Experimental hematology
Chiara Bonini
Email: bonini.chiara@hsr.it
Location: Dibit 1, Floor 3, Room A1
Group Leader, Experimental hematology
Full Professor, Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele
Her main research focus is the development, preclinical and clinical validation of cell and gene therapy approaches to treat cancer.
She pioneered the clinical use of genetically engineered lymphocytes in the context of stem cell transplantation, leading to the first cell-based gene therapy product approved by EMA for oncologic diseases.
Her group has extensive experience on cancer immunotherapy, genetic manipulation of T cells, including TCR/CAR gene transfer. In particular, she developed the TCR gene editing approach to completely and permanently redirect T cell specificity.
An additional relevant activity of Bonini’s Team is represented by the Immunomonitoring sub-Unit. This section of the lab is dedicated to the analyses of immunological correlates with clinical outcome in the context of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. This activity is becoming critical in the growing field of cellular therapy, and the lab has obtained the ISO 9001:2015 certification and the qualification for monitoring phase I clinical trials in conformity to AIFA requirements (determina AIFA n. 809/15).
1991-1994 Undergraduate student, Experimental Hematology, Ospedale San Raffaele Scientific Institute (OSR),
Milano, Italy.
1993 Undergraduate summer student, Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, MSKCC, New York.
1995-1997 Medical fellow, Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, OSR Milano, Italy.
1996-1998 Post-doctoral fellow, TIGET (Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy), DIBIT, OSR.
1998-2000 Post-doctoral fellow, Program in Immunology, FHCRC Seattle.
1998-2004 Hematologist, Bone Marrow Transplant Unit, OSR (leave of absence 1998-2000).
2000-2008 Group Leader, Experimental Hematology Unit, OSR.
Since 2008 Head of the Experimental Hematology Unit, OSR.
2014-2023 Deputy Director Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, OSR
Since 2015 Professor, Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, School of Medicine, Milan, Italy.
1994 M.D. Degree (summa cum laude) - Università degli Studi, Medical School, Milan, Italy
1994-1998 Board in Hematology (summa cum laude) University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
1998-2000 Post-doctoral Training- Greenberg’s Lab, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research, Seattle, WA
1999-2001 Cancer Research Institute Fellowship, NY, USA
2005 Young Investigator Award. American Society of Gene Therapy
2005-2011 Member of the Board of the European Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ESGCT)
2006 Young Investigator Award. Fondazione Berlucchi
2009 Grant MIUR-IDEAS, for top 8% ranked by the European Research Council (ERC).
Since 2009 Member of Cancer Gene Therapy Committees of the American Society of Gene and Cell Therapy (ASGCT) and of ESGCT.
2009-2015 Associate Editor Journal of Gene Medicine.
2010 Presidential Scientific Committee XVIII Annual ESGCT Congress Milan, Oct 22-25.
2010-2014 Institutional Representative of EATRIS (European Infrastructure for Translational Medicine)
2010 Team Science Recognition Award (iSBTC, now SITC)
Since 2011 Member of the Editorial Board of Frontiers in Immunology.
2011-2014 Member of the ASGCT Board of Directors
2011-2014 Associate Editor, Human Gene Therapy, Human Gene Therapy Methods
2012-2014 Chair of the ASGCT Cancer Committee
2012-2014 Member San Raffaele Committee for Appointment and Promotion
Since 2012 Member of the Editorial Board, Molecular Therapy
2012-2014 Associate Editor, Human Gene Therapy Clinical Development Gene Therapy Committee
2012 Van Bekkum Award. European Society of Bone Marrow Transplantation (EBMT)
2012 Van Rood Award. European Federation of Immunogenetics (EFI)
2013 Jon Van Rood Award. Immunobiology Working Party EBMT
2013-2018 Member of the Editorial Board of Molecular Therapy, Molecular Therapy: Methods and Clinical Development
