Laboratory of Immunology

Immunology research news, future?

Scientific progress in the area of immunology and immunotherapy provides more and more opportunities to use the knowledge for treatment of cancer. We have worked for many years in this area, and we are the only group of cancer immunology scientists in Lithuania having the best qualified specialists. We become more relevant to cancer patients and the doctors that treat them.

Research areas:

  • Cancer Immunology:
    • Immunomonitoring of cancer patients.
    • Determination of immune biomarkers and prediction of anti-cancer treatment effectiveness.
    • Researches of immunogenicity and resistance of the tumor microenvironment.
  • Cancer immunotherapy:
    • Research of anti-cancer immunotherapy possibilities.
    • Researches of prognostic and predictive molecular markers with immunotherapy autologous dendritic cell vaccines.
  • Cell technologies:
    • Researches of increasing of the efficiency of dendritic cell vaccines.
    • Development and researches of anticancer vaccines.
  • Infertility Immunology:
    • Research on the cell populations in uterus endothelium and blood, related to immunological infertility in women.

In Vitro Diagnostics (IVD)
Laboratory of Immunology offers commercial flow cytometric analysis of cells of various origin, with accordance to customer’s specification. Laboratory is utilizing an accredited BD LSR II cytometer equipped with 488nm – octagon, 405nm – digon and 633 nm – digon optical setup. Specialists are medical biologists and researchers with years of experience in cell acquisition and analysis (BD Diva, FlowJo). The staff is particularly experienced with immune cell, tumor cell and stem cell phenotyping, but welcomes new challenges.
Educational work

Researchers of Laboratory of Immunology are involved in teaching in academia. There are currently 3 lecturers in the group: Prof. V. Pašukonienė, Assoc.Prof A. Mlynska and Assoc.Prof. J.A.Kraśko,teaching 6 courses at Vilnius University and Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (Vilnius Tech):

  1. Vilnius Tech: Cell technologies (Biotechnology graduate), V. Pašukoninė, J.A.Kraśko
  2. Vilnius Tech: GMP in manufacturing of biological products (Bioengineering graduate), J.A. Kraśko
  3. Vilnius Tech: Immunotechnology (Nanobiotechnology graduate), A.Mlynska
  4. Vilnius University: Molecular mechanisms of immunological pathologies (Molecular biology graduate), A.Mlynska
  5. Vilnius Tech: Bioethics (Bioengineering undergraduate), V. Pašukinienė
  6. Vilnius Tech: Basic Immunology (Bioengineering undergraduate), A.Mlynska
Projects:
  1. Exploring the molecular mechanisms behind the effects of physical exercise on breast cancer prevention (CancerBeat) | EEA Grants” 2021 (A. Mlynska, V pašukonienė)
  2. „Autologinių dendritinių ląstelių preparatų imunoterapinio poveikio berecidyvinio kiaušidžio vėžio periodo trukmei tyrimas“ (2018-2021).
  3. „Imunomodeliavimas nevaisingumo diagnostikai ir gydymui” (2019-2022).
  4. Mokslininkų grupių projektas “Elektrochemoterapijos bei jos kombinacijos su dendritinių ląstelių vakcinacija įtaka pelių navikų pašalinimui ir imuninio atsako formavimui” (2019-2022). JIMC/ VGTU/NVI. N.Dobrovolskienė, K.Žilionytė
  5. Podoktorantūros studijų projektas “Transkriptomine ir histologine analize pagrįsto įrankio, skirto vėžio imuniniam subtipavimui ir imunoterapijos strategijos individualizavimui, kūrimas” (2020-2022).A.Mlynska
  6. Studentų praktikos projektas “Kamieniškumą slopinančių junginių įtaka storosios žarnos vėžio ląstelių imunomoduliuojančioms savybėms” (2020-2021). A.Mlynska
  7. “Rekombinaninio baltymo priešvėžinių savybių tyrimas in vitro” (2019-2020)
  8. Immunomodulating properties of bacteriophage-derived dsRNA of different size and their use as vaccine adjuvants (2016-2018, Head V. Pašukonienė).
  9.  “New prodrug activation systems for cancer genotherapies” of the national program “Healthy Aging” as partners.. (2015-2018, Head J. Urbonavičius, Vilnius University).
  10. Advanced therapies medical preparations, modulating the immune system, for treatment of cancer. (2017 -2019, Head V. Pašukonienė).
  11. Research of anti-cancer effectiveness of dendritic cells differentiated in vitro and matured using tumor destruction products in vivo in the models of experimental animals. (2017 -2021, Head V. Pašukonienė).
Publications:

