Publications

To view Dr. Megan Levings' Bibliography click here

Selected publications

2021

Induction of stable human FOXP3+ Tregs by a parasite-derived TGF-β mimic
Cook L., et al. Induction of stable human FOXP3+ Tregs by a parasite-derived TGF-β mimic. Immunol Cell Biol. 2021 Sep;99(8):833-847. doi: 10.1111/imcb.12475. Epub (2021). PubMed PMID: 33929751; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC8453874.

Fecal Microbiota Transplantation for Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection Enhances Adaptive Immunity to C difficile Toxin B
Cook L., et al. Fecal Microbiota Transplantation for Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection Enhances Adaptive Immunity to C difficile Toxin B. Gastroenterology. (2021);160(6):2155-2158.e4. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2021.01.009. Epub 2021 Jan 11. PubMed PMID: 33444574.

mRNA vaccines take on immune tolerance
Wardell C.M. & Levings M.K. mRNA vaccines take on immune tolerance. Nat Biotechnol. (2021);39(4):419-421. doi: 10.1038/s41587-021-00880-0. PubMed PMID: 33785909.

Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection Is Associated With Impaired T Helper Type 17 Immunity to C difficile Toxin B
Cook L., et al. Recurrent Clostridioides difficile Infection Is Associated With Impaired T Helper Type 17 Immunity to C difficile Toxin B. Gastroenterology. (2021);160(4):1410-1413.e4. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2020.11.043. Epub 2020 Nov 27. PubMed PMID: 33253683.

Transduction of Human T Cell Subsets with Lentivirus
Fung V.C.W., Rosado-Sánchez I. & Levings M.K. Transduction of Human T Cell Subsets with Lentivirus. Methods Mol Biol. (2021);2285:227-254. doi: 10.1007/978-1-0716-1311-5_19. PubMed PMID: 33928557.

Cross talk between human regulatory T cells and antigen-presenting cells: Lessons for clinical applications
Wardell C.M., MacDonald K.N., Levings M.K. & Cook L. Cross talk between human regulatory T cells and antigen-presenting cells: Lessons for clinical applications. Eur J Immunol. (2021);51(1):27-38. doi: 10.1002/eji.202048746. Epub 2020 Dec 23. Review. PubMed PMID: 33301176.

A method for expansion and retroviral transduction of mouse regulatory T cells
Wu D., et al. A method for expansion and retroviral transduction of mouse regulatory T cells. J Immunol Methods. (2021);488:112931. doi: 10.1016/j.jim.2020.112931. Epub 2020 Nov 20. PubMed PMID: 33221458.

2020

Building a CAR-Treg: Going from the basic to the luxury model
Rosado-Sánchez I. & Levings M.K. Building a CAR-Treg: Going from the basic to the luxury model. Cell Immunol. 2020 Dec;358:104220. doi: 10.1016/j.cellimm.2020.104220. Epub (2020). Review. PubMed PMID: 33096321.

Pharmacological inhibition of RORC2 enhances human Th17-Treg stability and function
Boardman D.A., et al. Pharmacological inhibition of RORC2 enhances human Th17-Treg stability and function. Eur J Immunol. 2020 Sep;50(9):1400-1411. doi: 10.1002/eji.201948435. Epub (2020). PubMed PMID: 32388860.

Functional effects of chimeric antigen receptor co-receptor signaling domains in human regulatory T cells
Dawson, N. A. J. et al. Functional effects of chimeric antigen receptor co-receptor signaling domains in human regulatory T cells. Sci. Transl. Med. 12 (2020). doi:10.1126/scitranslmed.aaz3866

T reg-specific insulin receptor deletion prevents diet-induced and age-associated metabolic syndrome
Wu, D. et al. T reg-specific insulin receptor deletion prevents diet-induced and age-associated metabolic syndrome. J. Exp. Med. 217 (2020). doi:10.1084/jem.20191542

T-Cell specificity matters in IBD: Impaired IL10 production revealed by OmpC-tetramers
Cook, L. & Levings, M. K. T-cell specificity matters in IBD: Impaired IL10 production revealed by OmpC-tetramers. Cell. Mol. Gastroenterol. Hepatol. 10, 647-648 (2020). doi:10.1016/j.jcmgh.2020.06.007

Donor-specific chimeric antigen receptor Tregs limit rejection in naive but not sensitized allograft recipients
Sicard, A. et al. Donor-specific chimeric antigen receptor Tregs limit rejection in naive but not sensitized allograft recipients. Am. J. Transplant. 20, 1562-1573 (2020). doi:10.1111/ajt.15787

