Benoit Van den Eynde

Major achievements

• Discovered the role of alpha-2 adrenergic receptors in regulating anti-tumor immunity
• Discovered the mechanism regulating blood tryptophan levels, based on a tryptophan-sensing system allowing to stop degradation of tryptophan when it is scarce
• Laureate of the 2010 Quinquennial prize of the FNRS for Biomedical Sciences (Joseph Maisin prize)

Question

• Can we improve cancer immunotherapy using new vaccine approaches aimed at increasing the number of anti-tumor T lymphocytes?
• What is the role of mitochondria in the processing and presentation of tumor antigens?
• How does tryptophan catabolism in the tumor microenvironment suppress anti-tumor immune responses?

Research focus

The Van den Eynde Lab studies how cancer immunotherapy can be improved by developing new vaccine approaches aimed at increasing the number of anti-tumor T lymphocytes. In collaboration with the twin Van den Eynde Lab in Oxford, new vaccine approaches are developed based on the Oxford vaccine platform using viral vectors (ChAdOX and MVA), which were used in the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid vaccine. Based on their preclinical work, a vaccine targeting tumor antigens MAGEA3 and NY-ESO1 is being tested in lung cancer patients in the UK.

The Van den Eynde Lab also studies the role of mitochondria in antigen processing and presentation, based on their finding that synthetic long peptides, which are currently used as cancer vaccines, involve mitochondria in their mechanism of action.

In collaboration with the Zhu Lab, the Van den Eynde Lab also aims to characterize immunosuppressive mechanisms taking place in the tumor microenvironment, with the aim of finding new druggable targets that can be acted upon to improve tumor rejection. One focus is on tryptophan catabolism by IDO and TDO, two enzymes that degrade tryptophan in the tumor microenvironment and thereby suppress anti-tumor immunity.

The aim of the Van den Eynde Lab is to identify new targets against which drugs can be developed to increase the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy. Their work has already led to the creation of two biotech companies that are developing new drugs for cancer therapy.

Benoit Van den Eynde, MD, PhD, is Full Professor at UCLouvain, Professor of Tumour Immunology at Oxford University, Director of the de Duve Institute in Brussels, Member of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, and Director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research Laboratories in Brussels. He leads research groups active in cancer immunotherapy, with a focus on the identification and study of tumour antigens, the development of cancer vaccines, the study of immunosuppressive mechanisms in the tumour micro-environment, and the preclinical development of new immuno-oncology drugs. He co-founded iTeos Therapeutics and sits on the scientific advisory board of several biotech and pharma companies.

He started his career at the de Duve Institute in Brussels under the mentorship of Thierry Boon, with whom he contributed to the discovery and molecular definition of tumor antigens recognized by T lymphocytes. These findings opened a molecular era in tumor immunology and established the foundation of current cancer immunotherapy. Van den Eynde has authored over 180 original publications in major international journals. He is recognized as an international leader in the field, and has obtained several prestigious prizes, including in 2010 the Quinquennial Prize of the FNRS for Biomedical Sciences (Joseph Maisin Prize).

Honors

• 2016: Professor of Tumour Immunology, University of Oxford
• 2011: Francqui Chair at the Université de Liège
• 2010: “Prix quinquennal du FNRS”: Joseph Maisin Scientific Prize for Biomedical Sciences (75K€)
• 2007: GlaxoSmithKline Prize (15K€)
• 2005: Elected full member of the Royal Academy of Medicine, Belgium
• 2005: Francqui Chair at the Université libre de Bruxelles
• 2004: Elected corresponding member of the Royal Academy of Medicine, Belgium
• 2001: Prize of the 160th anniversary of the Royal Academy of Medicine, Belgium (50K€)
• 1998: Prize of the “Fondation Alexandre et Gaston Tytgat”
• 1998: Prize of the “Fondation Clément Perdieus et Cécile Petit”

Affiliations

• Director, de Duve Institute, UCLouvain, Brussels, Belgium
• Member, Director, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Brussels, Belgium
• Investigator, Walloon Excellence in Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Brussels, Belgium
• Member, Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK