Jose R. Conejo Garcia MD, PhD

Born and educated as a physician in Spain, Conejo-Garcia’s career has evolved over the years to integrate very diverse disciplines in 4 different countries. His current research explores the biology of leukocytes of the myeloid lineage, which are co-opted by solid tumors to protect them from the immune system as a whole, rather than boosting protective immune responses. His laboratory is investigating and targeting the master regulators driving the transcriptional program behind the pathological expansion of these leukocytes in virtually all solid tumors. Several projects in the lab investigate how to target these immune cells by either eliminating them, re-programing their immunostimulatory potential, or using them as Trojan Horses to deliver therapeutic agents to the tumor microenvironment. In complementary studies, the lab investigates new intrinsic mechanisms promoting the unresponsiveness of anti-tumor T cells, as well as the influence of the genetic background in all these processes.