Pharmacological inhibition of RORC2 enhances human Th17-Treg stability and function
Boardman, D. A. et al. Pharmacological inhibition of RORC2 enhances human Th17-Treg stability and function. Eur. J. Immunol. (2020). doi:10.1002/eji.201948435

Ectopic germline recombination activity of the widely used Foxp3-YFP-Cre mouse: A case report
Wu, D., Huang, Q., Orban, P. C. & Levings, M. K. Ectopic germline recombination activity of the widely used Foxp3-YFP-Cre mouse: A case report. Immunology 159, 231-241 (2020). doi:10.1111/imm.13153

Analysis of flagellin-specific adaptive immunity reveals links to dysbiosis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease
Cook, L. et al. Analysis of flagellin-specific adaptive immunity reveals links to dysbiosis in patients with inflammatory bowel disease. Cell. Mol. Gastroenterol. Hepatol. 9, 485-506 (2020). doi:10.1016/j.jcmgh.2019.11.012

2019

A composite immune signature parallels disease progression across T1D subjects
Speake, C. et al. A composite immune signature parallels disease progression across T1D subjects. JCI Insight 4 (2019). doi:10.1172/jci.insight.126917

Cryopreservation timing is a critical process parameter in a thymic regulatory T-cell therapy manufacturing protocol
MacDonald, K. N. et al. Cryopreservation timing is a critical process parameter in a thymic regulatory T-cell therapy manufacturing protocol. Cytotherapy 21, 1216-1233 (2019). doi:10.1016/j.jcyt.2019.10.011

Suppressive and gut-reparative functions of human type 1 T regulatory cells
Cook, L. et al. Suppressive and gut-reparative functions of human type 1 T regulatory cells. Gastroenterology 157, 1584-1598 (2019). doi:10.1053/j.gastro.2019.09.002

Guidelines for the use of flow cytometry and cell sorting in immunological studies (second edition)
Cossarizza, A. et al. Guidelines for the use of flow cytometry and cell sorting in immunological studies (second edition). Eur. J. Immunol. 49, 1457-1973 (2019). doi:10.1002/eji.201970107

Evaluating the role of Tregs in the progression of multiple myeloma
Lad, D. et al. Evaluating the role of Tregs in the progression of multiple myeloma. Leuk. Lymphoma 60, 2134-2142 (2019). doi:10.1080/10428194.2019.1579324

Methods to manufacture regulatory T cells for cell therapy
MacDonald, K. N., Piret, J. M. & Levings, M. K. Methods to manufacture regulatory T cells for cell therapy. Clin. Exp. Immunol. 197, 52-63 (2019). doi:10.1111/cei.13297

A new mechanism of action in human and mouse Treg cells: The ke(y)to suppression
Wu, D. & Levings, M. K. A new mechanism of action in human and mouse Treg cells: The ke(y)to suppression. Immunity 50, 1122-1124 (2019). doi:10.1016/j.immuni.2019.04.008

Innate control of tissue-reparative human regulatory T cells
Lam, A. J. et al. Innate control of tissue-reparative human regulatory T cells. J. Immunol. 202, 2195-2209 (2019). doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1801330

Cancer immunotherapies repurposed for use in autoimmunity
Boardman, D. A. & Levings, M. K. Cancer immunotherapies repurposed for use in autoimmunity. Nat. Biomed. Eng. 3, 259-263 (2019). doi:10.1038/s41551-019-0359-6

Systematic testing and specificity mapping of alloantigen-specific chimeric antigen receptors in regulatory T cells
Dawson, N. A. et al. Systematic testing and specificity mapping of alloantigen-specific chimeric antigen receptors in regulatory T cells. JCI Insight 4 (2019). doi:10.1172/jci.insight.123672

Treg gene signatures predict and measure type 1 diabetes trajectory
Pesenacker, A. M. et al. Treg gene signatures predict and measure type 1 diabetes trajectory. JCI Insight 4 (2019). doi:10.1172/jci.insight.123879

Characterization of regulatory T cells in obese omental adipose tissue in humans
Wu, D. et al. Characterization of regulatory T cells in obese omental adipose tissue in humans. Eur. J. Immunol. 49, 336-347 (2019). doi:10.1002/eji.201847570

Innate control of tissue-reparative human regulatory T cells
Lam, A. J. et al. Innate control of tissue-reparative human regulatory T cells. J Immunol. (2019). doi:10.4049/jimmunol.1801330

