Karolina Palucka, M.D., Ph.D.
Professor, Director, JAX Cancer Center, Edison T. Liu Endowed Chair in Cancer Research
Conducts research to understand how vaccines work and to define precisely the immune mechanisms that underlie vaccination, with a focus on cancer immunotherapies.
My laboratory specializes in human immunology with a focus on experimental immunotherapy. We have pioneered the development of dendritic cell-based vaccines for patients with cancer or HIV, and I am very interested in understanding how vaccines work and precisely defining the immune mechanisms that underpin successful vaccination. We apply cutting-edge genomic approaches that offer unprecedented insights into the inner workings of immune cells (single-cell genomics, hybrid sequencing and long RNA reads).This knowledge can catalyze the discovery and development of novel immunotherapies,including vaccines that target cancer.
Highlighted Publication
Wu TC, Xu K, Martinek J, Young RR, Banchereau R, George J, Turner J, Kim KI, Zurawski S, Wang X, Blankenship D, Brookes HM, Marches F, Obermoser G, Lavecchio E, Levin MK, Bae S, Chung CH, Smith JL, Cepika AM, Oxley KL, Snipes GJ, Banchereau J, Pascual V, O’Shaughnessy J, Palucka K. IL-1 receptor antagonist controls transcriptional signature of inflammation in patients with metastatic breast cancer. Cancer Res. 2018 Sept 15; 78(18): 5243-5258. doi: 10.1158/0008-5472.CAN-18-0413. PubMed PMID: 30012670.
Commentary by Charles Dinarello
View on Cancer Research Website
Education and experience
Education
1993
Ph.D., hematology and immunology
Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
1988
Boards, internal medicine and oncology
Warsaw Medical Academy, Warsaw, Poland
1984
M.D., medical studies
Warsaw Medical Academy, Warsaw, Poland
Experience
2014-
Professor and Associate Director, Cancer Immunology, The Jackson Laboratory for Genomic Medicine, Farmington, CT
2012-2014
Director, Ralph M. Steinman Center for Cancer Vaccines, BIIR, Dallas, Texas
2011-
Investigator, ANRS/INSERM Unit #955 – Vaccine Research Institute
2009-
Professor, Department of Gene & Cell Medicine, Mt. Sinai School of Medicine, New York, NY
2009-2014
Adjunct Professor, Department of Biomedical Studies, Baylor College of Dentistry, Dallas, TX
2008-2014
Investigator, INSERM Unit 899 – Center for Human Vaccines, Dallas, TX
2005-2014
Adjunct Professor, Institute of Biomedical Studies, Baylor University, Waco, TX
2004-2014
Michael A.E. Ramsay Chair of Cancer Immunology Research, Baylor Foundation, Baylor Health Care System, Dallas, Texas
2004-2008
Scientific Co-Founder, ODC Therapy, Inc.
2002-
Investigator, Baylor Institute for Immunology Research, Dallas, Texas
2000-2002
Associate Investigator, Baylor Institute for Immunology Research, Dallas, Texas
1999-2000
Assistant Investigator, Baylor Institute for Immunology Research, Dallas, Texas
1998-1999
Senior Research Associate, Baylor Institute for Immunology Research, Dallas, Texas
1996-1998
Senior Postdoctoral Fellow, Hospital Pitie-Salpetriere, Immunology Laboratory, Paris, France
1993-1996
Postdoctoral Fellow, Karolinska Hospital, Department of Medicine, Hematology Laboratory, Stockholm, Sweden
1993-1994
Consultant, Karolinska Hospital, Department of Pathology, Hematology Laboratory, Stockholm, Sweden
1989-1993
Intern/Resident, Medical Oncology, Maria Sklodowska Curie Memorial Oncology Institute, Warsaw, Poland
1985-1989
Intern/Resident, Medical Oncology, Maria Sklodowska Curie Memorial Oncology Institute, Warsaw, Poland
Grants, Honors, and Accomplishments
2011
Career Award for Important Contribution to Tumor
Immunotherapy, European Academy of Tumor Immunology
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Research HighlightApril 23, 2024Investigating age-related immune dysfunction in lung epithelial cells
With $13 million in renewed support, Karolina Palucka will further study how aging affects airway epithelial cells’ efficiency in combating viral infections. -
Press ReleaseNovember 25, 2021Palucka Named Endowed Chair
Jackson Laboratory Professor Karolina Palucka, M.D., Ph.D., has been appointed as the first chairholder of the Laboratory’s Edison T. Liu Endowed Chair in Cancer Research. -
Research HighlightJuly 22, 2021The next generation of cancer immunotherapies
Cancer cells have significant differences from normal cells, and the differences can serve as treatment targets. Recent progress in immuno-oncology, which leverages our own immune systems to kill cancer cells, has provided a powerful new clinical option. -
Search MagazineApril 11, 2019Tipping the balance in the fight against cancer
JAX Professor Karolina Palucka is seeking new ways to harness the body's natural defenses against cancer.
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Research HighlightApril 27, 2022Researching innate immune cells and metastatic cancer
Using sophisticated labeling methods, a team led by Professor Karolina Palucka, M.D., Ph.D., and Jan Martinek, Ph.D., analyzed patient samples of metastatic melanoma for further insight into how cancer cells are able to escape immune response and grow elsewhere in the body. -
Search MagazineOctober 19, 2021Five ways scientists are taking the fight to cancer
In this article, we examine the different ways cancer escalates the conflicts within our bodies, and how scientists are leveraging the incredible power of genetics and genomics to disarm it. -
Research HighlightMay 05, 2021New research examines why metastatic melanoma spreads
New research done by a JAX researcher suggests that certain cells can act as a biomarker for metastatic melanoma as well as provide a potential therapeutic target to block metastatic spread. -
Press ReleaseSeptember 21, 2018New way to target advanced breast cancers
New research shows that a cytokine signature found in certain kinds of breast cancer cells can not only serve as a diagnostic tool for HER2-negative cancers but also offer an effective treatment target.