{"id":1227,"date":"2022-10-14T20:42:09","date_gmt":"2022-10-14T20:42:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bcchrmicro.wpengine.com\/?page_id=2"},"modified":"2026-05-15T19:54:54","modified_gmt":"2026-05-15T19:54:54","slug":"home","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.bcchr.ca\/levingslab\/","title":{"rendered":"Home"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Levings Lab<\/h1>

We envision a world where people benefit from the power of the immune system to prevent and treat transplant rejection and autoimmune disease.<\/p><\/a><\/div>\n

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Learn more about our philosophy and team<\/h2>

We strive for inclusive excellence. This research group will foster an environment in which all feel comfortable, are able to learn and contribute to the team\u2019s goal, as well as advance towards individual career goals.<\/p>

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Vision<\/h2>

A world where people benefit from the power of the immune system to prevent and treat transplant rejection and autoimmune disease.<\/p>

Mission<\/h2>

We need better treatment options for diseases caused by overactive immune responses. Inspired by natural biological processes and motivated by people in need, we develop new therapies that harness the immunomodulatory properties of regulatory T cells. We take a collaborative approach and create a stimulating and supportive training environment that spans career stages. We are a passionate, curious and diverse group of scientists having fun doing something meaningful.<\/p>

Levings Lab Research Overview<\/h2>

Our immune system is actively regulated so that, while it is fighting off foreign\/dangerous substances, it does not react to our own cells or harmless materials. This balancing act of attack\u00a0vs<\/em>\u00a0ignore is called immune tolerance. Lack of immune tolerance causes many chronic conditions, such as autoimmune disease and transplant rejection. At present, the only treatment is life-long treatment with immunosuppressive drugs that suppress all immune responses and put patients at risk for infection and even cancer \u2013 often without controlling the underlying disease.\u00a0It is crucial to find new therapies to mitigate the need for non-specific immunosuppression.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>

My research focuses on immune cells called T regulatory cells (Tregs) that are central to immune tolerance and that are a very promising new therapeutic tool. To exploit the natural capacity of Tregs to induce immune tolerance, and to design effective therapies to restore immune tolerance in patients with immune-mediated disease, we need to define how, when and where Tregs function in the body.<\/p>

My research program has 3 major themes that aim to (i) build on our recent discoveries to understand Treg biology and (ii) apply that knowledge to develop and assess treatments designed to manipulate immune tolerance. My work integrates lab and clinical studies, applies advanced methods in the context of transplant rejection and autoimmunity, and creates outputs with broad relevance for chronic immune-mediated diseases.<\/p>

Theme 1<\/strong>: Understanding the molecular and cellular biology of Tregs.\u00a0<\/em>We are working on defining the unique mechanisms that control Treg function. The aim of this work is to discover new therapeutic targets and understand how Tregs can be manipulated to optimize their effectiveness as a cell-based therapy.<\/p>

Theme 2<\/strong>: To conduct first-in-man clinical trials of Treg therapy in transplantation. <\/em>We have developed two approaches to generate therapeutic Tregs. As part of national networks, and with industry support, we now aim to test these approaches as a method to reduce rejection in humans undergoing transplantation of hematopoietic stem cells or a solid organ.<\/p>

Theme 3<\/strong>: Clinical implementation of standardized immune monitoring. <\/em>Assessing the effectiveness of immune therapies requires the transfer of methods and assays from research labs to clinical immunology labs. We are implementing this approach across Canada and developing platforms using standardized methodology to measure immunity in patient cohorts and clinical trials.<\/p>

Specific projects currently on-going include:<\/h2>