Matthijs Tsonas
Research
The interaction between dendritic cells (DCs) and T cells has emerged over recent years as a central component of the antitumor immune response. In particular, classical type 1 DCs (cDC1s) are uniquely capable of cross-presenting tumor antigens to initiate an effective adaptive immune response by activating CD8⁺ T cells, a process that is promoted by “licensing” by CD4⁺ T-cells.
My PhD research focuses on elucidating cDC1-licensing mechanism ex vivo through the development of a novel three-dimensional tumor model incorporating both uveal melanoma (UM; in collaboration with Dr. Vu, Ophthalmology ) and non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC; in collaboration with Prof. Smit, Lung Oncology). By modeling these two unique tumor microenvironments (TME), this work aims to define how cDC1-mediated T-cell activation is regulated under distinct immunological conditions. Insights gained from this research may reveal mechanisms that can be therapeutically exploited across multiple tumor types. Ultimately, my goal is to advance understanding of cDC1- licensing in the TME and to explore translational strategies aimed at enhancing antitumor immunity through targeted modulation of cDC and T-cell function.
Curriculum Vitae
In 2025, I graduated with a Master’s degree in Medicine from Leiden University. During my master’s training, I completed a research internship in 2024 at Schepen’s Eye Research Institute under Harvard University in Boston, USA, where I investigated immunoregulatory mechanisms of microglia and inflammation in age-related macular degeneration, with a focus on identifying potential novel therapeutic approaches. After graduating from medical school, I worked in 2025 as a pre-residency clinician in ophthalmology at Ziekenhuis Amstelland in Amstelveen. Since January 2026, I have been pursuing my PhD in the Department of Immunology at at Leiden University Medical Center, in the Xiao laboratory, focusing on DC biology and tumor immunology.
Publications
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Non-invasive bioelectrical therapy suppresses retinal neovascularization by modulating cellular metabolism and inflammation
Lennikov A, Yang M, Elzaridi F, Shu DY, Hu Z, Miller WP, Tsonas M, Huang L, Yen C, Chang K, Chen J, Vijikumar A, Ashok A, Cho KS, Geniez MS, Dartt DA, Chen DF
Cell Commun Signal. 2025 Nov 6;23(1):479. doi:10.1186/s12964-025-02451-1
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Electric stimulation as a therapeutic modality of accidental laser injury in vivo
Tsonas MC, ElZaridi F, Lennikov A, Chen DF
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2025;66(8):1065
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Characterization of post-mortem human choroidal explants as an ex vivo model of angiogenesis and angiofibrosis
Miller WP, Adu-Rutledge Y, Upreti A, Vijikumar A, Sanchez-Suarez JF, Barake K, Kaplan B, Gunawan A, Tsonas M, ElZaridi F, O'Hare M, Chen DF, Kim LA, Lennikov A
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2025;66(8):4605
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Dry age-related macular degeneration phenotypes in mice with IGFBPL1 signaling deficiency
Lennikov A, ElZaridi F, Tsonas M, Kam HT, Chen DF
Invest Ophthalmol Vis Sci. 2025;66(8):2547
