Dr Takanori Kitamura
Senior Lecturer
Contact details
Address
- Street
-
The Roslin Institute
Easter Bush Campus
Midlothian - City
- Post code
- EH25 9RG
Background
I graduated from Hokkaido University (Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine) in Japan in 2000. Subsequently, I completed a PhD study regarding diabetes in Hokkaido University in 2003. I then relocated to Kyoto University (Graduate School of Medicine) and worked as an assistant professor for 7 years. During this time I studied roles of myeloid cells in invasion and metastasis of colon cancer using mouse models. In 2010, I moved to Albert Einstein College of Medicine in NY, and studied macrophage promoting tumour metastasis in mouse models of breast cancer. In 2013, I relocated to MRC Centre for Reproductive Health, University of Edinburgh as a Chancellor’s fellow and started my own lab to study tumour immunology. I have been studying suppressive effects of tumour-associated macrophages on cytotoxic lymphocytes, in particular natural killer (NK) cells, using in vitro and mouse models of metastatic breast cancer. Since 2018, I also work at R(D)SVS to do a translational research focusing on tumour immunity in canine cancer.
Research summary
Solid tumours include a range of immune cells that promote tumour development such as regulatory T (Treg) cell, myeloid derived suppressor cell (MDSC), tumour-associated macrophage (TAM), and neutrophil (TAN). I am interested in their roles in metastatic tumour outgrowth and effects on anti-tumour immune reactions as well as efficacy of immunotherapy.
Current research interests
I have been studying molecular mechanisms behind macrophage mediated NK cell suppression in metastatic tumours using humanized in vitro assays and mouse models of breast cancer. This study aims to identify key factors that can be targeted to improve efficacy of NK cell infusion therapy. I am also studying immune cell profile in canine melanoma and sarcoma especially focusing on the status of CD8+ T cells and macrophages in it, which will provide important information for establishment of better immunotherapeutic strategies.-
Use of multi-color flow cytometry for canine immune cell characterization in cancer
(15 pages)
In:
PLoS ONE, vol. 18, pp. 1-15
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0279057
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Fluorogenic Granzyme A Substrates Enable Real‐Time Imaging of Adaptive Immune Cell Activity
In:
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202216142
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
Enzyme‐Activatable Chemokine Conjugates for In Vivo Targeting of Tumor‐Associated Macrophages
(7 pages)
In:
Angewandte Chemie International Edition, vol. 61
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202207508
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
A fluorogenic probe for granzyme B enables in-biopsy evaluation and screening of response to anticancer immunotherapies
In:
Nature Communications
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-022-29691-w
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Metastasis-associated macrophages constrain anti-tumor capability of natural killer cells in the metastatic site at least partially by membrane bound transforming growth factor
In:
Journal for immunotherapy of cancer, vol. 9
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1136/jitc-2020-001740
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (E-pub ahead of print) -
A Functional Chemiluminescent Probe for in vivo Imaging of Natural Killer Cell Activity against Tumours
In:
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.202011429
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Mammary tumor cells with high metastatic potential are hypersensitive to macrophage-derived HGF
(13 pages)
In:
Cancer Immunology Research, vol. 7, pp. 2052-2064
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1158/2326-6066.CIR-19-0234
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
A Fluorescent Activatable AND-Gate Chemokine CCL2 Enables in vivo Detection of Metastasis-Associated Macrophages
In:
Angewandte Chemie International Edition
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/anie.201910955
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Real time detection of in vitro tumor cell apoptosis induced by CD8+ T cells to study immune suppressive functions of tumor-infiltrating myeloid cells
In:
Journal of Visualized Experiments (JoVE)
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3791/58841
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Article (Published) -
Targeting macrophage-recruiting chemokines as a novel therapeutic strategy to prevent the progression of solid tumors
In:
Frontiers in Immunology, vol. 9, pp. 2629
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3389/fimmu.2018.02629
Research output: Contribution to Journal › Review article (Published)