John B. Sunwoo

Clinical Focus

• Cancer > Head and Neck Cancer
• Thyroid Neoplasms
• Parathyroid Neoplasms
• Head and Neck Cancer
• Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery (Ear, Nose and Throat)

Honors and Awards

• K08 Award, National Institutes of Health (2004)
• Chief Resident Teaching Award, Washington University (2003)
• Alpha Omega Alpha, Washington University (2003)
• Young Investigator Award, American Head and Neck Society (2000)
• Resident Research Award, Washington University (1997, 1999, 2000)

Professional Education

Postdoctoral Advisees

Oihana Murillo Sauca

Graduate & Fellowship Program Affiliations

• Cancer Biology
• Immunology

Research Interests

My laboratory is focused on two primary areas of research: (1) the immune response to head and neck cancer and to a tumorigenic population of cells within these malignancies called cancer stem cells; (2) the developmental programs of a special lymphocyte population involved in innate immunity called natural killer (NK) cells.

The overarching goal of my laboratory is to understand how NK cells, in the broader context of the host immune system, protect against developing and metastasizing tumor cells, especially a rare population of tumor-initiating cells called cancer stem cells. These tumorigenic cells have been isolated from a number of solid tumor malignancies, including human head and neck cancer. Heterogeneity of immune potency between individuals with these malignancies is well accepted but poorly understood. The work in my laboratory will address the questions of how and why the immune system can respond to and control malignant cells in some contexts but not in others. Clarity of the underlying basis for these differences would potentially explain why certain individuals are more susceptible to cancer, lead to better screening strategies, and ultimately provide much needed insight into how the host immune system can be manipulated to control cancer.

Despite the well-documented importance of NK cells in innate immunity, the development of this lymphocyte population is still poorly understood. In many patients afflicted with cancer, the NK cells from those individuals do not respond to typical NK cell stimuli. A more complete understanding of NK cell development may ultimately reveal potential ways by which malignancies render NK cells dysfunctional. My laboratory is particularly interested in understanding the transcriptional regulation of NK cell development and differentiation from stem and progenitor cells.

Publications

• Distal-less homeobox transcription factors regulate development and maturation of natural killer cells. Sunwoo JB, Kim S, Yang L, Naik T, Higuchi DA, Rubenstein JL, Yokoyama WM. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008; 105 (31): 10877-82
• HLA alleles determine differences in human natural killer cell responsiveness and potency. Kim S, Sunwoo JB, Yang L, Choi T, Song YJ, French AR, Vlahiotis A, Piccirillo JF, Cella M, Colonna M, Mohanakumar T, Hsu KC, Dupont B, Yokoyama WM. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2008; 105 (8): 3053-8
• Temporal relationship between antitumor necrosis factor-alpha antibody therapy and recrudescence of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. Engel SH, Hullar TE, Adkins DR, Thorstad WL, Sunwoo JB. Laryngoscope. 2008; 118 (3): 450-2
• Spontaneous regression of cutaneous head and neck melanoma: implications for the immunologic control of neoplasia. Dunn GP, Lewis JS, Sunwoo JB, Uppaluri R. Head Neck. 2008; 30 (2): 267-72
• Mycotic pseudoaneurysm of the internal maxillary artery: case report and review of the literature. Dunn GP, Uppaluri R, Hessler JL, Layland MK, Derdeyn CP, Sunwoo JB. Arch Otolaryngol Head Neck Surg. 2007; 133 (4): 402-6