Methods to manufacture regulatory T cells for cell therapy
MacDonald, K. N., Piret, J. M. & Levings, M. K. Methods to manufacture regulatory T cells for cell therapy. Clin. Exp. Immunol. (2019). doi:10.1111/cei.13297

Tailoring the homing capacity of human Tregs for directed migration to sites of Th1-inflammation or intestinal regions
Hoeppli, R. E. et al. Tailoring the homing capacity of human Tregs for directed migration to sites of Th1-inflammation or intestinal regions. Am. J. Transplant. 19, 62-76 (2019). doi:10.1111/ajt.14936

2018

Engineering therapeutic T cells to suppress alloimmune responses using TCRs, CARs, or BARs
Sicard, A., Levings, M. K. & Scott, D. W. Engineering therapeutic T cells to suppress alloimmune responses using TCRs, CARs, or BARs. Am. J. Transplant. 18, 1305-1311 (2018). doi:10.1111/ajt.14747

Guiding regulatory T cells to the allograft
Lamarche, C. & Levings, M. K. Guiding regulatory T cells to the allograft. Curr. Opin. Organ Transplant. 23, 106-113 (2018). doi:10.1097/MOT.0000000000000483

An optimized method to measure human FOXP3+ regulatory T cells from multiple tissue types using mass cytometry
Dawson, N. A. J. et al. An optimized method to measure human FOXP3+ regulatory T cells from multiple tissue types using mass cytometry. Eur. J. Immunol. 48, 1415-1419 (2018). doi:10.1002/eji.201747407

Regulatory T-cells drive immune dysfunction in C LL
Lad, D. et al. Regulatory T-cells drive immune dysfunction in CLL. Leuk. Lymphoma 59, 486-489 (2018). doi:10.1080/10428194.2017.1330475

A standardized immune phenotyping and automated data analysis platform for multicenter biomarker studies
Ivison, S. et al. A standardized immune phenotyping and automated data analysis platform for multicenter biomarker studies. JCI Insight 3 (2018). doi:10.1172/jci.insight.121867

Taking regulatory T-cell therapy one step further
Sicard, A., Boardman, D. A. & Levings, M. K. Taking regulatory T-cell therapy one step further. Curr. Opin. Organ Transplant. 23, 509-515 (2018). doi:10.1097/MOT.0000000000000566

2017

Adipose-tissue regulatory T cells: Critical players in adipose-immune crosstalk
Becker, M., Levings, M. K. & Daniel, C. Adipose-tissue regulatory T cells: Critical players in adipose-immune crosstalk. Eur. J. Immunol. (2017). doi:10.1002/eji.201646739

Antigen-specific regulatory T cells: Are police CARs the answer?
Dawson, N. A. J. & Levings, M. K. Antigen-specific regulatory T cells: Are police CARs the answer? Transl. Res. 187, 53-58 (2017). doi:10.1016/j.trsl.2017.06.009.

Biomarker-guided stratification of autoimmune patients for biologic therapy
Ivison, S., des Rosiers, C., Lesage, S., Rioux, J. D. & Levings, M. K. Biomarker-guided stratification of autoimmune patients for biologic therapy. Curr. Opin. Immunol. 49, 56-63 (2017). doi:10.1016/j.coi.2017.09.006

Cd56bright natural killer regulatory cells in filgrastim primed donor blood or marrow products regulate chronic graft-versus-host disease: The Canadian Blood and Marrow Transplant Group randomized 0601 study results
Kariminia, A. et al. CD56bright natural killer regulatory cells in filgrastim primed donor blood or marrow products regulate chronic graft-versus-host disease: The Canadian Blood and Marrow Transplant Group randomized 0601 study results. Haematologica (2017). doi:10.3324/haematol.2017.170928

Circulating gluten-specific FOXP3+CD39+ regulatory T cells have impaired suppressive function in patients with celiac disease
Cook, L. et al. Circulating gluten-specific FOXP3+CD39+ regulatory T cells have impaired suppressive function in patients with celiac disease. Allergy Clin. Immunol. (2017). doi:10.1016/j.jaci.2017.02.015

Effect of ex vivo-expanded recipient regulatory T cells on hematopoietic chimerism and kidney allograft tolerance across MHC barriers in cynomolgus macaques
Duran-Struuck, R. et al. Effect of ex vivo-expanded recipient regulatory T cells on hematopoietic chimerism and kidney allograft tolerance across MHC barriers in cynomolgus macaques. Transplantation 101, 274-283 (2017). doi:10.1097/TP.0000000000001559

Engineered tolerance: Tailoring development, function, and antigen-specificity of regulatory T cells
Dawson, N. A. J., Vent-Schmidt, J. & Levings, M. K. Engineered tolerance: Tailoring development, function, and antigen-specificity of regulatory T cells. Front. Immunol. 8, 1460 (2017). doi:10.3389/fimmu.2017.01460.

