Erica Osta

Erica Osta is a predoctoral trainee under the mentorship of Tyler Curiel, MD, MPH. The Curiel research group focuses on elucidating the novel functions of tumor cell-intrinsic programmed death ligand 1 (PD-L1) on the immunopathogenesis of cancer. Cancer immunotherapy with immune checkpoint blockade (e.g., anti-PD-1, anti-PD-L1) has been highly successful in treating multiple types of cancer. Tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) are key biomarkers for response to immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) for cancer immunotherapy, however how exactly tumor cells control the trafficking of TILs that determine the efficacy of ICB remains vastly unexplored. Therefore, Erica’s training focuses on defining the tumor cell-intrinsic mechanisms that alter the immune tumor microenvironment, including soluble immunomodulators and TILs, and determine the efficacy of ICB.

Research Topic: Tumor cell-intrinsic PD-L1 alters tumor-infiltrating immune cells that determine immune checkpoint blockade efficacy