Publications

Podesta MA, Cavazzoni CB, Hanson BL, Bechu ED, Ralli G, Clement RL, Zhang H, Chandrakar P, Lee JM, Reyes-Robles T, Abdi R, Diallo A, Sen DR, Sage PT.

Nature Communications. 2023. 14(1):7712.

In this article the Sage Lab assessed the development stages Tfh cells go through after initial differentiation to become effector Tfh cells. They found four distinct developmental stages in Tfh; Progenitor (Prog), Transitory (Trans), Fully Differentiated (Full) and Ex-Fully Differentiated (Ex). Authors also demonstrate intrinsic (FoxP1) and extrinsic (Tfr cells) factors controlling progression through these stages. This work demonstrates mechanisms controlling Tfh development and functionality and lay the framework for therapeutics to target individual Tfh stages to treat disease or enhance SARS-CoV-2 vaccines.

Zhang H, Cavazzoni CB, Podesta MA, Bechu ED, Ralli G, Chandrakar P, Lee JM, Sayin I, Tullius SG, Abdi R, Chong AS, Sage PT.

JCI Insight. 2023. Oct 23; 8(20)

In this article the Sage Lab studied developmental signals and functions of Tfh cells during allogeneic kidney transplantation. They found that Tfh undergo parallel development in LNs and kidney allografts. They also found that these Tfh cells control pathogenic B cell responses both within LNs and in kidney allografts themselves. This work provides rationale for targeting both systemic and kidney allograft B cell responses to prevent and treat antibody mediated rejection (ABMR) in the clinic.

Zhang, Hengcheng MD, PhD; Cavazzoni, Cecilia B. PhD; Hanson, Benjamin L.; Bechu, Elsa D.; Podestà, Manuel A. MD; Azzi, Jamil MD; Blazar, Bruce R. MD; Chong, Anita S. PhD; Kreisel, Daniel MD, PhD; Alessandrini, Alessandro PhD; Sage, Peter T. PhD

In this manuscript Dr. Sage’s team assessed the transcriptional programming and origins of intragraft B cells after kidney transplantation. They found that graft infiltrating B cells are innate-like transcriptionally and likely do not originate from lymph node germinal center B cells.

Transplantation 107(2):p e47-e57, February 2023. | DOI: 10.1097/TP.0000000000004398

Follicular T cells Optimize the Germinal Center Response to SARS-CoV-2 Protein Vaccination in Mice

Cavazzoni CB, Hanson BL, Podesta MA, Bechu ED, Clement RL, Zhang H, Daccache J, Reyes-Robles T, Hett EC, Vora KA, Fadeyi OO, Oslund RC, Hazuda DJ, Sage PT

Cell Reports, Feb. 2022

In this manuscript Dr. Sage’s team studied how follicular T cells control antibody responses during SARS-CoV-2 vaccination. Using genetic deletion studies and natural settings of aging they show that follicular T cells delicately balance affinity maturation and clonal expansion to optimize vaccine responses.

Paolo Fiorina et. al.

Songjie Cai ^1 2, John Y Choi ¹, Thiago J Borges ¹, Hengcheng Zhang ¹, Ji Miao ², Takaharu Ichimura ¹, Xiaofei Li ¹, Simiao Xu ², Philip Chu ¹, Siawosh K Eskandari ¹, Hazim Allos ¹, Juliano B Alhaddad ¹, Saif A Muhsin ¹, Karim Yatim ¹, Leonardo V Riella ¹, Peter T Sage ¹, Anil K Chandraker ³, Jamil R Azzi ⁴