Dr. Mailliard’s research focuses on the central role played by dendritic cells (DCs) in the induction and regulation of the immune response. He is also interested in the non-classical “helper” functions of NK cells and CD8+ cytotoxic T cells and their influence on DC function during infection and vaccination. His goal is to have a better understanding of basic immunity for the purpose of developing more effective cellular based immunotherapy strategies to treat chronic diseases including HIV and cancer. His work has led to the development of the first clinically applicable type-1 polarized dendritic cell-based vaccine platform (alpha-DC1), which is currently being explored in clinical trials for the treatment of different cancers and HIV. His lab is currently exploring the use of DCs as an HIV immunotherapeutic “kick and kill” tool to both drive HIV latency reversal and to prime cytotoxic T cell responses against the infected CD4+ T cell reservoir as a functional cure strategy. He is a co-investigator of the Mulitcenter AIDS Cohort Study/ Women’s Interagency HIV Study (MACS/WIHS Combined Cohort Study) and the the Advancing Clinical Therapeutics Globally for HIV/AIDS and Other Infections (ACTG) network, and he serves as the Associate Director of The Systems Biology & Biostatistics Core of the CWRU/Pitt Center for AIDS Research (Rustbelt CFAR).
- BS, Microbiology, University of Pittsburgh, 1990
- PhD, Immunology, University of Amsterdam, 2006
- Post-Doc, Tumor Immunology, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Division of Surgical Oncology, 2007
Education & Training
Mailliard, RB., Wankowicz-Kalinska, A., Cai, Q., Wesa, A., Hilkens, CM., Kapsenberg, ML., Kirkwood, JM., Storkus, WJ., Kalinski, P. Alpha-Type-1 Polarized Dendritic Cells: a Novel Immunization Tool with Optimized CTL-Inducing Activity. Cancer Research. 2004; 64 (17).: 5934-7.
Mailliard, RB., Alber, SM., Shen, H., Watkins, SC., Kirkwood, JM., Herberman, RB., Kalinski, P. IL-18-Induced CD83+CCR7+ NK Helper Cells. The Journal of Experimental Medicine. 2005; 202 (7).: 941-53.
Mailliard, RB., Smith, KN., Fecek, RJ., Rappocciolo, G., Nascimento, EJ., Marques, ET., Watkins, SC., Mullins, JI., Rinaldo, CR. Selective Induction of CTL Helper Rather Than Killer Activity by Natural Epitope Variants Promotes Dendritic Cell-Mediated HIV-1 Dissemination. Journal of Immunology. 2013; 191 (5).: 2570-80.
Zaccard, CR., Watkins, SC., Kalinski, P., Fecek, RJ., Yates, AL., Salter, RD., Ayyavoo, V., Rinaldo, CR., Mailliard, RB. CD40L Induces Functional Tunneling Nanotube Networks Exclusively in Dendritic Cells Programmed by Mediators of Type 1 Immunity. Journal of Immunology. 2015; 194 (3).: 1047-56.
Garcia-Bates, TM, Palma, ML., Gambotto, A., Macatangay, BJC., Ferris, RL., Rinaldo, CR ., Mailliard, RB. Contrasting Roles of the PD-1 Signaling Pathway in Dendritic Cell Mediated Induction and Regulation of HIV-1 Specific Cytotoxic T Cell Responses. Journal of Virology. 2019; 93(5).: e02035-18.
Kristoff, J., Palma, ML., Garcia-Bates, TM., Shen, C., Sluis-Cremer, N., Gupta, P., Rinaldo, CR., Mailliard, RB. Type 1-Programmed Dendritic Cells Drive Antigen-Specific Latency Reversal and Immune Elimination of Persistent HIV-1. eBioMedicine. 2019; 43: 295-306.
Anderko, RR., Rinaldo, CR., Mailliard, RB. IL-18 Responsiveness Defines Limitations in Immune ‘Help’ for Specialized FcR?– NK Cells. Journal of Immunology. 2020; 205(12).: 3429-3442.
Biradar, S., Agarwal, Y., Lotze, MT., Bility, MT., Mailliard, RB. The BLT Humanized Mouse Model as a Tool for Studying Human Gamma Delta T Cell-HIV Interactions in Vivo. Frontiers in Immunology. 2022; 13: 18:881607.
Anderko, RR., Mailliard, RB. Mapping the Interplay Between NK Cells and HIV: Therapeutic Implications. Journal of Leukocyte Biology. 2023; 113(2).: 109–138.
Garcia-Bates, TM., Palma, ML., Anderko, RR., Hsu, DC., Ananworanich, J., Kober, BT., Gaiha, GD., Phanuphak, N., Thomas, R., Tovanabutra, S., Walker, BD., Mellors, JW., Piazza, PA., Kroon, E., Riddler, SA., Michael, NL., Rinaldo, CR., Mailliard RB, on behalf of the I4C and RV254 Study Groups. Dendritic Cells Focus CTL Responses Toward Highly Conserved HIV Epitopes. EBioMedicine. 2021; 64: 103217.
- Member, The Society for Leukocyte Biology, 2012-Present
- Member, American Association of Immunologists (AAI), 2013-Present
- Member, International Aids Society (IAS), 2015-Present
- Frontiers in Immunology - Editorial Board Member (Section: Antigen Presenting Cell Biology), 2020-Present
- Pathogens - Editorial Board Member (Section: Immunological Responses and Immune Defense Mechanisms), 2021-Present
- Frontiers in Virology - Associate Editor (Section: Modeling of Viral Replication and Pathogenesis), 2021-Present
- amfAR, Foundation for AIDS Research, HIV Cure Target Grants Review Panel, 2022
- NIH/NAID, R21-AI-041 Special Emphasis Review Panel: Innate Immune Memory Impacting HIV Acquisition and/or Control, 2022
- NIH/NAID, HIV Immunopathogenesis and Vaccine Development (HIVD) Study Section, 2022-2023
- Patent: U.S. Provisional 62/867.501 International # PCT/USA2020/03984 (Pitt Reference 04973) Compositions and Methods for Detecting HIV Latency, Treating HIV Infection, and Reversing HIV Latency, 2020