2014 Basic Science Award, EBMT.
2014-2018 Chair of the Cell Therapy and Immunobiology Working Party (CTIWP) of EBMT, Member of Scientific Council, EBMT
Since 2014 Member of the Board of the European School of Hematology (ESH)
2015 Member of the Strategic Research Committee, European Hematology Association (EHA)
2015 President of the 1st EBMT-CTIWP Scientific Symposium: For transplantation to Gene Therapy: the cellular Therapy Evolution (Milano, 11-13 Nov, 2015)
2015 Van Rood Award. European Federation of Immunogenetics (EFI)
2016 Melvin Jones Fellow for Humanitarian Services, Lions International.
2016 Van Bekkum Award (EBMT)
2016 Member of the Scientific Committee, Annual ESGCT and ISSCR Congress, 17 - 22 October 2016, Florence
2016 President of "Come of age... Immunotherapy for Multiple Myeloma" A joint educational symposium of CMWP and CTIWP, Berlin, Germany, Sept 30-Oct 1 2016
2017 Basic Science Award (EBMT)
2018 President of the 2nd EBMT-CTIWP Scientific Symposium (Leiden, 18-20 Jan, 2018)
Since 2018 Member of the Board of GIIMA
2018-2021 Member of ASH Awards Committee
2019-2022 Member of ASH Global Research Award Subcommittee
2019 Presidential Scientific Committee, 1st Course on cell therapy, ESH, Mandelieu
2019-2025 Coordinator of the Research Program AIRC 5x1000, call on Metastases. 18 participants.
2020 Member of the EHA Research Committee
2020 Excellence in Science Award. ASGCT
2020 Co-Chair of the International conference on lymphocyte engineering, ICLE 2020
2020 Co-Chair of the CTATL meeting
2020 Member of the SWG in Immune Therapies of EHA
2021 Co-Chair of the ESMO “Advanced course on CAR-T cells in 2021 in Europe”
2021-2024 Member of the planning committee for the Joint ASTCT-EBMT Basic and Translational Scientific Retreat (2022, 2023, 2024 editions)
2021- Member of the EHA Board
2021- Member of the EBMT/EHA GoCART Coalition Board
2022 Presidential Scientific Committee, Immune and Cellular Therapies : Focus on Immune Based Therapies, ESH, Berlin
2022-2023 Member of the Scientific committee for the Joint ASTCT-EBMT 6th International Conference on Relapse after transplant and cellular therapy (HSCT2), Nov 8-11, 2023, Los Angeles, CA
2022-2025 Member of ASGCT Program Committee
2022-2025 Co-Chair of the International conference on lymphocyte engineering, ICLE (2022, 2023, 2025)
Since 2022 Coordinator of the “Translational Track” School of Medicine- International MD Program, UniSR
2023 Member of the scientific committee of the 1st ASGCT Immune Oncology Spotlight, August 1-2 2023, Seattle
2023 Chair of the “Immunotherapy and CAR T cells Committee” of ESGCT
2023 Member of the Pezcoller Symposia Scientific Standing Committee
2023 Member of the Editorial Board of Blood Cancer Discovery
2024-2026 TRTH Joint Oversight Subcommittee (EHA and ASH)
2024 Member of the scientific committee of the 1st ASGCT Spotlight on Cancer Gene Therapy”
Conference.
2024 Member of the scientific committee of the 2024 ESGCT Annual Meeting.
Since 2001, the lab has been funded from the Italian Ministry of University and Research (MIUR, PRIN, and FIRB-ideas 2008, associated to ERC starting grant program), Telethon, the Italian Ministry of Health, The European Union (FP-IV, FP-V, FP-VI, FP-VII, H2020), the Italian Association for Cancer Research (AIRC), Fondazione Cariplo. In 2019 she received funding as a PI of an AIRC 5x1000 Program. The lab has extensive experience in academia-pharma collaborative studies. An alliance between the lab and Intellia Therapeutics has recently led to the development of a first-in-man clinical trial of adoptive T cell therapy.