Our People
Principal Investigator
David A. Barbie, M.D.
Dr. David A. Barbie is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Thoracic Oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He obtained an A.B. from Harvard College in 1997 and M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 2002. Dr. Barbie was an HHMI Medical Fellow from 1999-2000 between his 2nd and 3rd years of medical school, working in Dr. Ed Harlow’s lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in 2005, followed by a year as medical chief resident in 2006. Dr. Barbie was a medical oncology fellow in the Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare program, which he completed in 2008. Following a post-doctoral fellowship in Dr. William Hahn’s lab at the Broad Institute, he received a tenure-track independent investigator position in 2010 at Dana-Farber, and a clinical position within the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology.
Dr. David A. Barbie is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at Harvard Medical School and Thoracic Oncologist at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. He obtained an A.B. from Harvard College in 1997 and M.D. from Harvard Medical School in 2002. Dr. Barbie was an HHMI Medical Fellow from 1999-2000 between his 2nd and 3rd years of medical school, working in Dr. Ed Harlow’s lab at Massachusetts General Hospital. He completed his residency in internal medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital in 2005, followed by a year as medical chief resident in 2006. Dr. Barbie was a medical oncology fellow in the Dana-Farber/Partners CancerCare program, which he completed in 2008. Following a post-doctoral fellowship in Dr. William Hahn’s lab at the Broad Institute, he received a tenure-track independent investigator position in 2010 at Dana-Farber, and a clinical position within the Lowe Center for Thoracic Oncology.
Postdoctoral Fellows
Israel Cañadas, Ph.D.
I am originally from Barcelona, Spain, where I completed my undergraduate studies, master and Ph.D in Biomedicine. My research interests include the study of intratumor heterogeneity and the impact on tumor immunity and the tumor microenvironment, as well as the development of ex vivo organoid culture platforms to identify novel mechanisms of response and resistance to cancer therapies, including immunotherapy.
I am originally from Barcelona, Spain, where I completed my undergraduate studies, master and Ph.D in Biomedicine. My research interests include the study of intratumor heterogeneity and the impact on tumor immunity and the tumor microenvironment, as well as the development of ex vivo organoid culture platforms to identify novel mechanisms of response and resistance to cancer therapies, including immunotherapy.
Shunsuke Kitajima, Ph.D.
I obtained a Ph.D in Graduate School of Medicine Kyoto University in Japan, and am have been working in Dr. Barbie lab since 2015. I focus on the biology of lung cancer with the KRAS mutation, which is an undruggable target. My goal is to identify susceptibilities of KRAS-mutant lung cancer that could be exploited for clinical applications.
I obtained a Ph.D in Graduate School of Medicine Kyoto University in Japan, and am have been working in Dr. Barbie lab since 2015. I focus on the biology of lung cancer with the KRAS mutation, which is an undruggable target. My goal is to identify susceptibilities of KRAS-mutant lung cancer that could be exploited for clinical applications.
Erik Knelson, M.D., Ph.D.
I study lung cancer brain metastasis, an area of dire unmet clinical need. I use cell lines, patient samples, ex vivo and mouse models of lung cancer brain metastasis to investigate novel targeted and immune therapeutic approaches.
I study lung cancer brain metastasis, an area of dire unmet clinical need. I use cell lines, patient samples, ex vivo and mouse models of lung cancer brain metastasis to investigate novel targeted and immune therapeutic approaches.
Navin Mahadevin, M.D., Ph.D.
My interest is the generation of immune responses in solid (lung) tumor microenvironments. I use cell lines, patient samples, and ex vivo models of lung cancer tumors to understand the tumor cell-intrinsic and extrinsic regulation of immune responses, with emphasis on myeloid antigen presenting cell and T cell interactions. I have also completed my Anatomic Pathology residency at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, with a fellowship in Molecular Pathology, and am interested in clinically applicable molecular, immune, and histologic/immunohistochemical characterization of solid tumors and their microenvironments.
My interest is the generation of immune responses in solid (lung) tumor microenvironments. I use cell lines, patient samples, and ex vivo models of lung cancer tumors to understand the tumor cell-intrinsic and extrinsic regulation of immune responses, with emphasis on myeloid antigen presenting cell and T cell interactions. I have also completed my Anatomic Pathology residency at the Brigham and Women’s Hospital, with a fellowship in Molecular Pathology, and am interested in clinically applicable molecular, immune, and histologic/immunohistochemical characterization of solid tumors and their microenvironments.
