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Etienne Caron, PhD

Assistant Professor
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About

Titles

Assistant Professor

Biography

Dr. Caron is a Canadian scientist with a background in Biotechnology and Systems Immunology. He received his PhD from the University of Montreal in Canada under the guidance of Dr. Claude Perreault and completed his education at ETH-Zürich in Switzerland under the guidance of Dr. Ruedi Aebersold. Dr. Caron is known for his international leadership and expertise in immunopeptidomics for the global analysis of MHC-associated peptides using mass spectrometry technologies. His scientific program has the potential to revolutionize the research on vaccine design, cancer immunotherapy, infectious and autoimmune diseases, including treatment of neurodegenerative diseases and aging.

Dr. Caron began his career as a Principal Investigator in 2018 at the University of Montreal, Canada. In 2023, Dr. Caron was recruited by the Yale Center for Immuno-Oncology (YCIO) and the Department of Immunobiology. He is also currently a member of the Yale Center for Infection and Immunity (CII), and the Yale Center for Systems and Engineering Immunology (CSEI).

Dr. Caron initiated the Human Immunopeptidome Project and was Chair from 2015 to 2020. He was the first to identify tumor-specific mutated peptides, known as neoantigens, using mass spectrometry and to develop data-independent acquisition mass spectrometry for the analysis of immunopeptidomes. He also initiated the SysteMHC Atlas Project as the first public data repository toward a community-driven global mapping of the human immunopeptidome.

Dr. Caron has co-founded the start-up Neomabs Biotechnologies Inc., with the goal of transforming the treatment of childhood leukemia through targeted immunotherapies. He has also provided distinctive services to the life sciences industry through numerous collaborations with companies such as Biognosys, ImmunXperts, CellCarta, Genentech, and Flagship Pioneering.

Appointments

Education & Training

Postdoctoral Fellow
ETH Zürich (2018)
Postdoctoral Fellow
EMBL Barcelona (2012)
PhD
University of Montreal (2011)
Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) Fellow
University of Tokyo (2009)
MSc
University of Montreal (2005)
BSc
University of Sherbrooke (2001)
B.Sc. Industrial work terms
Shire Biochem (2001)

Research

Overview

In the post-GWAS era, the HLA has been established as the region of the genome that is associated with the greatest number of human diseases, ranging from cancer and infectious diseases to autoimmune and neurodegenerative disorders.

HLA proteins present an extremely large and complex array of peptide fragments, which include both self and nonself peptides, collectively referred to as the human immunopeptidome.

CD8+ and CD4+ T cells interact with the human immunopeptidome through constant TCR recognition of both agonist and antagonist peptides, together shaping disease susceptibility, progression, or resistance. Nevertheless, very little is known about it from a systems-level and mechanistic perspective.

In this context, the overarching goal of the Caron Lab is to develop and apply mass spectrometry-based methods and systems immunology approaches to understand the generation, composition and dynamics of both the self and nonself immunopeptidome, as well as its interaction with CD8+ and CD4+ T cells, with the ultimate goal of innovating treatments and preventive strategies for a broad range of immune-related diseases.

To achieve this goal, the Caron Lab prioritizes the development of next-generation immunopeptidomics technologies, develops a systems immunopeptidomics framework to challenge the current T-cell activation paradigm, and collaborates with clinical investigators and researchers in the fields of autoimmunity, infectious diseases, and cancer to make an impact in vaccine design and T-cell-based immunotherapy.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH)

Antigen Presentation; Autoimmune Diseases; Cancer Vaccines; Computational Biology; HLA Antigens; Immunotherapy; Infectious Disease Medicine; Major Histocompatibility Complex; Mass Spectrometry; Microfluidics; Neurodegenerative Diseases; Proteomics; Single-Cell Analysis; Space Research; Spatial Analysis; Systems Biology

Research at a Glance

Yale Co-Authors

Frequent collaborators of Etienne Caron's published research.

Publications

2024

2023

2022

2021

Academic Achievements & Community Involvement

  • honor

    Effervescence Stars Award

  • honor

    Research Scholars - Junior 2

  • honor

    Bravo Recherche – COVID edition

  • honor

    Research Scholars - Junior 1

  • honor

    Marie-Curie Intra-European Fellowship

Get In Touch

Contacts

Academic Office Number

Administrative Support

Locations

  • Caron Lab

    Academic Office

    300 George Street, Fl 3rd, Rm 353G

    New Haven, CT 06511