NextGenNK faculties at InCheck kick-off
In early July, three NextGenNK researchers participated in the kick-off retreat for InCheck “Innate Immune Checkpoints in Cancer and Tissue Damage" in Heidelberg, Germany. InCheck’s focus is to uncover checkpoints in innate immune cells at the transcriptional, post- transcriptional, metabolic and cell-surface receptor levels, and to validate their functions in cancer and conditions of tissue damage.
The DFG-funded Research Training Group GRK 2727, InCheck, brings together projects on innate immune checkpoints focusing on Natural Killer (NK) cells and monocytes / macrophages led by Principal Investigators from the Medical Faculties Mannheim und Heidelberg. In these projects, PhD students will closely collaborate with MD students. The focus is on NK cells and monocytes / macrophages that function at the forefront of immune responses. It is expected that the obtained mechanistic knowledge will be instrumental for the design of innovative therapies of cancer and in conditions of tissue damage, where these checkpoints could be therapeutically blocked or enhanced, respectively.
In order to promote interdisciplinary interaction between basic and translational science, InCheck will support tandem collaborations of PhD and MD students, working in the same lab. Presentation of thesis results by the students at international conferences will further enhance the international visibility of InCheck. Renowned experts from Vienna University and Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, both prestigious institutions with a long-standing record in innate immunity, will greatly contribute to InCheck’s graduate education, as members of thesis advisory committees, as hosts for student lab-visits and during joint workshops.