CV Science

Laurent Gorvel Ph.D. Health and Diseases, Immunology

Course and current status

Dr. Laurent Gorvel is an Immunologist specializing in myeloid cell functions and tumor microenvironments. After obtaining his PhD in 2013 on dendritic cell and macrophage responses to chronic bacterial infections, he completed a postdoctoral fellowship at Washington University in St. Louis in Eynav Klechevsky’s lab, focusing on dendritic cell regulation of cytotoxic cells in health and diseases. Currently a researcher within the Immunity & Cancer team and the Immunomonitoring platform at the CRCM (Marseille), his research investigates macrophage-mediated resistance to conventional cancer therapies as well as macrophage targeting therapies, in gynecological tumors. His studies rely on high-dimensional techniques such as mass and spectral cytometry as well as spatial characterization of tumor microenvironments to identify novel therapeutic targets. Recently Dr. Gorvel also co-founded the BIOHAFIA cytometry platform and master’s program in Guinea to help with the development of cytometry and immunology in this country.

Scientific summary

Dr. Gorvel research addresses fundamental questions regarding the role of tumor associated macrophages (TAMs) within solid tumors, their influence on the tumor microenvironment, and the reciprocal impact of the TME on TAMs behavior, while deciphering the underlying molecular mechanisms and plasticity. This research recquires the implementation of analytical pipelines integrating high-throughput methods, artificial intelligence/machine learning algorithms to identify immunotherapy targets expressed by TAMs, and innovative ex vivo human sample culture methods to evaluate the response of both TAMs and the TME to potential therapies. A secondary objective of this scientific approach is to address the continuous improvement of experimental models through new technologies, thereby enhancing the study of mechanisms governing therapeutic response and resistance. Ultimately, this approach facilitates the transition of potential therapeutic agents toward preclinical trials and the promotion of these findings through scientific publications and patents.