2021

  1. Zaleskis G,Garberyte S, Pavliukeviciene B, Krasko JA, Skapas M, Talaikis M, Darinskas A, Zibutyte L, Pasukoniene V. Comparative Evaluation of Cellular Uptake of Free and Liposomal Doxorubicin Following Short Term Exposure. Anticancer Res. 2021 May;41(5):2363-2370. doi: 10.21873/anticanres.15011. (IF=1,994)
  2. Zaleskis G, Bosas P, Ulys A, Dabkevičiene D, Dobrovolskiene N, Hudson BA, Pašukoniene V. A refinement of clinical tumour marker monitoring - why not use an inverse value of doubling time? Med Princ Pract. 2021 Mar 19. doi: 10.1159/000515977. (IF=1,295)
  3. Laura Korsakova, Jan Aleksander Kraśko, Edgaras Stankevičius. Metabolic-targeted combination therapy with dichloroacetate and metformin suppresses glioblastoma cell line growth in vitro and in vivo. In vivo, 2021 Jan-Feb;35(1):341-348. doi: 10.21873/invivo.12265 (IF=1,541)
  4. Bosas P, Zaleskis G, Dabkeviciene D, Dobrovolskiene N, Mlynska A, Ulys A, Tikuisis R, Pasukoniene V, Jarmalaitė S, Jankevicius F. Immunophenotype rearrangement in response to tumor excision may be related to the risk of biochemical recurrence in prostate cancer patients.  Journal of Clinical Medicine. 2021; 10(16):3709: 1-15. doi: 10.3390/jcm10163709
  5. Korsakova L, Krasko JA, Stankevicius E. Metabolic-targeted Combination Therapy With Dichloroacetate and Metformin Suppresses Glioblastoma Cell Line Growth In Vitro and In Vivo. In Vivo. 2021; 35(1): 341-348. doi: 10.21873/invivo.12265
  6. Maciulaitis J, Miskiniene M, Rekštytė S, Bratchikov M, Darinskas A, Simbelyte A, Daunoras G, Laurinaviciene A, Laurinavicius A, Gudas R, Malinauskas M, Maciulaitis R. Osteochondral Repair and Electromechanical Evaluation of Custom 3D Scaffold Microstructured by Direct Laser Writing Lithography. Cartilage. 2021, 13(2): 615-625. https://doi.org/10.1177/1947603519847745
  7. Zaleskis G, Pasukoniene V, Characiejus D, Urbonas V. Do the benefits of being a smoker hint at the existence of PD-1/PD-L1 sensitizers for patients on single-agent immunotherapy? Journal for ImmunoTherapy of Cancer. 2021; 9(8): 1-4. doi:10 1136/jitc-2021-003191

2020

  1. Mlynska A, Vaisnore R, Rafanavicius V, Jocys S, Janeiko J, Petrauskyte M, Bijeikis S, Cimmperman P, Intaite J, Zilionyte K, Barakauskiene A, Meskauskas R, Paberale E, Pasukoniene V. A gene signature for immune subtyping of desert, excluded, and inflamed ovarian tumors. American Journal of Reproductive Immunology. 2020;84:e13244. (IF=2,916)

