Behnam Sadeghi

I am Senior Scientist and Head of the Translational Cell Therapy Research (TCR) Group at Karolinska Institutet (CLINTEC). My work focuses on the development and clinical translation of placenta-derived decidua stromal cells (DSCs) as an advanced immunomodulatory cell therapy platform.

My research background is rooted in transplantation immunobiology and chemotherapy-based conditioning models of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Over the past years, I have built a translational program that spans mechanistic immunology, preclinical toxicology, GMP process development, and early-phase clinical trials.

I have led the isolation, characterization, and clinical adaptation of DSCs, contributing to their first clinical applications in severe steroid-refractory acute GVHD, acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS), and other severe inflammatory complications. My work integrates immunology, cell biology, regulatory strategy, and clinical implementation, with the objective of developing scalable and clinically validated cell therapies for acute immune-mediated diseases with high unmet medical need.

My research interests focus on the translational development of cell-based and extracellular vesicle–based immunotherapies for severe inflammatory and immune-mediated diseases.

Specifically, I am interested in:

• Development and clinical translation of placenta-derived decidua stromal cells (DSCs) and other cell therapy platforms
• Immunomodulatory mechanisms of stromal cell therapies and cell-derived exosomes/extracellular vesicles
• Comparative biology of different cell sources (placenta, bone marrow, adipose tissue) and their therapeutic potency
• Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) and immune complications after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation
• Acute respiratory distress syndrome (ARDS) and cytokine-driven inflammatory syndromes
• GMP process development and scalable manufacturing of advanced therapy medicinal products (ATMPs)
• Clinical trial design and regulatory strategies for cell therapy products
• Biomarker-driven patient stratification in inflammatory diseases

My overall objective is to develop mechanistically grounded, regulatory-compliant, and clinically effective cell therapy strategies for acute high-mortality conditions with significant unmet medical need.

My teaching activities are closely integrated with my research in transplantation immunology and translational cell therapy.

I have supervised PhD students, postdoctoral fellows, research assistants, and visiting scientists in areas including graft-versus-host disease biology, stromal cell immunology, preclinical model development, and GMP-oriented cell production. My supervision emphasizes experimental design, critical data analysis, regulatory awareness, and translational thinking from bench to bedside.

I have contributed to teaching in immunology, cell therapy, and research methodology within the framework of Karolinska Institutet. Earlier in my career, I organized and delivered structured workshops and lectures on research methodology, project design, and scientific writing for medical students and junior researchers at Tehran University of Medical Sciences.

In addition, through my roles as Associate Editor and scientific reviewer, I actively contribute to academic mentorship and quality assurance in the fields of transplantation and cellular therapy.

My overall teaching philosophy is to train independent researchers who can combine mechanistic understanding with clinical relevance and regulatory awareness.