Guidelines for the use of flow cytometry and cell sorting in immunological studies
Cossarizza, A. et al. Guidelines for the use of flow cytometry and cell sorting in immunological studies. Eur. J. Immunol. 47, 1584-1797 (2017). doi:10.1002/eji.201646632

Harnessing advances in T regulatory cell biology for cellular t herapy in transplantation
Lam, A. J., Hoeppli, R. E. & Levings, M. K. Harnessing advances in T regulatory cell biology for cellular therapy in transplantation. Transplantation 101, 2277-2287 (2017). doi:10.1097/TP.0000000000001757

The outstanding questions in transplantation: It's about time...
Azzi, J. et al. The outstanding questions in transplantation: It's about time... Am. J. Transplant. (2017). doi:10.1111/ajt.14450

Thymic progenitors of TCRαβ + CD8αα intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes require RasGRP1 for development
Golec, D. P. et al. Thymic progenitors of TCRαβ + CD8αα intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes require RasGRP1 for development. J. Exp. Med. 214, 2421-2435 (2017). doi:10.1084/jem.20170844

2016

Alloantigen-specific regulatory T cells generated with a chimeric antigen receptor
MacDonald, K. G. et al. Alloantigen-specific regulatory T cells generated with a chimeric antigen receptor. J. Clin. Invest. 126, 1413-1424 (2016). doi:10.1172/JCI82771

Discarded human thymus is a novel source of stable and long-lived therapeutic regulatory T cells
Dijke, I. E. et al. Discarded human thymus is a novel source of stable and long-lived therapeutic regulatory T cells. Am. J. Transplant. 16, 58-71 (2016). doi:10.1111/ajt.13456

Filgrastim-stimulated bone marrow compared with filgrastim-mobilized peripheral blood in myeloablative sibling allografting for patients with hematologic malignancies: A randomized Canadian Blood and Marrow Transplant Group study
Couban, S. et al. Filgrastim-stimulated bone marrow compared with filgrastim-mobilized peripheral blood in myeloablative sibling allografting for patients with hematologic malignancies: A randomized Canadian Blood and Marrow Transplant Group study. Biol. Blood Marrow Transplant. 22, 1410-1415 (2016). doi:10.1016/j.bbmt.2016.04.017

Heterogeneity of chronic graft-versus-host disease biomarkers: Association with CXCL10 and CXCR3+ NK Cells
Kariminia, A. et al. Heterogeneity of chronic graft-versus-host disease biomarkers: Association with CXCL10 and CXCR3+ NK cells. Blood 127, 3082-3091 (2016). doi:10.1182/blood-2015-09-668251

How antigen specificity directs regulatory T-cell function: Self, foreign and engineered specificity
Hoeppli, R. E., MacDonald, K. G., Levings, M. K. & Cook, L. HLA 88, 3-13 (2016). doi:10.1111/tan.12822

Obesity-associated adipose tissue inflammation and transplantation
Wu, D., Dawson, N. A. & Levings, M. K. Obesity-associated adipose tissue inflammation and transplantation. Am. J. Transplant. 16, 743-750. (2016). doi:10.1111/ajt.13578

A regulatory T-cell gene signature is a specific and sensitive biomarker to identify children with new-onset type 1 diabetes
Pesenacker, A. M. et al. A regulatory T-cell gene signature is a specific and sensitive biomarker to identify children with new-onset type 1 diabetes. Diabetes 65, 1031-1039 (2016). doi:10.2337/db15-0572

The role of FOXP3 in autoimmunity
Pesenacker, A. M., Cook, L. & Levings, M. K. The role of FOXP3 in autoimmunity. Curr. Opin. Immunol. 43, 16-23 (2016). doi:10.1016/j.coi.2016.07.004

T regulatory cell chemokine production mediates pathogenic T cell attraction and suppression
Patterson, S. J. et al. T regulatory cell chemokine production mediates pathogenic T cell attraction and suppression. J. Clin. Invest. 126, 1039-1051 (2016). doi:10.1172/JCI83987

Levings Lab