  2. Gintaras Zaleskis, Sima Garberytė, Božena Pavliukevičienė, Gintaras Valinčius, Dainius Characiejus, Mykolas Mauricas, Jan Aleksander Kraśko, Karolina Žilionytė, Margarita Žvirblė, Vita Pašukonienė. Doxorubicin uptake in ascitic lymphoma model: resistance or curability is governed by tumor cell density and prolonged drug retention. J Cancer. 2020 Sep 19;11(22):6497-6506. doi: 10.7150/jca.46066 (IF=3,182)
  3. Skeberdytė A, Sarapinienė I, Krasko JA, Barakauskienė A, Žilionytė K, Prokarenkaitė R, Sužiedėlis K, Bukelskienė V, Jarmalaitė S. Salinomycin and Dichloroacetate Synergistically Inhibit Lewis Lung Carcinoma Cell Proliferation, Tumor Growth and Metastasis. Biochem Biophys Res Commun. 2020 Jan 16. (IF=2,705)
  4. Bosas P, Zaleskis G, Pasukoniene V, Jankevicius F. Letter to the Editor: No immunophenotyping in peripheral blood of prostate cancer patients treated with neoadjuvant Rituximab? J Transl Med. 2020 Sep 1;18(1):333. doi: 10.1186/s12967-020-02496-5 (IF=4,197)

2019

  1. Mlynska A, Salciuniene G, Zilionyte K, Garberyte S, Strioga M, Intaite B, Barakauskiene A, Lazzari G, Dobrovolskiene N, Krasko JA, Pasukoniene V. Chemokine profiling in serum from patients with ovarian cancer reveals candidate biomarkers for recurrence and immune infiltration. Oncol Rep. 2019 Feb;41(2):1238-1252. doi: 10.3892/or.2018.6886. (IF=3,041)

  2. Maciulaitis J, Miskiniene M, Rekštytė S, Bratchikov M, Darinskas A, Simbelyte A, Daunoras G, Laurinaviciene A, Laurinavicius A, Gudas R, Malinauskas M, Maciulaitis R. Osteochondral Repair and Electromechanical Evaluation of Custom 3D Scaffold Microstructured by Direct Laser Writing Lithography. Cartilage. 2019 May 9:1947603519847745. doi: 10.1177/1947603519847745. (IF=2,961)
  3. Kazlauskas A, Darinskas A, Meškys R, Tamašauskas A, Urbonavičius J. Isocytosine deaminase Vcz as a novel tool for the prodrug cancer therapy. BMC Cancer. 2019 Mar 4;19(1):197. doi: 10.1186/s12885-019-5409-7. (IF=2,933)
  4. Michalek J, Vrablikova A, Darinskas A, Lukac L,  Prucha J, Skopalik J, Travnik J, Cibulka M, Dudasova Z. Stromal vascular fraction cell therapy for osteoarthritis in elderly: Multicenter case-control study. J Clin Orthop Trauma. 2019 Jan-Feb; 10(1): 76–80. doi: 10.1016/j.jcot.2018.11.010. (IF=0.585)

2018

  1. Dobrovolskienė N, Pašukonienė V, Darinskas A, Kraśko JA, Žilionytė K, Mlynska A, Gudlevičienė Ž, Mišeikytė-Kaubrienė E, Schijns V, Lubitz W, Kudela P, Strioga M. Tumor lysate-loaded Bacterial Ghosts as a tool for optimized production of therapeutic dendritic cell-based cancer vaccines. Vaccine. 2018 Jul 5;36(29):4171-4180. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2018.06.016. (IF=3,269)

  2. Kraśko JA, Žilionytė K, Darinskas A, Dobrovolskienė N, Mlynska A, Riabceva S, Zalutsky I, Derevyanko M, Kulchitsky V, Karaman O, Fedosova N, Symchych TV, Didenko G, Chekhun V, Strioga M, Pašukonienė V. Post-operative unadjuvanted therapeutic xenovaccination with chicken whole embryo vaccine suppresses distant micrometastases and prolongs survival in a murine Lewis lung carcinoma model. Oncol Lett. 2018 Apr;15(4):5098-5104. doi: 10.3892/ol.2018.7950. (IF=1,871)
  3. Mlynska A, Povilaityte E, Zemleckaite I, Zilionyte K, Strioga M, Krasko J, Dobrovolskiene N, Peng MW, Intaite B, Pasukoniene V. Platinum sensitivity of ovarian cancer cells does not influence their ability to induce M2-type macrophage polarization. Am J Reprod Immunol. 2018 Sep;80(3):e12996. doi: 10.1111/aji.12996. (IF=3,091)
  4. Skeberdytė A, Sarapinienė I, Aleksander-Krasko J, Stankevičius V, Sužiedėlis K, Jarmalaitė S. Dichloroacetate and salinomycin exert a synergistic cytotoxic effect in colorectal cancer cell lines. Sci Rep. 2018 Dec 10;8(1):17744. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-35815-4. (IF=4,011)

