Armand Keating
Profile: Senior Scientist, University Health Network
Department: Institute of Biomaterials and Biomedical Engineering
Research interests:
Armand Keating’s research activities focus on two aspects of cell therapy. One focus involves cell-based anti-cancer therapy which spans the gamut of research from signal transduction pathways of cytolytic activity in NK cells to the use of different cell types (NK cells, NK cell lines, gamma delta T cells, antigen-specific cytotoxic T cells) in the treatment of a variety of cancers, including the lymphomas, chronic myeloid leukemia, acute leukemia and multiple myeloma. While translational research is a key component of his program, there is a strong commitment to initiate early phase clinical trials to treat these malignancies. A state-of-the-art Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) facility (the Orsino Facility) at PMH enables complex cell therapy protocols to be undertaken and a multidisciplinary team is in place to conduct the cell therapy clinical trials.
The other research focus is on regenerative medicine, especially on the role of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) and hematopoietic progenitor cells in repairing a variety of tissues including heart, lung, kidney, spinal cord, blood vessels and in wound healing. These studies are done in collaboration with leading investigators in the respective fields. The work spans mechanistic in vitro and pre-clinical animal (generally murine) studies and extends to the development and initiation of early phase clinical trials.