Laia Querol Cano
Research
Cellular surfaces are dominated by the glycocalyx, a macromolecular structure consisting of sugars (glycans) attached to specific proteins and lipids. The cellular glycan repertoire determines protein structure and function, in turn regulating inflammatory responses, promoting tumour metastasis or controlling receptor activation in autoimmune disorders. Binding of glycans to specific glycan-mediated proteins, namely galectins, siglecs or selectins, translates the information contained within glycan structures into biological action, thereby modulating cell function. My research focuses on understanding the role of glycans and glycan-binding proteins, namely galectins, in dendritic cell function in homeostasis and in the initiation of anti-tumour immune responses.
My group has shown that galectins are essential in controlling key hallmarks of DC function, including antigen presentation, migration or T cell activation. The aim of my research is to continue unravelling the molecular mechanisms that underlie galectin function and signalling in dendritic cells and to exploit those in a therapeutic setting utilising galectins as vaccine adjuvants.
I have the following projects:
- I study the crosstalk between tumour metabolism and the recognition of tumour-expressed glycans by glycan binding proteins in dendritic cells. I am particularly interested in how this crosstalk inhibits dendritic cell function and whether we can revert this process to promote anti-tumour immunity.
- I study changes in the glycosylation pattern of dendritic cells in response to tumour factors and whether changes in the glycome are functionally associated to the acquisition of an immune suppressive profile that thwarts dendritic cell-based immune therapies.
Curriculum vitae
I studied medical biology at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona followed by a Master of Research in biochemistry at Imperial College London. I did my PhD also at Imperial College (Department of Surgery and Cancer) under the supervision of Prof. Charlotte Bevan, where I studied the molecular mechanisms driving prostate cancer progression and therapy resistance. After my PhD, I moved to the RadboudUMC in Nijmegen as a postdoctoral researcher in the group of Prof. Carl Figdor and Prof. Annemiek van Spriel. There, I further dived into the mechanisms driving tumour progression with a focus on glycans and glycan binding proteins. In 2019, I started to build my own group as an assistant professor investigating how glycans regulate immune cell function in homeostasis and in relation to tumour immune invasion and disease progression. In 2024, I obtained funding from the Dutch Cancer Society (KWF) and the Melanoma Research Alliance (MRA) to investigate galectins as a novel dendritic cell adjuvant for cancer vaccination. Since March 2026, I am part of the Chemical Immunology group at the LUMC, where I continue to focus on utilising glycans and their binding proteins as therapeutic targets in cancer. In addition, I am chair of the Dutch Immunology Society Spring symposium.
Publications
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Galectin-9 binding to HLA-DR in dendritic cells controls immune synapse formation and T cell proliferation
Rodgers-Furones A, Brands T, van Gameren G, Florencio-Zabaleta M, Bathini M, Delgado S, Wijfjes Z, Fedorova K, Classens R, Kroese L, Verdoes M, van Mierlo G, Jiménez-Barbero J, Lindeboom RGH, Ardá A, van Spriel AB, Cano LQ.
Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2025 Dec 16;122(50):e2501381122. doi: 10.1073/pnas.2501381122. Epub 2025 Dec 8.PMID: 41359845
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Galectin-9 regulates dendritic cell polarity and uropod contraction by modulating RhoA activity
Franken GA, Warner H, Cuenca-Escalona J, Stehle IF, van Reijmersdal VPA, Klomp SE, Schreurs K, Rodgers-Furones A, Gokhale RR, Vullings M, Classens R, Di Blasio S, Dolen Y, van Deventer S, Wolf K, Wortel IMN, Hetmanski JHR, van Spriel AB, Querol Cano L.
J Cell Biol. 2025 Nov 3;224(11):e202404079. doi: 10.1083/jcb.202404079.
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Membrane organization by tetraspanins and galectins shapes lymphocyte function
Querol Cano L, Dunlock VE, Schwerdtfeger F, van Spriel AB.
Nat Rev Immunol. 2024 Mar;24(3):193-212. doi: 10.1038/s41577-023-00935-0.
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Galectin-9 interacts with Vamp-3 to regulate cytokine secretion in dendritic cells
Santalla Méndez R, Rodgers Furones A, Classens R, Fedorova K, Haverdil M, Canela Capdevila M, van Duffelen A, Spruijt CG, Vermeulen M, Ter Beest M, van Spriel AB, Querol Cano L.
Cell Mol Life Sci. 2023 Sep 27;80(10):306. doi: 10.1007/s00018-023-04954-x.
