SID Resident and Post Doc Retreat

Grantee: Rebecca Minnillo, Society for Investigative Dermatology (SID)

Amount: EUR 25,000

Grant category: Research Networking

Year: 2025

Geography: USA

The Resident and Post Doc Retreat is a conference hosted by the Society for Investigative Dermatology (SID) each year since 2001. The program format provides a protected space in which residents can interact with senior faculty and established investigators for the purpose of fostering attendees’ interest in academic research careers. The program is a combination of formal lectures and presentations, informal discussions, brainstorming sessions and social activities. The retreat is held at the time of the SID annual meeting, which allows attendees to establish connections with each other, and to other meeting attendees. These social networks foster collegiality, collaborations, and appreciation for the creative, multidisciplinary nature of science and other productive interactions.

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Aplasia cutis pathogenesis provides key insights into skin and skin appendage biology

Grantee: Alexander Marneros, Associate Professor of Dermatology, Massachusetts General Hospital, United States

Amount: DKK 3,998,854

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2025

Geography: USA

To elucidate novel mechanisms that orchestrate skin formation we have focused on a genetic skin disease that manifests with scalp skin wounds at birth, aplasia cutis congenita (ACC). We found that the genes KCTD1 and KCTD15 are mutated in patients with ACC. These genes form a complex that inhibits the activity of AP-2 transcription factors. Inactivation of these genes in neural crest cells (NCCs), from which the mesenchymal cells of the midline cranial sutures are derived, results in ACC. Our data provide evidence that keratinocyte growth factors are secreted by these mesenchymal cells to promote the formation of the overlying epidermis. A key open question is now to understand the precise pathomechanisms that are downstream of this KCTD1/KCTD15 – AP-2 signaling axis, which we will explore in this proposal. These experiments are expected to provide exciting new insights into how skin formation is controlled, which likely has important clinical relevance for multiple skin diseases.

Uncovering the role of glutamine metabolism in host defense against bacterial skin infections

Grantee: Nathan Archer, Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, United States

Amount: DKK 3,957,833

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2025

Geography: USA

Staphylococcus aureus is the primary cause of skin infections and is a serious public health threat due to the emergence of antimicrobial-resistant strains as well as the failure of all vaccine clinical trials to date. Thus, there is an unmet need for new therapeutic strategies as alternatives to antibiotics and vaccines. Our proposal aims to solve this problem by interrogating how our immune cells orchestrate protective responses against S. aureus infections. Specifically, we discovered that the amino acid, glutamine, is critical for host defense against S. aureus in the skin. We will use advanced “omics” approaches to understand how glutamine promotes host defense in specific immune cells in the skin using preclinical infection models as well as clinically infected skin. The goal of this study is to identify previously unrecognized immune pathways that can be targeted to augment host immunity against antimicrobial-resistant S. aureus and potentially other skin pathogens.

Dissecting the Role of Immunometabolism in CD4+ T Cell Skin Residency

Grantee: Tiffany Scharschmidt, Professor & Vice Chair of Research, The Regents of The University of California San Francisco, United States

Amount: DKK 3,416,251

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2025

Geography: USA

We seek to understand how CD4+ T cells adapt to and survive in the skin. These cells are crucial for maintaining skin health but also drive diseases like atopic dermatitis and psoriasis. Despite this, we have much still to learn about the biology of CD4+ T cells residing in skin. To fill this gap, our team will use advanced single-cell techniques to study the metabolism of CD4+ T cells in both mouse and human skin. Preliminary data suggest these cells rely on glycolysis, and we aim to explore this further and identify other important metabolic pathways. In the first part of our study, we will use innovative mouse models and CRISPR-Cas9 technology to pinpoint key metabolic needs and regulators. In the second part, we will extend our findings to human skin, examining CD4+ T cells in both healthy and diseased states. Our goal is to uncover how metabolism influences skin immune function, which could lead to new treatments for chronic inflammatory skin diseases.

The 2025 Gordon Research Conference on Barrier Function of Mammalian Skin

Grantee: Associate Professor Pankaj Karande, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, US on behalf of Gordon Research Conferences, US

Amount: DKK 495,729

Grant category: Research Networking

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

The skin barrier is the first defense against the external environment, and barrier disruption plays a key role in skin and systemic diseases that impact millions of people. The main purpose of the GRC Barrier Function of Mammalian Skin conference is to bring together young investigators and prominent leaders to present the latest developments in skin barrier research.

The 2025 conference, Technologies and platforms for understanding, modelling and intervening in skin barrier function and disorders, will bring together researchers, scientists, engineers, and clinicians involved in research related to skin health and disease. Diverse areas of science will be covered, including cell biology and pathology, microbiology, environmental sciences, bioengineering, biophysics, physical chemistry, and drug delivery.

The meeting will be held August 10-15, 2025.

The LEO Foundation has provided support for the previous Gordon Research Conferences.

The 2025 Gordon Research Conference on Epithelial Differentiation and Keratinization (GRC-EDK)

Grantee: Associate Professor Maria Kasper, Karolinska Institutet, SE on behalf of Gordon Research Conferences, USA

Amount: DKK 319,712

Grant category: Research Networking

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

The Gordon Research Conference on Epithelial Differentiation and Keratinization (GRC-EDK) has been the premier international meeting in skin biology since 1979. The 2025 GRC-EDK meeting is called Epithelial Development, Aging, Disease and Regeneration Across Cells and System and brings together speakers at the forefront of areas including skin immunity, tissue sensing and crosstalk, genomics and epigenomics, aging, regeneration, and novel technologies to drive therapy. The meeting will foster intense interactions at the interphase of these different disciplines and promote discussion to discover synergies and novel therapeutic prospects to advance the field as a whole.

