Leukemia niche – Hong Qian group

Our mission on research and education is to understand the role of mesenchymal niche in leukemia and tissue regeneration with the ultimate goal of identifying novel therapeutic strategies to improve treatment outcomes in patients with blood cancers. Meanwhile, we aim to build a nurturing niche for the team members to grow, while creating a supportive niche for our research projects.

Group photo taken from above.

Our research

The main challenge for successful treatment of myeloid malignancies, particularly, acute myeloid leukemia (AML) has been drug resistance resulting in treatment failure, relapse and leukemia progression, which ultimately leads to death. Thus, there is a great need for more effective therapies. Recent studies have suggested that the drug resistance is attributed to the persistence of leukemia-initiating stem cells (LSCs) that are protected by their microenvironment, the so-called niche, in bone marrow (BM). Thus, targeting the BM niche may offer new therapeutic opportunities to improve the efficacy of current therapy for leukemia. However, so far, we have limited knowledge about the critical molecular pathways mediating the protective interactions of LSCs with their niches in the BM and tissues outside BM, so-called extramedullary organs including skin and spleen. 

The primary aim of our research is to understand the role of leukemia niche in the development and treatment response of myeloid malignancies including CML and AML. The long-term goal is to identify new niche factors that can serve as novel therapeutic targets for more effective treatment of the diseases. We achieve this by using both primary patient samples and mouse models to characterize bone marrow mesenchymal niche with the help of advanced techniques including multi-colour flow cytometry, RNA-sequencing, confocal imaging, and in vivo fate-mapping. The functional and therapeutic impact of the niche factors on LSCs is tested by gene-editing, mouse models including patient-derived xenograft (PDX) mouse model, digital PCR, in vitro co-culture with mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) which are known to be critical for hematopoiesis. We will do this in collaboration with national and international experts in the field of stem cell niche and leukemia. We hope to translate the research findings into clinic in collaboration with multiple haematologists/scientists in Nordic countries.

While putting great efforts to uncover the niche contribution to myeloid leukemia, the group also aims to build a nourishing educational niche for all the team members to grow.

Open positions

We always want to get in touch with talented potential co-workers. If you are interested in doing research within our group, as a degree project or as a researcher, please contact the group leader Hong Qian.

Student and Postdoc Award

  1. The 56th ASH abstract achievement award to Pingnan Xiao (2014).
  2. The 58th ASH abstract achievement award to Makoto Kondo (2016).
  3. The Incyte Award to Monika Dolinska (2018).
  4. Travel award from International Stem Cell Research (ISSCR) to Lakshmi Sandhow (2018).
  5. Student award from Mayo Clinic for the 8th Mayo Clinic Symposium on Tumor Microenvironment and Cancer Therapeutics in Jacksonville, Florifa, USA (2018).
  6. The Incyte Award for hematological research to Huan Cai (2021)

Collaborations (major)

Sweden, Karolinska Institutet

Sweden, other 

  • Prof. Anders Blomqvist, Linköping University.
  • Prof. Marja Ekblom, Lund University.
  • Dr. Ulla Strömberg, Hematology Centrum, Uppsala University Hospital.

International

  • Nordic CML study group (NCMLSG).
  • Nordic society of pediatric hematology and oncology (NOPHO).
  • Prof. Nagahiro Minato, Kyoto University for MPN mouse model.
  • Prof. Satu Mustjoki, Hematology Centrum, Helsinki University Hospital, Finland.

Video to "Skin mesenchymal niches maintain and protect AML-initiating stem cells".

The group has revealed the previously unrecognized roles of skin mesenchymal niches in maintaining and protecting acute myeloid leukemia (AML) stem cells under steady state and during chemotherap. For the first time, the group has shown that the AML cells hidden in the skin tissue are highly enriched with leukemia-initiating stem cells even post-chemotherapy.

The Journal of experimental medicine 2023 220;10.

Publications

Selected publications

Funding

  • Wallenberg Institutet for Regenerative Medicine (WIRM).
  • Karolinska Institutet Research foundation (KI fonder).
  • KI Funding for Doctoral Education (KID funding).
  • The Swedish Cancer Society (Cancerfonden).
  • The Swedish Research Council (Vetenskapsrådet).
  • The Swedish Childhood Cancer Society (Barncancerfonden).
  • Radiumhemmets Forskningsfonder (The Cancer Research Foundations of Radiumhemmet).
  • Felix Mindus bidrag till leukemiforskningen.
  • Dr. Åke Olsson Foundation for hematological research.
  • Stiftelsen Clas Groschinskys Minnesfond.
  • The Incyte Nordic Grant for Hematological Research.
  • The Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation (KAW), PI: Qiang Pan-Hammarström, Co-PI: Petter Brodin, Lennart Hammarström, Hong Qian.
  • The Blue Sky Research Grant for Innovative Cancer Research.

Staff and contact

Group leader

All members of the group

Other people connected to the group

  • Reyes, Luck Javiera

Visiting address

Karolinska Institutet, Department of Medicine Huddinge, Medicinaren 25/Neo HERM plan 7 / HERM floor 7, Stockholm, - Select -, 142 57, Sweden

Postal address

Karolinska Institutet, Medicinaren 25/Neo HERM plan 7 / HERM floor 7, Stockholm, - Select -, 142 57, Sweden

Affiliated members

Marja Ekblom

Professor

Alumi

  • Pingnan Xiao, PhD student, 2012-2017
  • Monika Dolinska, PhD student, 2014-2019.
  • Lakshmi Sandhow, PhD student, 2015-2020.
  • Andranik Durguryan, Postdoc, 2013-2014.
  • Makoto Kondo, Postdoc, 2014-2017, currently assistant professor at Utah University, USA
  • Thibault Bouderlique, postdoc, 2015-2017
  • Letian Yang, Summer student in 2021, currently at KTH, Stockholm
  • Eleni Gelali, Johannis Klang, Alexandre Piccini, Master students, 2014 - 2015.
  • Yuchen Gao, Sanchari Choudhury, Moeen Ud-din, Leah Hernandez-Muñoz, master students, 2019-2020.
  • Jingyi Shen, Master student, 2020-2021
  • Marcus Chang, project student, 2021-2023
  • Juan Pablo Medina Giménez, postdoc, 2021-2022
  • Huan Cai, postdoc, 2020 – 2023, currently Associate Professor. Soochow University
Keywords:
Cancer and Oncology Drug Resistance Hematology Hematopoiesis, Extramedullary Hematopoietic Stem Cells Leukemia Mesenchymal Stem Cells Stem Cell Niche Show all
Content reviewer:
16-04-2025