Dr. Park’s research group investigates how commensal microbes residing in the intestine influence systemic immunity, with a particular focus on cancer immunity. Recent studies, including those from Dr. Park’s lab, suggest that the gut microbiome plays a critical role in modulating responses to cancer immunotherapy. The lab is particularly interested in the signaling and metabolic mechanisms that mediate long-range communication between gut microbes and the immune system within the tumor microenvironment (TME).
To explore these mechanisms, Dr. Park’s team examines how gut microbes regulate key immune components within the TME, the complex ecosystem that surrounds cancer cells. Their publications and preliminary findings indicate that gut commensals significantly shape the immune landscape in tumors, although the precise molecular and cellular processes remain poorly understood. By integrating gnotobiotic mouse models with a strong foundation in fundamental immunology, Dr. Park’s lab aims to uncover how commensal microbes and their metabolites modulate anti-tumor immunity in the context of cancer immunotherapy.
One major direction of Dr. Park’s research focuses on dissecting the signaling pathways through which specific gut microbes influence immune cells in the TME. The lab aims to identify signaling receptors and mediators that translate microbial cues into changes in tumor-infiltrating immune cells, such as the PD-L2/RGMb modulation reported in their previous work. Additionally, the lab investigates how these pathways affect T cell responses and explores whether commensal-dependent immune mechanisms also play a role in other disease settings, such as chronic viral infections.
A second research direction explores how the gut microbiome shapes the metabolomic landscape of the TME. Commensal microbes produce a diverse array of immunomodulatory molecules, including surface structures and extracellular metabolites, that can influence the differentiation and function of immune cells. While bacterial metabolites are known to circulate systemically and regulate anti-tumor responses, their presence and function within the TME remain largely unexplored. Dr. Park’s group is working to fill this gap by examining microbial metabolites—particularly lipids and glycerol derivatives—and their immunological effects in tumors. Using metabolomic approaches, the lab identifies and characterizes these metabolites with the long-term goal of engineering bacteria to produce therapeutic molecules that enhance anti-tumor immunity. The team is also developing delivery strategies to target these bacterial products to the TME.
Together, Dr. Park’s research aims to deepen our understanding of the interplay between the gut microbiome and cancer immunity and to inform the development of innovative microbial-based therapies.
Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA
Instructor - Immunology and Microbiome
2024
Harvard Medical School
Boston, MA
Postdoctoral Fellowship - Immunology and Microbiome
2023
The Rockefeller University
New York, NY
Postdoctoral Associate - Immunology
2017
Cornell University
New York, NY
Ph.D. - Immunology
2016
Yonsei University
Seoul, Korea
B.S. - Biochemistry
2009
Age-Associated Contraction of Tumor-Specific T Cells Impairs Antitumor Immunity.
Age-Associated Contraction of Tumor-Specific T Cells Impairs Antitumor Immunity. Cancer Immunol Res. 2024 Nov 04; 12(11):1525-1541.
PMID: 39186561
Formate Supplementation Enhances Antitumor CD8+ T-cell Fitness and Efficacy of PD-1 Blockade.
Formate Supplementation Enhances Antitumor CD8+ T-cell Fitness and Efficacy of PD-1 Blockade. Cancer Discov. 2023 12 12; 13(12):2566-2583.
PMID: 37728660
Metabolic modulation of mitochondrial mass during CD4+ T cell activation.
Metabolic modulation of mitochondrial mass during CD4+ T cell activation. Cell Chem Biol. 2023 09 21; 30(9):1064-1075.e8.
PMID: 37716347
Microbiota-dependent regulation of costimulatory and coinhibitory pathways via innate immune sensors and implications for immunotherapy.
Microbiota-dependent regulation of costimulatory and coinhibitory pathways via innate immune sensors and implications for immunotherapy. Exp Mol Med. 2023 09; 55(9):1913-1921.
PMID: 37696895
Publisher Correction: Targeting PD-L2-RGMb overcomes microbiome-related immunotherapy resistance.
Publisher Correction: Targeting PD-L2-RGMb overcomes microbiome-related immunotherapy resistance. Nature. 2023 Jun; 618(7966):E27.
PMID: 37264079
Targeting PD-L2-RGMb overcomes microbiome-related immunotherapy resistance.
Targeting PD-L2-RGMb overcomes microbiome-related immunotherapy resistance. Nature. 2023 05; 617(7960):377-385.
PMID: 37138075
Uncoupled glycerol-3-phosphate shuttle in kidney cancer reveals that cytosolic GPD is essential to support lipid synthesis.
Uncoupled glycerol-3-phosphate shuttle in kidney cancer reveals that cytosolic GPD is essential to support lipid synthesis. Mol Cell. 2023 04 20; 83(8):1340-1349.e7.
PMID: 37084714
The Selenoprotein MsrB1 Instructs Dendritic Cells to Induce T-Helper 1 Immune Responses.
The Selenoprotein MsrB1 Instructs Dendritic Cells to Induce T-Helper 1 Immune Responses. Antioxidants (Basel). 2020 Oct 20; 9(10).
PMID: 33092166
Role of non-classical T cells in skin immunity.
Role of non-classical T cells in skin immunity. Mol Immunol. 2018 11; 103:286-292.
PMID: 30343117
Lipid-Reactive T Cells in Immunological Disorders of the Lung.
Lipid-Reactive T Cells in Immunological Disorders of the Lung. Front Immunol. 2018; 9:2205.
PMID: 30319649