Chiou-Tsun Tsai, Ph.D.

Instructor

Email

chiou-tsun.tsai@bcm.edu

Positions

Instructor: Center for Cell and Gene Therapy
Molecular and Cellular Biology
Baylor College of Medicine
Houston, US

Education

PhD from King's College London: London, United Kingdom; Cancer Studies

MSc from National Taiwan University: TAIPEI, TAIWAN, Taiwan; Microbiology and Immunology

Professional Interests

Novel synthetic receptor design for improving T-cell functionality in cancer therapy
Genetic engineering and development of immune cell lines for adaptive cell therapy

Professional Statement

We are interested in T-cell biology and the engineering of chimeric antigen receptors, and aim to improve the effector function of CAR T cells by developing a novel tumor-specific immune synapse–stabilizing receptor (SSR) with modified LAT signaling to augment T-cell activation and immune synapse formation. While we have successfully designed a pan-leukemia, CD38-specific SSR to enhance the sensitivity of CLL CAR T cells against AML, which is highly heterogeneous, we are currently expanding this concept by developing solid tumor–specific SSRs, with the goal of transferring CAR T-cell therapy from leukemia to solid tumors that are difficult to treat.

Selected Publications

Chiou-Tsun Tsai, Jorge Ibanez-Vega, Pan Yin, Robert Teis, Norihiro Watanabe, Tadahiro Honda, Mikhail Valkov, Peter J. Chockley, Lourdes Asenath Jimenez Madrigal, Giedre Krenciute, Maksim Mamonkin. " Enhancing CAR- and TCR-mediated targeting of cancer via an immune synapse-stabilizing receptor " Nature Communications. 2026 ; 17 : 1349.
Bernd Zeisig*, Chiou-Tsun Tsai*, et al. " Transposable elements as novel therapeutic targets for PARPi-induced synthetic lethality in PcG-mutated blood cancer " Blood. 2025 Jun ;
Pubmed PMID: 40561338.
Feiyan Mo, Chiou-Tsun Tsai, Rong Zheng, Chonghui Cheng, Helen E Heslop, Malcolm K Brenner, Maksim Mamonkin, Norihiro Watanabe. " Human platelet lysate enhances in vivo activity of CAR-Vδ2 T cells by reducing cellular senescence and apoptosis " Cytotherapy. 2024 Aug ; 26 : 858.
Pubmed PMID: 38506769.
Bernd B Zeisig, Tsz Kan Fung, Magdalena Zarowiecki, Chiou Tsun Tsai, Huacheng Luo, Boban Stanojevic, Claire Lynn, Anskar YH Leung, Jan Zuna, Marketa Zaliova, Martin Bornhauser, Malte von Bonin, Boris Lenhard, Suming Huang, Ghulam J Mufti, Chi Wai Eric So. " Functional reconstruction of human AML reveals stem cell origin and vulnerability of treatment-resistant MLL-rearranged leukemia " Sci Transl Med .. 2021 Feb ; 13 : eabc482.
Pubmed PMID: 33627486.
Tzu-Tang Wei, Yi-Ting Lin, Shao-Pu Tang, Cong-Kai Luo, Chiou-Tsun Tsai, Chia-Tung Shun, Ching-Chow Chen. " Metabolic targeting of HIF-1α potentiates the therapeutic efficacy of oxaliplatin in colorectal cancer " 2020 Jan ; 39 (2) : 414-427.
Pubmed PMID: 31477841.
Chiou-Tsun Tsai, Chi Wai Eric So. " Epigenetic therapies by targeting aberrant histone methylome in AML: molecular mechanisms, current preclinical and clinical development " Oncogene. 2017 ; 13 : 1753.
Pubmed PMID: 27593928.
Chiou-Tsun Tsai , Pei-Ming Yang, Ting-Rong Chern, Shu-Hui Chuang, Jung-Hsin Lin, Lars Klemm, Markus Müschen, Ching-Chow Chen. " AID downregulation is a novel function of the DNMT inhibitor 5-aza-deoxycytidine " Oncotarget. 2013 Nov 25; 5 : 211.
Pubmed PMID: 24457556.

Memberships

American Society of Gene & Cell Therapy

Funding

Develop novel non-cytotoxic immune synapse stabilizing receptors (SSR) for enhancing the sensitivity of CAR T-cells against cancer cells.: Grant funding from March Bio Sponsored Research Agreement