Jess Ritter, Ph.D.
I study triple negative breast cancer in Dr. Thanh Barbie’s laboratory, though I am fortunate to collaborate and work closely with Dr. Dave Barbie’s group. Using cell lines and patient samples I am investigating novel signaling pathways for the development of targeted therapies.
I study triple negative breast cancer in Dr. Thanh Barbie’s laboratory, though I am fortunate to collaborate and work closely with Dr. Dave Barbie’s group. Using cell lines and patient samples I am investigating novel signaling pathways for the development of targeted therapies.
Kartik Sehgal, M.D.
I am a clinical fellow in medical oncology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and research fellow in Barbie Lab. I study mechanisms of primary and secondary resistance to PD(L)-1 blockade using our lab’s 3D ex vivo mouse/patient derived organotypic tumor spheroids (MDOTS/PDOTS) model. Our goal is to develop rationale combination strategies of PD(L)-1 inhibitors and molecularly targeted therapies to prevent/combat therapeutic resistance.
I am a clinical fellow in medical oncology at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center and research fellow in Barbie Lab. I study mechanisms of primary and secondary resistance to PD(L)-1 blockade using our lab’s 3D ex vivo mouse/patient derived organotypic tumor spheroids (MDOTS/PDOTS) model. Our goal is to develop rationale combination strategies of PD(L)-1 inhibitors and molecularly targeted therapies to prevent/combat therapeutic resistance.
Ryohei Yoshida, M.D., Ph.D.
I study innate immune signaling in lung cancer and am also interested in the mechanisms of resistance in lung cancer harboring EGFR mutations.
I study innate immune signaling in lung cancer and am also interested in the mechanisms of resistance in lung cancer harboring EGFR mutations.
Graduate Students
Shriram Sundararaman, B.S.E.
I studied bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania and am a medical student at the University of Virginia. Currently, I am pursuing my research interests in oncology by using tools in our lab, such as 3-D ex vivo models of the tumor microenvironment, to study the innate immune response to cancer via the cGAS-STING pathway.
I studied bioengineering at the University of Pennsylvania and am a medical student at the University of Virginia. Currently, I am pursuing my research interests in oncology by using tools in our lab, such as 3-D ex vivo models of the tumor microenvironment, to study the innate immune response to cancer via the cGAS-STING pathway.
Lab Technicians
Tran Thai
Tran is our lab manager and the most helpful member in the Barbie lab. She is constantly running ELISAs and PCRs and also does all bacterial work in the Barbie lab. If you need to know the whereabouts of any lab equipment or reagents, look no further!
Tran is our lab manager and the most helpful member in the Barbie lab. She is constantly running ELISAs and PCRs and also does all bacterial work in the Barbie lab. If you need to know the whereabouts of any lab equipment or reagents, look no further!
Saemi Han, B.A.
Originally from Seoul, South Korea, I attended Dartmouth and majored in Biology. After taking a course in Immunology, I wanted to pursue my studies further and ended up writing a senior honors thesis at Dartmouth Hitchcock-Medical Center on a compound’s ability to suppress activation of macrophages in an autoimmune disease called Systemic Sclerosis. I’m hoping to put my immunology background and lab techniques to use in the Barbie lab by looking into targeted immunotherapies in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) and brain metastases that occurs from SCLC.
Originally from Seoul, South Korea, I attended Dartmouth and majored in Biology. After taking a course in Immunology, I wanted to pursue my studies further and ended up writing a senior honors thesis at Dartmouth Hitchcock-Medical Center on a compound’s ability to suppress activation of macrophages in an autoimmune disease called Systemic Sclerosis. I’m hoping to put my immunology background and lab techniques to use in the Barbie lab by looking into targeted immunotherapies in small-cell lung cancer (SCLC) and brain metastases that occurs from SCLC.
Brandon Piel, B.S.
My work can generally be divided into 2 parts: 1) generation of patient derived organotypic tumor spheroids (PDOTS) within microfluidic devices and 2) T cell proliferation for neoantigen presentation. PDOTS make great tumor models because they preserve the diverse tumor microenvironment found in the patients they come from. Since PDOTS incorporate a representative immune cell profile into their architecture, they are ideal for studying novel potential immunotherapies.
