Department of Medicine
Faculty Profiles by Division

Division of Hematology/Oncology

Faculty Profiles
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photo Warren D. Shlomchik, MD

Hematology/Oncology

Professor of Medicine and Immunology

Director, Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplant and Cell Therapy

Vice-Chief of Hematologic Malignancies, Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation and T cell Immunotherapy

Division of Hematology and Oncology

Department of Medicine

Email: warrens@pitt.edu

Phone: 412-648-1591
Contact
Office: E1552 Thomas E. Starzl
Biomedical Science Tower
Pittsburgh, PA 15261
 
Phone: 412-648-1591
Fax:
E-mail: warrens@pitt.edu
Education and Training
Education
BA, Harvard College, 1985
MD, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 1989
Training
Medical Internship, New York Hospital Cornell Medical Center, 1990
Residency, New York Hospital Cornell Medical Center, 1992
Fellowship Hematology/Oncology, Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, 1997
Research Associate, University of Pennsylvania Department of Medicine, 1998
Research Interest
Dr. Shlomchik’s research is dedicated to understanding the complex immunology of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT), including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) and immune reconstitution. The goal of his studies is to make discoveries that can be translated in the clinic. One discovery was that memory phenotype T cells induce less GVHD than do naïve T cells and has been tested in a phase I/II clinical trial wherein patients received grafts depleted of naïve T cells. This approach is now being examined in a 4-arm clinical trial that includes high and lower intensity conditioning and grafts that are matched related and unrelated. At the bench, Dr. Shlomchik has mostly taken genetic approaches with mouse models to test fundamental hypotheses regarding alloSCT immunology. One major part of his research program has focused on mechanisms of GVHD: 1) roles of donor and host antigen presenting cells in priming alloreactive T cells; 2) mechanisms of antigen presentation; 3) the role of donor tissue infiltrating APCs in promoting GVHD end organ damage. The second main area of investigation has been to understand mechanisms of GVL and GVL-resistance. Dr. Shlomchik’s lab has developed mouse models of GVL-sensitive chronic phase CML (CP-CML) and GVL-resistant blast crisis CML (BC-CML), with both leukemias induced by retroviral transfer of human oncogenes. This has provided both realistic models and genetic flexibility in that leukemias can be induced in any mouse, including those that are gene-modified. Recently, his lab has been applying two photon intravital microscopy to both GVHD and GVL.
Clinical Interest
Complex immunology of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (alloSCT), including graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) and immune reconstitution.
Publications
For my complete bibliography, Click Here.
Selected Publications:
Bleakley M, Heimfeld S, Loeb KR, Jones LA, Chaney C, Seropian S, Gooley TA, Sommermeyer F, Riddell SR, Shlomchik WD. Outcomes of acute leukemia patients transplanted with naive T cell-depleted stem cell grafts. Journal of Clinical Investigations. 2015; 125(7): 2677-89.
Li H, Demetris AJ, McNiff J, Matte-Martone C, Tan HS, Rothstein DM, Lakkis FG, Shlomchik WD. Profound Depletion of Host Conventional Dendritic Cells, Plasmacytoid Dendritic Cells, and B Cells Does Not Prevent Graft-versus-Host Disease Induction. Journal of Immunology. 2012; 188(8): 3804-11.
Wang X, Li H, Matte-Martone C, Cui W, Li N, Tan HS, Roopenian D, Shlomchik WD. Mechanisms of antigen presentation to T cells in murine graft-versus-host disease: cross-presentation and the appearance of cross-presentation. Blood. 2011; 118(24): 6426-37.
Li H, Matte-Martone C, Tan HS, Venkatesan S, McNiff J, Demetris AJ, Jain D, Lakkis F, Rothstein D, Shlomchik WD. Graft-versus-host disease is independent of innate signaling pathways triggered by pathogens in host hematopoietic cells. Journal of Immunology. 2011; 186(1): 23-41.
Li N, Matte-Martone C, Zheng H, Cui W, Venkatesan S, Tan HS, McNiff J, Demetirs AJ, Roopenian D, Kaech S, Shlomchik WD. Memory T cells from minor histocompatibility antigen-vaccinated and virus-immune donors improve GVL and immune reconstitution. Blood. 2001; 186(1): 230-41.
Juchem KW, Anderson BE, Zhang C, McNiff JM, Demetris AJ, Farber DL, Caton AJ, Shlomchik WD, Shlomchik MJ. A repertoire-independent and cell-intrinsic defect in murine GVHD induction by effector memory T cells. Blood. 2011; 1189(23): 6209-19.
Matte-Martone C, Venkatesan S, Tan HS, Athanasiadis I, Chang J, Pavisic J, Shlomchik WD. Graft-versus-Leukemia (GVL) against Mouse Blast-Crisis Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (BC-CML) and Chronic-Phase Chronic Myelogenous Leukemia (CP-CML): Shared Mechanisms of T Cell Killing, but Programmed Death Ligands Render CP-CML and Not BC-CML GVL Resistant. Journal of Immunology. 2011; 187(4): 1653-63.
Anderson BE, Taylor PA, McNiff JM, Jain D, Demetris AJ, Panoskaltsis-Mortari a, Ager A, Blazar BR, Shlomchik WD, Shlomchik MJ. Effects of donor T-cell trafficking and priming site on graft-versus-host disease induction by naive and memory phenotype CD4 T cells. Blood. 2008; 111(10): 5242-51.
Zheng HC, Matte-Martone C, Li H, Anderson BE, Venketesan S, Sheng H, Sheng Tan H, Jain D, McNiff J, Shlomchik WD. Effector memory CD4+ T cells mediate graft-versus-leukemia without inducing graft-versus-host disease. Blood. 2008; 111(4): 2476-84.
Matte-Martone CJ, Liu J, Jain D, McNiff J, Shlomchik WD. CD8+ but not CD4+ T cells require cognate interactions with target tissues to mediate GVHD across only minor H antigens whereas both CD4+ and CD8+ T cells require direct leukemic contact to mediate GVL. Blood. 2008; 111(7): 3884-92.
Notable Achievements
Cum Laude, 1985
Fellowship Award, Leukemia Society of America, 1994
Clinical Scholar, Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 2006
Burroughs Wellcome Fund Clinical Scientist Award in Translational Research, 2007
Edward Holmes MD Award for Outstanding Research by a fellow in the Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, 1999
American Cancer Society Institutional Research Grant, 2000
Yale Skin Disease Research Core Center Program Project Grant, 2000
Swebilious Foundation Grant, 2004
Swebilious Foundation Grant, 2006
Cancer Center Pilot Grant Competition, 2008

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Rheumatology and Clinical Immunology

Contact

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Email:  chairoff@pitt.edu
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