Dangaj Lab members

Bioinformatician CONTACT ME

Research interest

My interests cover computational methods applied to biology.

Background

I did a PhD in Biophysics at EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne, in 2012. I have published research on the mechanics of proteins, the conformation of DNA, and chromatin. I joined the Hi-TIDe in 2018. 

Research interest

I use computational approaches in order to unravel the tumor molecular and immune landscapes of response to immunotherapy. I focus particularly on the interactions between players of the tumor microenvironment as well as on molecular features that make a tumor immune-inflamed or that lead to immune suppression.

Background

After a Master’s in Genomics and Experimental Biology at the University of Lausanne, I went on to do a PhD in Biology, focusing on the migratory abilities of cancer cells during the metastatic progression. I reoriented towards bioinformatics on joining the SIB Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics in 2014, and took up my position as a Bioinformatician at the Department of oncology UNIL CHUV in 2018. 

Junior bioinformatician CONTACT ME

Research interest

My current research activity focus on characterizing tumor-infiltrating immune cells and tumor microenvironment (TME), using computational methods from single-cell and bulk RNA-Seq data. The overarching aim is to refine our understanding of TME states, heterogeneity and evolution in cancer immunotherapy.

Background

I completed my studies at the University of Lausanne, where I undertook my Master's thesis in Behavior, Evolution and Conservation. My interests in molecular biology, evolution and sex-determination issues lead me subsequently towards several fellowships and collaborations in various universities. I received my PhD in Biological Sciences at the University of Montreal, which allowed me to develop a keen interest in bioinformatics. I am currently deepening my expertise and bioinformatic skills in the field of tumor immunology. 

PhD student CONTACT ME

Research interest

My main research interest focuses on the development of an ex vivo 3D model systems of autologous tumors amenable to high throughput evaluation of early responses upon immune, targeted therapy or radiotherapy in the TME named histoculture (HistoCXs). Combination of molecular information from the original tumor, the ex-vivo 3D model and the biopsies before and after IO will provide complete information to understand the early effects and events of the TME induced by these treatments. The ultimate goal is to create signatures and biomarkers from HistoCXs that could predict responders and non-responders to IO.

Background

In 2015, I began my Bachelor's in Pharmaceutical Science spending the first year at the University of Lausanne and the four following years at the University of Geneva. In 2019, I did my master’s thesis on combined targeted therapies for cancer, a subject proposed by Pr Patrycja Nowak-Sliwinska, under the supervision of Dr Olivier Dormond, Head of the Service of visceral surgery research. I then obtained the Federal Diploma of Pharmacist. I joined the Hi-TIDe in 2020 as an intern and prolonged in 2021 for a PhD Thesis.

Research associate CONTACT ME

Research interest

My main research interest is to deeply characterize the TME status of epithelial ovarian cancer (EOC), its evolution under chemo/immunotherapy and its intrinsic heterogeneity. The ultimate goal is to identify patients who could derive the maximum benefit from innovative approaches of immunotherapy.

Background

I graduated in medicine from the University of Turin in 2014 and completed the Specialisation Programme in Medical Oncology in 2020. In 2019, I joined the Hi-TIDe and was awarded the ESMO Translational Research Fellowship. I am currently a medical oncologist within the Service of immuno-oncology of the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV) and I am following the MD-PhD program, under the joint supervision of Dr Denarda Dangaj and Pr George Coukos.

Postdoctoral researcher (also in Coukos Lab) CONTACT ME

Research interest

Within the Hi-TIDe, I am currently investigating selective mechanisms of immuno-suppression in ovarian cancer, aiming to counteract them in order to enhance efficacy of immunotherapies.

Background

I received a Master’s in Bioengineering and Biotechnology from EPFL, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne. I then completed my PhD in Immuno-Engineering at the University of Chicago in 2016, where I worked on the development of a technology to reverse auto-immunity and induce antigen-specific immunological tolerance.

Visiting scientist CONTACT ME

Research interest

I study mutational processes in cancer using mutational signature analysis techniques. I am interested in developing computational methods for the classification of cancer patients based on genomic profiling. These algorithms aim to improve the identification of cancer patients who have specific vulnerabilities to cancer treatments (e.g. PARP inhibitors for patients with homologous recombination deficiency or immunotherapy for patients with mismatch repair deficiency).

Background

I received my PhD in Experimental Particle Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and worked at CERN as a fellow before transitioning to biology. Since 2017, I am a visiting scientist within the Hi-TIDe and postdoctoral fellow in Peter Park’s lab, part of the Department of biomedical informatics at Harvard Medical School.

Postdoctoral researcher (also in Coukos Lab) CONTACT ME

Research interest

I am a postdoctoral clinical scientist in the Hi-TIDe. Currently, my research interest lies in understanding molecular mechanisms of immune cell dysfunction within the tumor microenvironment.

Background

I have a background in biology, physics and mathematics as I always liked considering questions from different points of view. Using systems biology approaches, I have studied cancer metabolism and its implication in DNA copy number alterations.

Postdoctoral researcher (also in Coukos Lab) CONTACT ME

Research interest

I am a postdoctoral clinical scientist within the Hi-TIDe. My main research interests focus on surgical and fundamental cancer immunology of ovarian cancer, with a particular focus on mechanisms of immune evasion and T-cell exhaustion. 

Background

I graduated from the University of Genoa and completed my PhD and gynaecological and surgical training between the University of Genoa and the University of Oxford.

Clinical fellow CONTACT ME

Research interest

My work focusses on the resistance mechanisms in the face of immunotherapy and learning how to tackle them in order to improve patients’ outcomes.

Background

I attended medical school at the University of Barcelona and pursued my oncology training at the Catalan institute of Oncology. My experience as a medical oncologist is in treating genitourinary and melanoma cancer patients, as well as treating patients in phase 1 clinical trials with immunotherapy. I am currently conducting my PhD Thesis within the Hi-TIDe.

Junior bioinformatician CONTACT ME

Research interest

My research interest is to employ computational approaches to handle and analyse large Omics datasets in human pathologies. My current work is supporting multiple cancer research projects by providing bioinformatic analysis of single-cell RNA sequencing and other transcriptomic datasets.

Background

I graduated with an MSc in Genomic Medicine from the University of Exeter in 2019, where I collaborated with the Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital in the field of monogenetic & neonatal diabetes. In 2020, I started an internship at the Autoimmune, Transplantation & Inflammatory Disease branch of Novartis in Basel and mainly focused on the genetics of chronic kidney disease. I joined the Hi-TIDe in 2021.

Technician CONTACT ME

Research interest

Currently, I mainly contribute to single cell transcriptomic studies and the development of ex vivo 3D tumor models within the framework of ACT TIL clinical trial and other clinical studies. We aim to identify dynamic biomarkers for response and resistance to immunotherapy.

Background

After graduating with a Master's of Science in Medical Biology from the University of Lausanne in 2014, I then worked as a research collaborator in the laboratories of the Internal medicine and visceral surgery services of the Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV). Thanks to these experiences, I had the opportunity to take a special interest in cancer biology and tumor microenvironment, mainly focusing on tumor angiogenesis. I joined the Hi-TIDe in 2021.