My work can generally be divided into 2 parts: 1) generation of patient derived organotypic tumor spheroids (PDOTS) within microfluidic devices and 2) T cell proliferation for neoantigen presentation. PDOTS make great tumor models because they preserve the diverse tumor microenvironment found in the patients they come from. Since PDOTS incorporate a representative immune cell profile into their architecture, they are ideal for studying novel potential immunotherapies.
Barbie Lab Alumni
Russ Jenkins, M.D, Ph.D
I am training to become a physician-scientist medical oncologist, studying novel ex vivo cancer models and cancer immunotherapy with a clinical focus in melanoma. I obtained my B.A. in Biology at the University of Virginia in 2002, followed by a 2 yr research fellowship at the NIH (2002-2004). I obtained my MD/PhD at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, SC (2004-2012). I completed my residency in Internal Medicine at MGH (2012-2014), and I recently completed my fellowship in medical oncology in the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center fellowship program working in Dr. David Barbie’s lab and clinically working in the Center for Melanoma at Massachusetts General Hospital. I began my post-doctoral training with Dr. David Barbie (DFCI) in July 2015, after completing my first year of clinical hematology-oncology training.
I am training to become a physician-scientist medical oncologist, studying novel ex vivo cancer models and cancer immunotherapy with a clinical focus in melanoma. I obtained my B.A. in Biology at the University of Virginia in 2002, followed by a 2 yr research fellowship at the NIH (2002-2004). I obtained my MD/PhD at the Medical University of South Carolina in Charleston, SC (2004-2012). I completed my residency in Internal Medicine at MGH (2012-2014), and I recently completed my fellowship in medical oncology in the Dana-Farber/Harvard Cancer Center fellowship program working in Dr. David Barbie’s lab and clinically working in the Center for Melanoma at Massachusetts General Hospital. I began my post-doctoral training with Dr. David Barbie (DFCI) in July 2015, after completing my first year of clinical hematology-oncology training.
Hideki Terai, M.D, Ph.D
I am a Medical Pulmonologist with an interest in lung cancer, especially in the development of novel therapeutic strategies for lung cancer patients. For my PhD research at Keio University in Japan, I focused on the mechanism of drug resistance in EGFR mutant lung cancer. From July 2014 to June 2017, I worked as a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. David Barbie’s lab and Dr. Peter Hammerman’s lab in DFCI. During this period, I also pursued drug resistance mechanisms with novel techniques, including CRISPR Cas9 technologies and Next Generation Sequencing.
I am a Medical Pulmonologist with an interest in lung cancer, especially in the development of novel therapeutic strategies for lung cancer patients. For my PhD research at Keio University in Japan, I focused on the mechanism of drug resistance in EGFR mutant lung cancer. From July 2014 to June 2017, I worked as a postdoctoral fellow in Dr. David Barbie’s lab and Dr. Peter Hammerman’s lab in DFCI. During this period, I also pursued drug resistance mechanisms with novel techniques, including CRISPR Cas9 technologies and Next Generation Sequencing.
Marco Campisi, M.S.
I received a undergraduate and master degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Politecnico di Torino (Polito) in Italy and am currently a Ph.D visiting student in a joint project between Polito-MIT and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
My project consists of developing physiologically relevant 3-D vascularized cancer models using microfluidic devices to study the biological interactions between endothelial cells and cancer spheroids, and the mechanisms of T cell infiltration into the tumor microenvironment. I am also interested in developing polymer nanoparticles as carriers for immunotherapies and cancer treatments.
I received a undergraduate and master degrees in Biomedical Engineering from Politecnico di Torino (Polito) in Italy and am currently a Ph.D visiting student in a joint project between Polito-MIT and Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
My project consists of developing physiologically relevant 3-D vascularized cancer models using microfluidic devices to study the biological interactions between endothelial cells and cancer spheroids, and the mechanisms of T cell infiltration into the tumor microenvironment. I am also interested in developing polymer nanoparticles as carriers for immunotherapies and cancer treatments.
Zehua Zhu, PhD
Shenghong Yang, PhD
Amir Aref, PhD
Hadrian Golay, MD
Rohit Thummalapalli, MD
Edmond Chan, MD
Shenghong Yang, PhD
Amir Aref, PhD
Hadrian Golay, MD
Rohit Thummalapalli, MD
Edmond Chan, MD