Antigen cross-presentation and cytotoxic T cell activation are crucial components of anti-tumor and anti-viral immune responses. Their implementation into cancer vaccines has critical   value. Effective cancer vaccines should not only induce strong and durable T cell responses, but also modulate suppressive and stimulatory factors in the tumor microenvironment. 
In this project, we aim to improve immunotherapeutic vaccination approaches in murine tumor models, with a specific focus on different pathways of dendritic cell licensing, chemokine receptor modulation as well as in the context of checkpoint inhibitor therapy. For this, we collaborate closely with Prof. Dr. Christian Kurts (Institute for Molecular Medicine and Experimental Immunology, Bonn).

Together with Prof. Katrin Paeschke (Medical Clinic III, Bonn), we further investigate the effect of G-quadruplexes on different immune cell subsets, their association with treatment outcome and their potential role as a predictive marker in different tumor entities.