Dean Lee, MD, PhD
Academic Title: Professor in the College of Medicine
Research Program: Leukemia and Hematologic Malignancies
About Me
More info forI am the director of the Cellular Therapy and Cancer Immunology Program at Nationwide Children’s Hospital and a member of the Leukemia and Hematologic Malignancies Program at the OSUCCC – James, where my research focuses on approaches to enhance natural killer (NK) cell response to cancer, with an emphasis on engineering NK cells for adoptive immunotherapy.
I developed a method for consistent, robust expansion of highly active clinical-grade NK cells that enables repeated delivery of large cell doses for improved efficacy. This finding led to several first-in-human clinical trials evaluating adoptive immunotherapy with expanded NK cells under FDA Investigational New Drug applications. My current work builds on this platform to develop genetic and non-genetic methods for improving tumor targeting and tissue homing of NK cells.
I have an interest in mentoring translational and clinical scientists, as evidenced by participation in graduate training programs (specifically as the former co-director of the University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UT-HSC) MD/PhD Program), publications in the area of mentoring and career development, and trainee awards for my students from the American Society of Hematology, the St. Baldrick’s Foundation and Alex’s Lemonade Stand Foundation.
I have co-authored several articles that have appeared in well-respected journals, including Journal of Neuro-Oncology, Cancer Immunology, PLOS ONE, and Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology.
Education & Training
More info forMD - MD, PhD
- Loma Linda University
Loma Linda, CA
USA
- Loma Linda University
Academic Office & Contact Information
More info forAcademic Office:
Children's Hospital - Educatio
700 Childrens Dr
Columbus, Ohio 43205Email:
lee.7991@osu.eduPublications
More info forJuly 11, 2024Combinatorial macrophage induced innate immunotherapy against Ewing sarcoma: Turning "Two Keys" simultaneously.
Luo W, Hoang H, Miller KE, Zhu H, Xu S, Mo X, Garfinkle EAR, Costello H, Wijeratne S, Chemnitz W, Gandhi R, Liao Y, Ayello J, Gardenswartz A, Rosenblum JM, Cassady KA, Mardis ER, Lee DA, Cripe TP, Cairo MS
J Exp Clin Cancer Res
June 20, 2024Efficiently targeting neuroblastoma with the combination of anti-ROR1 CAR NK cells and N-803 in vitro and in vivo in NB xenografts.
Chu Y, Nayyar G, Tian M, Lee DA, Ozkaynak MF, Ayala-Cuesta J, Klose K, Foley K, Mendelowitz AS, Luo W, Liao Y, Ayello J, Behbehani GK, Riddell S, Cripe T, Cairo MS
Mol Ther Oncol
March 5, 2024Results of a phase I trial with Haploidentical mbIL-21 ex vivo expanded NK cells for patients with multiply relapsed and refractory AML.
Ciurea SO, Kongtim P, Srour S, Chen J, Soebbing D, Shpall E, Rezvani K, Nakkula R, Thakkar A, Troy EC, Cash AA, Behbehani G, Cao K, Schafer J, Champlin RE, Lee DA
Am J Hematol
December 11, 2023Knockout of the inhibitory receptor TIGIT enhances the antitumor response of ex vivo expanded NK cells and prevents fratricide with therapeutic Fc-active TIGIT antibodies.
Hasan MF, Campbell AR, Croom-Perez TJ, Oyer JL, Dieffenthaller TA, Robles-Carrillo LD, Cash CA, Eloriaga JE, Kumar S, Andersen BW, Naeimi Kararoudi M, Tullius BP, Lee DA, Copik AJ
J Immunother Cancer
June 15, 2023Attack of the clones: An NK cell origins story.
Caporale JR, Lee DA
Mol Ther Oncolytics
December 30, 2022Manufacture and Characterization of GMP-Compliant SARS-COV-2 Cytotoxic T Lymphocytes.
Chu Y, Milner J, Lamb M, Maryamchik E, Rigot O, Ayello J, Harrison L, Shaw R, Behbehani GK, Mardis ER, Miller K, Venkata LPR, Chang H, Lee D, Rosenthal E, Kadauke S, Bunin N, Talano JA, Johnson B, Wang Y, Cairo MS
J Infect Dis
July 8, 2022Cerebral organoids containing an AUTS2 missense variant model microcephaly.
Fair SR, Schwind W, Julian D, Biel A, Guo G, Rutherford R, Ramadesikan S, Westfall J, Miller KE, Kararoudi MN, Hickey SE, Mosher TM, McBride KL, Neinast R, Fitch J, Lee D, White P, Wilson RK, Bedrosian TA, Koboldt DC, Hester ME
Brain
July 1, 2022Natural Killer Cell Recognition and Control of Epithelial Cancers.
de Souza Fernandez Pereira M, Carr DR, Gatti-Mays ME, Olsen MR, Setty BA, Shahwan KT, Lee DA
Cancer J
June 20, 2022Optimization and validation of CAR transduction into human primary NK cells using CRISPR and AAV.
Naeimi Kararoudi M, Likhite S, Elmas E, Yamamoto K, Schwartz M, Sorathia K, de Souza Fernandes Pereira M, Sezgin Y, Devine RD, Lyberger JM, Behbehani GK, Chakravarti N, Moriarity BS, Meyer K, Lee DA
Cell Rep Methods
April 29, 2022Evaluation of allogeneic and autologous membrane-bound IL-21-expanded NK cells for chronic lymphocytic leukemia therapy.
