cell regulation