The event will take place May 31-June 1, 2025.

The LEO Foundation has provided support for the three previous Gordon Research Conferences.

Wearable Sensor to Enhance Diagnostics and Health Equity in Allergic Contact Dermatitis

Grantee: Aydogan Ozcan, Professor, The Regents of the University of California, Los Angeles, USA

Amount: DKK 2,854,181

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

Aydogan Ozcan’s project explores a potential alternative to the current diagnostic standard in allergic contact dermatitis (ACD) —patch testing —which has remained largely unchanged since its development over a century ago. It seeks to transform the diagnosis of ACD by developing a novel wearable sensor capable of remote monitoring and early detection. The sensor will be designed to measure changes in the skin’s optical properties, offering a more efficient, convenient, and comfortable alternative to the traditional method of patch testing. Aydogan Ozcan’s project includes the creation of skin phantom models’ representative of diverse skin tones to rigorously test the wearable sensor, followed by a phased human study.

The results of the project could enable more convenient, equitable, and cost-effective diagnosis in ACD, thereby improving patient outcomes. Additionally, this technology holds the potential to be adapted for the monitoring of other skin conditions, representing a significant advancement in the field of dermatology.

Primary cilia: a novel target for skin fibrosis

Grantee: Maria Teves, Assistant Professor, Virginia Commonwealth University, USA

Amount: DKK 3,914,945

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

Maria Teves’ project explores mechanisms behind formation of dermal fibrosis, which is a hallmark of several skin disorders, including systemic sclerosis (SSc). Despite the identification of various contributing factors, the precise molecular mechanisms underlying skin fibrosis in SSc remain poorly understood and there is no effective treatment. In order to uncover these mechanisms and develop new therapeutic strategies, the project focuses on primary cilia (PC), which are specialized solitary cellular organelles involved in molecular signaling. Recently, Maria Teves and her research group discovered links between altered PC to SSc pathophysiology, revealing significant alterations in PC and PC-associated gene expression in skin biopsies from SSc patients. Furthermore, it was found that profibrotic signaling can be triggered both in vivo and in vitro by the genetic ablation of PC-associated genes or by pharmacological agents that damage PC. Building on this critical evidence, the project will test the hypothesis that PC represent novel therapeutic targets for SSc skin fibrosis. A comprehensive approach is proposed to define molecular contributions of PC to the pathogenesis of skin fibrosis and assess the potential of PC-targeted therapies for mitigating fibrotic phenotypes.

Maria Teves’ experiments may lay the groundwork for advanced understanding and possibly treatment and future clinical advances for people suffering from fibrotic skin conditions.

Identifying new, molecularly-targeted treatments for rosacea

Grantee: Anand Ganesan, Professor, The Regents of the University of California Irvine, USA

Amount: DKK 4,000,000

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

Anand Ganesan’s project explores the activation of the innate immune system in rosacea, a chronic skin condition which affects 5% of the world’s population. Rosacea skin has an increased number of blood vessels, which can be induced by the naturally occurring anti-microbial peptide cathelicidin, which is produced by keratinocytes in rosacea skin. While treatment targets and new pharmacotherapies for rosacea have been identified, this knowledge has not yet been translated into new rosacea therapies. RhoJ, a member of the CDC42 GTPase family, plays a critical role in angiogenesis (formation of new blood vessels) in skin and other organs, and RhoJ knockout mice have decreased number of blood vessels in the skin as compared to wild type animals. Anand Ganesan and the research group has discovered a new class of small molecules that inhibit CDC42 GTPase signaling, which prevents vessel accumulation in the skin and colon through a RhoJ-dependent mechanism and also blocks the vascularization of human organoids. Anand Ganesan’s project couples’ single cell and spatial transcriptomics approaches (i.e., analyses of how genes are expressed in individual cells as well as throughout a tissue) with advanced bioinformatics to identify vessel inducing signals in tissue. The research plan includes 1) coupling single cell and spatial transcriptomics with advanced bioinformatics to identify rosacea inducing signals; 2) quantifying vascular changes in rosacea in mice and human model systems; and 3) testing the efficacy of CDC42 inhibitors at blocking cathelicidin-induced angiogenesis.

The project aims to identify new drug targets and test the efficacy of new treatments for rosacea.

Determining the Impacts of Testosterone on S. aureus-induced Skin Damage in Atopic Dermatitis

Grantee: Tamia Harris-Tryon, Associate Professor, UT Southwestern Medical Center, USA

Amount: DKK 2,852,706

Grant category: Research Grants in open competition

Year: 2024

Geography: USA

Tamia Harris-Tryon’s study explores atopic dermatitis (AD) which affects seven percent of adults and twenty percent of children. AD has the highest impact on patient quality of life among skin disorders. The pathogenesis of AD is incompletely understood, and there is an increasing appreciation for the contributions of the microbiome. During AD flares, Staphylococcus aureus expands and exacerbates inflammatory responses and skin damage. While S. aureus dominates the skin microbiome in AD, the mechanisms that drive bacterial expansion during inflammation remain unclear. This question is important because skin breakdown in AD is aggravated by S. aureus toxins. S. aureus exotoxins have been shown to stimulate skin inflammation. Tamia Harris-Tryon’s project will test the central hypothesis that testosterone promotes S. aureus-induced skin damage and inflammation in AD as well as investigate how testosterone stimulates S. aureus-induced skin damage in culture and in mouse models. These experiments will also make use of genetically engineered mice with reduced testosterone production in the skin. This approach will reliably determine how testosterone regulates S. aureus-induced skin damage and inflammation.

The results of Tamia Harris-Tryon’s project may reliably determine how testosterone regulates S. aureus-induced skin damage and inflammation.