Yano M, Sharpe C, Lance JR, Ravikrishnan J, Zapolnik K, Mo XM, Woyach JA, Sampath D, Kittai AS, Vasu S, Bhat SA, Rogers KA, Lee D, Muthusamy N, Byrd JC
Blood Adv
March 8, 2022The Future of Natural Killer Cell Immunotherapy for B Cell Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma (B Cell NHL).
Chu Y, Lamb M, Cairo MS, Lee DA
Curr Treat Options Oncol
January 1, 2022Non-invasive fluorescence imaging for tracking immune cells in preclinical models of immunotherapy.
de Souza Fernandes Pereira M, Thakkar A, Lee DA
Methods Cell Biol
January 1, 2022CRISPR Gene Editing of Human Primary NK and T Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy.
Elmas E, Saljoughian N, de Souza Fernandes Pereira M, Tullius BP, Sorathia K, Nakkula RJ, Lee DA, Naeimi Kararoudi M
Front Oncol
September 24, 2021Defining the AHR regulated transcriptome in NK cells reveal gene expression program relevant to development and function.
Trikha P, Moseman J, Thakkar A, Campbell AL, Elmas E, Foltz JA, Chakravarti N, Fitch J, Mardis E, Lee D
Blood Adv
September 7, 2021Adoptive immunotherapy with double-bright (CD56bright /CD16bright ) expanded natural killer cells in patients with relapsed or refractory acute myeloid leukaemia: a proof-of-concept study.
Silla L, Valim V, Pezzi A, da Silva M, Wilke I, Nobrega J, Vargas A, Amorin B, Correa B, Zambonato B, Scherer F, Merzoni J, Sekine L, Huls H, Cooper LJ, Paz A, Lee DA
Br J Haematol
August 15, 2021Donor KIR Gene Content and KIR-Ligand Matching and Outcomes of Pediatric Patients with JMML Following Unrelated Donor Transplant.
Rangarajan HG, Pereira MSF, Brazauskas R, St Martin A, Kussman A, Elmas E, Verneris MR, Gadalla SM, Marsh SGE, Paczesny S, Spellman SR, Lee SJ, Lee DA
Transplant Cell Ther
August 14, 2021NKG2D-CAR-transduced natural killer cells efficiently target multiple myeloma.
Leivas A, Valeri A, Córdoba L, García-Ortiz A, Ortiz A, Sánchez-Vega L, Graña-Castro O, Fernández L, Carreño-Tarragona G, Pérez M, Megías D, Paciello ML, Sánchez-Pina J, Pérez-Martínez A, Lee DA, Powell DJ, Río P, Martínez-López J
Blood Cancer J
July 26, 2021Decrease post-transplant relapse using donor-derived expanded NK-cells.
Ciurea SO, Kongtim P, Soebbing D, Trikha P, Behbehani G, Rondon G, Olson A, Bashir Q, Gulbis AM, Indreshpal K, Rezvani K, Shpall EJ, Bassett R, Cao K, Martin AS, Devine S, Horowitz M, Pasquini M, Lee DA, Champlin RE
Leukemia
July 1, 2021Combinatorial immunotherapy of N-803 (IL-15 superagonist) and dinutuximab with ex vivo expanded natural killer cells significantly enhances in vitro cytotoxicity against GD2+ pediatric solid tumors and in vivo survival of xenografted immunodeficient NSG mice.
Chu Y, Nayyar G, Jiang S, Rosenblum JM, Soon-Shiong P, Safrit JT, Lee DA, Cairo MS
J Immunother Cancer
May 20, 2021Use of belatacept as alternative graft vs host disease prophylaxis in pediatric allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
Wright M, Rangarajan H, Abu-Arja R, Auletta JJ, Lee D, Polishchuk V, Pai V, Taylor K, Bajwa RPS
Pediatr Transplant
March 25, 2021Natural killer cell therapy for hematologic malignancies: successes, challenges, and the future.
Lamb MG, Rangarajan HG, Tullius BP, Lee DA
Stem Cell Res Ther
January 1, 2021Adoptive Natural Killer Cell Immunotherapy for Canine Osteosarcoma.
Kisseberth WC, Lee DA
Front Vet Sci
October 1, 2020Novel cytokine-antibody fusion protein, N-820, to enhance the functions of ex vivo expanded natural killer cells against Burkitt lymphoma.
Chu Y, Nayyar G, Kham Su N, Rosenblum JM, Soon-Shiong P, Lee J, Safrit JT, Barth M, Lee D, Cairo MS
J Immunother Cancer
October 1, 2020Genetic and epigenetic modification of human primary NK cells for enhanced antitumor activity.
Naeimi Kararoudi M, Tullius BP, Chakraravarti N, Pomeroy EJ, Moriarity BS, Beland K, Colamartino ABL, Haddad E, Chu Y, Cairo MS, Lee DA
Semin Hematol
April 14, 2020Investigation of donor KIR content and matching in children undergoing hematopoietic cell transplantation for acute leukemia.
Verneris MR, Miller JS, Hsu KC, Wang T, Sees JA, Paczesny S, Rangarajan H, Lee DA, Spellman SR, Lee SJ
Blood Adv
April 14, 2020Fc-engineered anti-CD33 monoclonal antibody potentiates cytotoxicity of membrane-bound interleukin-21 expanded natural killer cells in acute myeloid leukemia.
Mani R, Rajgolikar G, Nunes J, Zapolnik K, Wasmuth R, Mo X, Byrd JC, Lee DA, Muthusamy N, Vasu S
Cytotherapy
April 8, 2020Evaluation of serum-free media formulations in feeder cell-stimulated expansion of natural killer cells.
Moseman JE, Foltz JA, Sorathia K, Heipertz EL, Lee DA
Cytotherapy