At the Polish Science Gala, 66 awards (52 individual and 14 team) were announced at the First World Copernican Congress in Toruń. Scientists from the University of Gdańsk: Director of the International Centre for Cancer Vaccine Studies (ICCVS) prof. dr hab. Natalia Marek-Trzonkowska and dr Łukasz Rąbalski from the Department of Recombinant Vaccines received awards from the Minister of Education and Science.
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As stated by official Gdańsk University page, “Prof. Natalia Marek- Trzonkowska is a co-developer of a clinical therapy using regulatory T cells (Tregs) in the treatment of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), type 1 diabetes (T1D) and multiple sclerosis (MS). Her research, in collaboration with dr Karolina Piekarska, led to 2 inventions related to Tregs cell therapy, which were filed with the European Patent Office (EPO) in 2020. These inventions enhance the therapeutic potential of Treg lymphocytes multiplied in vitro in the presence of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). The developed methods were created through the cooperation of the University of Gdańsk, the Medical University of Gdańsk and the PolTREG S.A. company. They are being commercialised by PolTREG S.A. and implemented in treating type 1 diabetes in children.”
On the other hand, “Dr Łukasz Rąbalski, assistant professor at the Department of Recombinant Vaccines of the Intercollegiate Faculty of Biotechnology of the University of Gdańsk and the Medical University of Gdańsk, received an individual award from the Minister of Education and Science for a significant achievement in scientific activity: ‘Determination of the genetic variability of the SARS-CoV-2 virus within the human population and during interspecies transmission’.”