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		Search Text: Home/< Back ToThe Science/Stem Cell Allogeneic Transplantation
  Stem Cell Allogeneic Transplantation
    Current research in Stem Cell Transplantation (SCT) focuses on improving transplant outcome through immune manipulations using cell therapy and lymphocyte growth factors.
    On This Page
    
          John Barrett
  Austin Barrett, M.D.
          Senior Investigator
          Email
      Meet the Team
            Contact us
  Senior Investigator Research Interests
            
  Research Interests
              The Barrett group has carried out clinical trials in stem cell transplantation (SCT) as a treatment for leukemia for over 23 years at NIH. His current research in SCT focuses on improving transplant outcome through immune manipulations using cell therapy and lymphocyte growth factors. Stem cell transplantation offers the chance of cure for leukemia patients through a unique graft-versus-leukemia GVL effect conferred by an immune reaction of the donor graft against the patient’s leukemia. Unfortunately the GVL reaction often develops alongside an unwanted and potentially fatal graft-versus host disease (GVHD). GVHD can be controlled through reducing the immunity of the graft and while transplants for leukemia can now be performed with considerable safety, fatal viral infections and disease relapse still reduce the success of SCT as a treatment for leukemia.

Dr Barrett’s approach to improve SCT outcome is to generate in the laboratory immune cells from the donor that are capable of fighting viruses and leukemia without causing GVHD. This can be done at the time of transplant by taking lymphocytes from the donor and stimulating them with viral or leukemia antigens. Antigen specific lymphocytes can be expanded over a two week culture period and infused into the patient after transplant to boost their immunity against viruses and reduce the risk of leukemia relapse. A clinical trial demonstrating the safety of infusions of virus specific lymphocyte infusions to prevent multiple virus infections has been completed and a trial of leukemia specific T cell infusions is now being developed. Fully matched transplant donors cannot be found for every patient who needs a transplant. In this case a relative who is partially matched may serve as a donor. However harmful GVH reactions are a particular problem for such partial matched transplants. Dr. Barrett’s group is therefore exploring ways to prevent GVHD in mismatched SCT. Grafts can be made more tolerant by treatment with low doses of a lymphocyte growth factor called interleukin-2 (IL-2), and Dr. Barrett’s group has used IL-2 to mitigate otherwise dangerous GVH reactions in a transplant protocol where the donor is a half-matched family member. He is also investigating the ability of a cell therapy approach to treating GVHD with mesenchymal stromal cell (MSC) infusions, which can both suppress the harmful immune reaction and help repair tissues damaged by GVHD.

As a physician-scientist, Dr. Barrett also leads a basic science program to better understand the nature of the interaction of acute leukemias with the patient’s immune system. An emerging concept from this work is that leukemia cells develop multiple ways to switch off the immune response that might otherwise successfully eradicate the leukemia. Understanding these mechanisms of “immune editing” should lead to ways to re-establish immune control of the leukemia by combining standard chemotherapy with immunotherapy to boost the patients’ own anti-leukemia defenses and preventing relapse of the leukemia. Furthermore the group plans to develop a comprehensive knowledge of the antigens on leukemia cells that render them targets for immune attack. This is the basis for generating powerful leukemia-specific killer cells that could enhance the GVL response after transplant and eventually extend to the treatment of patients in remission from leukemia to prevent relapse of their disease.

Through this combined translational and clinical strategy, Dr. Barrett’s group is working toward optimizing the tremendous potential that stem cell transplantation holds in curing leukemia and other serious blood and bone marrow disorders.
  Featured Publications
                Inhibitors of ORAI1 Prevent Cytosolic Calcium-Associated Injury of Human Pancreatic Acinar Cells and Acute Pancreatitis in 3 Mouse Models.
            Authors:Wen L, Voronina S, Javed MA, Awais M, Szatmary P, Latawiec D, Chvanov M, Collier D, Huang W, Barrett J, Begg M, Stauderman K, Roos J, Grigoryev S, Ramos S, Rogers E, Whitten J, Velicelebi G, Dunn M, Tepikin AV, Criddle DN, Sutton R
                                                                                                                        
            Gastroenterology
      
                2015 Aug 01;149(2):481-92.e7
        Read Publication
                      Clinical comorbidity predictive measures in ex vivo T-cell-depleted allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.
            Authors:Le RQ, Tian X, Jain NA, Lu K, Ito S, Draper DA, Anandi P, Hourigan CS, Dunavin N, John Barrett A, Battiwalla M
                                                                                                                        
            Bone Marrow Transplant
      
                2015 Aug 01;50(8):1138-40
        Read Publication
                      The role of stem cell transplantation for chronic myelogenous leukemia in the 21st century.
            Authors:Barrett AJ, Ito S
                                                                                                                        
            Blood
      
                2015 May 21;125(21):3230-3235
        Read Publication
                      Minor ABO Incompatibility Does Not Impact Nonrelapse Mortality in T Cell-Depleted Human Leukocyte Antigen-Matched Sibling Transplantation.
            Authors:Chokshi P, Anandi P, Jain N, Dunavin N, Le RQ, Ito S, Barrett J, Battiwalla M
                                                                                                                        
            Biol Blood Marrow Transplant
      
                2015 May 01;21(5):954-5
        Read Publication
                      CMV-specific T cells generated from naïve T cells recognize atypical epitopes and may be protective in vivo.
            Authors:Hanley PJ, Melenhorst JJ, Nikiforow S, Scheinberg P, Blaney JW, Demmler-Harrison G, Cruz CR, Lam S, Krance RA, Leung KS, Martinez CA, Liu H, Douek DC, Heslop HE, Rooney CM, Shpall EJ, Barrett AJ, Rodgers JR, Bollard CM
                                                                                                                        
            Sci Transl Med
      
                2015 Apr 29;7(285):285ra63
        Read Publication
  Meet the Team

    John Barrett

            Austin Barrett, M.D.
                Senior Investigator
                Dr. John Barrett received his M.B. and B.S. degrees from the Medical College of St. Bartholomew’s Hospital, London in 1968, and his M.D. degree from University of London in 1975. From 1982 to 1988 he was Professor of Hematology and Head of the Department of Hematology at Charing Cross and Westminster Medical School, London, and from 1988 to 1993 he was Professor of Hematological Medicine at the Hammersmith Hospital, London. Dr. Barrett joined the NHLBI in 1993, as the chief of the Bone Marrow Stem Cell Allotransplantation Section of the Hematology Branch. He has received numerous honors for his contributions to hematology and stem cell transplantation including awards from the National Institutes of Health,  the National Health Service UK and the 2016 award from the American College of Physicans for science as it relates to medicine. Dr. Barrett was elected a Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians in 1998. He has authored over 350 original scientific articles, and nearly 150 reviews, editorials, and book chapters. He serves on numerous journal editorial boards and is the Editor in Chief for Cytotherapy. Dr. Barrett is a member of the British Society for Haematology, American Society of Hematology, American Society for Blood and Bone Marrow Transplantation (for which he served as President in 2010), and International Society for Cell Therapy, among other organizations.
    
          Contact the lab
    10 Center DrBethesda, MD 20814United States
        Phone:
                    301-402-4170
                Fax:
  Susan Wong
    
            Susan Wong
        

    Lab Manager

        wongsu@nhlbi.nih.gov
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            Pawel Muranski
        

    Staff Clinician

        muranskp@mail.nih.gov
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            Minoo Battiwalla
        

    Staff Clinician

        battiwam@mail.nih.gov
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            Sawa  Ito
        

    Staff Clinician

        itos2@mail.nih.gov Back To Top Link
  

        

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