Composition of the team

David Klatzmann, MD, PhD, Professor UPMC (Team leader)
Bertrand Bellier, PhD, MCU UPMC
Gilles Marodon, PhD, CR1 INSERM
Michelle Rosenzwajg, MD, PhD, MCU-PH UPMC
Patrice Cacoub, MD, PhD, Professor UPMC

General objective of the team
Researchers and clinicians of the IV team will combine their expertise in Immunology, Virology and Medicine to create and validate new concepts and practices for immunotherapies using viruses as tools and/or as targets.

Projects of the team

1. Cellular and molecular basis of immune tolerance induction in the thymus
2. Optimization and development of plasmoVLP vaccines
3. Validation of HIV therapies (genetic vaccines and gene therapy) in humanized mice
4. Physiopathology and immunotherapy of HCV vasculitis

Main scientific discoveries
Role of T cell division for immunological memory maintenance
Identification of CD4+CD25+ regulatory T-cell deficiency in patients with hepatitis C-mixed cryoglobulinemia vasculitis
Correction of ZAP-70 immunodeficiency by intrathymic injection of a T cell specific gene therapy vector
Induction of antigen-specific tolerance by intrathymic injection of lentiviral vectors
Development of PlasmoVLPs: new DNA vaccines encoding retrovirus-based virus-like particles

Publications
Bellier B, Thomas-Vaslin V, Saron MF, Klatzmann D. Turning immunological memory into amnesia by depletion of dividing T-cells. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2003 Dec 9;100(25):15017-22
Boyer O, Saadoun D, Abriol J, Dodille M, Piette JC, Cacoub P, Klatzmann D: CD4+CD25+ regulatoryT-cell deficiency in patients with hepatitis C-mixed cryoglobulinemia vasculitis. Blood 103:3428-3430,2004.
Adjali, O., Marodon, G., Steinberg, M., Mongellaz, C., Thomas-Vaslin, V., Jacquet, C., Taylor, N., Klatzmann, D. 2005. In vivo correction of ZAP-70 immunodeficiency by intrathymic gene transfer. J Clin Invest 115:2287-95.
Marodon, G., Fisson, S., Levacher, B., Fabre, M., Salomon, B., Klatzmann, D. 2006. Induction of antigen-specific tolerance by intrathymic injection of lentiviral vectors. Blood 108:2972-2978.
Bellier B, Dalba C, Clerc B, Desjardins D, Drury R, Cosset FL, Collins M, Klatzmann D. DNA vaccines encoding retrovirus-based virus-like particles induce efficient immune responses without adjuvant. Vaccine. 2006 Mar 24;24(14):2643-55.
Marodon G, Desjardins D, Mercey L, Baillou C, Parent P, Manuel M, Caux C, Bellier B, Pasqual N, Klatzmann D. High diversity of the immune repertoire in humanized NOD.SCID.gc-/- mice. Eur J Immunol 2009, 39(8): 2136-2145.

Patents
AU200221749 A5: Synthetic viruses and uses thereof; n° 00402978.1, date of publication : 2002-05-06
WO2005117989: Drugs for the prevention or treatment of immunodeficiencies, autoimmune diseases or for the induction of immune tolerance
CA2517601 AA: Infectious flavivirus pseudo-particles containing functional PRM and/or proteins. Date of publication: 20040302
WO06103493 A1: Method for enhancing the potency of HCV neutralizing antibodies - Date de publication: 20051221