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Basic blood biology and mechanisms of immunity in transfusion medicine and biotherapies

AM25-SN-35-L - Basic Blood Biology and Mechanisms of Immunity in Transfusion Medicine and Biotherapies

Sunday, October 26, 2025

3:45 PM - 6:00 PM PT

Room: SDCC 28BCDE

Program Chair(s)

Sean Stowell, MD, PhD

Vice Chair for Transfusion Medicine
Brigham and Women's Hospital
Boston, Massachusetts

Disclosure(s): No relevant disclosure to display
Karina Yazdanbakhsh, PhD

Vice President and Director of Research
New York Blood Center
New York, New York

Disclosure(s): No relevant disclosure to display

Speaker(s)

Allan Doctor, MD (he/him/his)

Professor and Center Director
University of Maryland
Baltimore, Maryland

Disclosure(s): No relevant disclosure to display
Marie A. Hollenhorst, MD, PhD (she/her/hers)

Assistant Professor
Harvard Medical School
Boston, Massachusetts

Disclosure(s): No relevant disclosure to display
Divya Beri, PhD (she/her/hers)

Postdoctoral Fellow
NYBC
New York City, New York

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose
PD

Pavel Davizon-Castillo

Bloodworks Northwest

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose
TP

Tirthadipa Pradhan-Sundd, PhD (she/her/hers)

Associate Investigator; Assistant Professor
Versiti Blood Research Institute; Medical College of Wisconsin
Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose
PK

Paul Kausik, PhD (he/him/his)

Project Scientist
Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Cedars-Sinai Medical Center.
Los Angeles, California

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose
Shang-Chuen Wu, PhD

Instructor
Brigham and Womens Hospital, Harvard University, Massachusetts

Disclosure(s): No financial relationships to disclose

This session aims to spotlight presentations centered on mechanistic discoveries at the cutting edge of transfusion biology. By investigating the underlying molecular and cellular interactions in blood component biology, Dr. Allan Doctor, will describe how fundamental exploration by his group and others has led to breakthrough discoveries in the development of artificial blood products. This will be followed by short presentations by outstanding NIH-funded early-career basic scientists, each focusing on new mechanistic insights from their research including uncovering novel aspects of the red cell membranes related to transfusion-transmission with hemoparasites and hyperhemolytic syndromes (Dr. Divya Beri), new mechanisms of hemolysis-driven vasculopathy (Dr. Tirthadipa Pradhan-Sundd), novel concepts on the role of blood group positive microbes in the induction of ABO antibodies (Dr. Shang-Chuen (Peter) Wu), new mechanistic pathways that drive alloimmunization in lupus (Dr. Kausik Paul), innovative aspects of inflammation-driven platelet dysfunction (Dr. Pavel Davizon-Castillo), and developing for the first time ever an atlas of platelet glycosylation pathways (Dr. Marie Hollenhorst). The session will also include a roundtable discussion of key basic research gaps in transfusion biology, the importance of utilizing novel and emerging methodologies, and the need for collaborative research programs to translate basic discoveries.

Learning Objectives:

Discuss fundamental concepts in artificial blood design, describe molecular basis of red blood cell membrane alterations and blood borne diseases and the role of heme signaling pathways on vasculopathy.
Describe the mechanisms of antibody induction by blood group positive microbes and in lupus.
Discuss the role of platelet glycosylation pathways in platelet function and describe inflammation-associated signaling pathways in driving platelet dysfunction.