2017

  1. Krasko JA, Zilionyte K, Darinskas A, Strioga M, Rjabceva S, Zalutsky I, Derevyanko M, Kulchitsky V, Lubitz W, KudelaP, Miseikyte-Kaubriene E, Karaman O, Didenko H, Potebnya H, Chekhun V, Pasukoniene V. Bacterial ghosts as adjuvants in syngeneic tumour cell lysate-based anticancer vaccination in a murine lung carcinoma model. Oncol Rep. 2017 Jan;37(1):171-178. doi: 10.3892/or.2016.5252. (IF=3,417)
  2. Michalek J, Hezova R, Turanek-Knotigova P, Gabkova J, Strioga M, Lubitz W, Kudela P. Oncolysate-loaded Escherichia coli bacterial ghosts enhance the stimulatory capacity of human dendritic cells. Cancer Immunol Immunother. 2017 Feb;66(2):149-159. doi: 10.1007/s00262-016-1932-4. (IF=4,225)
  3. Stankevicius V, Vasauskas G, Rynkeviciene R, Venius J, Pasukoniene V, Aleknavicius E, Suziedelis K. Microenvironment and Dose-Delivery-Dependent Response after Exposure to Ionizing Radiation in Human Colorectal Cancer Cell Lines. Radiat Res. 2017 Sep;188(3):291-302. doi: 10.1667/RR14658.1. (IF=2,530)
  4. Noreikaitė A, Antanavičiūtė I, Mikalayeva V, Darinskas A, Tamulevičius T, Adomavičiūtė E, Šimatonis L, Akramienė D, Stankevičius E. Scaffold design for artificial tissue with bone marrow stem cells. Medicina (Kaunas). 2017;53(3):203-210. doi: 10.1016/j.medici.2017.07.001. (IF=1,429)

2016

  1. Kundrotas G, Gasperskaja E, Slapsyte G, Gudleviciene Z, Krasko J, Stumbryte A, Liudkeviciene R. Identity, proliferation capacity, genomic stability and novel senescence markers of mesenchymal stem cells isolated from low volume of human bone marrow. Oncotarget. 2016 Mar 8;7(10):10788-802. doi: 10.18632/oncotarget.7456. (IF=5,168)
  2. Michalek J, Hezova R, Turanek-Knötigova P, Gabkova J, Strioga M, Lubitz W, Kudela P. Oncolysate-loaded Escherichia coli bacterial ghosts enhance the stimulatory capacity of human dendritic cells. Cancer Immunology, Immunotherapy. 2016; 1-11. (IF=4,711)
  3. Noreikaite A, Antanaviciute I, Mikalayeva V, Darinskas A, Tamulevicius T, Adomaviciute E, Šimatonis L, Akramiene D, Stankevicius E. Scaffold design for artificial tissue with bone marrow stem cells. Medicina (Kaunas). 2016; 52(5):335–342. (IF=0,802)

2015

  1. Michalek J, Moster R, Lukac L, Proefrock K, Petrasovic M, Rybar J, Capkova M, Chaloupka A, Darinskas A, Michalek J Sr, Kristek J, Travnik J, Jabandziev P, Cibulka M, Holek M, Jurik M, Skopalik J, Kristkova Z, Dudasova Z. Autologous adipose tissue-derived stromal vascular fraction cells application in patients with osteoarthritis. Cell Transplant. 2015. doi: 10.3727/096368915X686760. [Epub ahead of print] (IF=3,427)
  2. Liubavičiūtė A, Kraśko JA, Mlynska A, Lagzdina J, Sužiedėlis K, Pašukonienė V. Evaluation of low-dose proton beam radiation efficiency in MIA PaCa-2 pancreatic cancer cell line vitality and H2AX formation. Medicina (Kaunas). 2015 Nov;51(5):302-6. doi: 10.1016/j.medici.2015. (IF=0,609)
  3. Savelkoul HF, Ferro VA, Strioga MM, Schijns VE. Choice and design of adjuvants for parenteral and mucosal vaccines. Vaccines (Basel). 2015 Mar 5;3(1):148-71. doi: 10.3390/vaccines3010148. (IF=3,413)
  4. Dobrovolskienė NT, Cicėnas S, Kazlauskaitė N, Mišeikytė-Kaubrienė E, Krasko JA, Ostapenko V, Pašukonienė V, Strioga MM. CD8(high)CD57(+) T-cell population as an independent predictor of response to chemoradiation therapy in extensive-stage small cell lung cancer.  Lung Cancer. 2015 Nov;90(2):326-33. doi: 10.1016/j.lungcan.2015.08.001. (IF=3,767)
  5. Mačiulaitis J, Deveikytė M, Rekštytė S, Bratchikov M, Darinskas A, Šimbelytė A, Daunoras G, Laurinavičienė A, Laurinavičius A, Gudas R, Malinauskas M, Mačiulaitis R. Preclinical study of SZ2080 material 3D microstructured scaffolds for cartilage tissue engineering made by femtosecond direct laser writing lithography. Biofabrication. 2015 Mar 23;7(1):015015. doi: 10.1088/1758-5090/7/1/015015. (IF=4,702)

2014

  1. Pašukonienė V, Mlynska A, Steponkienė S, Poderys V, Matulionytė M, Karabanovas V, Statkutė U, Purvinienė R, Kraśko JA, Jagminas A, Kurtinaitienė M, Strioga M, Rotomskis R. Accumulation and biological effects of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles in human pancreatic and ovarian cancer cells. Medicina (Kaunas). 2014;50(4):237-44. doi: 10.1016/j.medici.2014.09.009. (IF=0,494)
  2. Strioga MM, Darinskas A, Pasukoniene V, Mlynska A, Ostapenko V, Schijns V. Xenogeneic therapeutic cancer vaccines as breakers of immune tolerance for clinical application: to use or not to use? Vaccine. 2014 Jul 7;32(32):4015-24. doi: 10.1016/j.vaccine.2014.05.006. (IF=3,624)
  3. Schijns V, Tartour E, Michalek J, Stathopoulos A, Dobrovolskienė NT, Strioga MM. Immune adjuvants as critical guides directing immunity triggered by therapeutic cancer vaccines. Cytotherapy. 2014 Apr;16(4):427-39. doi: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2013.09.008. (IF=3,293)

2013

  1. Den Otter W, Van Moorselaar RJ, Jacobs JJ, Haar RT, Koten JW, Dobrowolski Z, Lipczynski W, Pašukonienė V, Characiejus D, Jankevičius F, Eidukevičius R, De Reijke TM. Role of marker lesion when applying intravesical instillations of IL-2 for non-muscle-invasive bladder cancer comparison of the therapeutic effects in two pilot studies. Anticancer Res. 2013 May;33(5):2099-105. (IF=1,872)
  2. Strioga MM, Felzmann T, Powell DJ Jr, Ostapenko V, Dobrovolskiene NT, Matuskova M, Michalek J, Schijns VE. Therapeutic dendritic cell-based cancer vaccines: the state of the art.  Crit Rev Immunol. 2013;33(6):489-547. (IF=3,889)
  3. Tanchot C, Terme M, Pere H, Tran T, Benhamouda N, Strioga M, Banissi C, Galluzzi L, Kroemer G, Tartour E. Tumor-infiltrating regulatory T cells: phenotype, role, mechanism of expansion in situ and clinical significance. Cancer Microenviron. 2013 Aug;6(2):147-57. doi: 10.1007/s12307-012-0122-y. (IF=2,680)
  4. Strioga M, Schijns V, Powell DJ Jr, Pasukoniene V, Dobrovolskiene N, Michalek J. Dendritic cells and their role in tumor immunosurveillance. Innate Immun. 2013 Feb;19(1):98-111. doi: 10.1177/1753425912449549. (IF=2,459)

2012

  1. Strioga M, Viswanathan S, Darinskas A, Slaby O, Michalek J. Same or not the same? Comparison of adipose tissue-derived versus bone marrow-derived mesenchymal stem and stromal cells.  Stem Cells Dev. 2012 Sep 20;21(14):2724-52. doi: 10.1089/scd.2011.0722. (IF=4,670)



Updated 2023-02-07 13:26