Dr. Julius Fischer, from the Technical University of Munich, has been awarded the prestigious Jon J. Van Rood Award at the 2026 European Society for Blood and Marrow Transplantation (EBMT) Annual Meeting. The award recognizes Fischer's significant contributions to understanding immune responses in tissue damage and regeneration.
Fischer's research challenges the traditional view of immune responses as solely destructive. His team's work, using allogeneic transplantation as a model, revealed that interferon gamma (IFN-γ), often associated with tissue injury, can promote regeneration in specific contexts. This finding has been translated to other settings, such as radiation therapy, identifying a broader principle where IFN-γ, in conjunction with regulatory T cells, supports intestinal epithelial repair.
This research shifts the focus from viewing immune cells as damaging forces to recognizing their context-dependent role in regulating tissue integrity. These concepts are crucial not only for transplantation outcomes but also for understanding immune-mediated tissue damage in areas like cellular therapies and immune checkpoint inhibitor treatments.
A pivotal discovery was realizing IFN-γ's dual role in tissue damage and regeneration, challenging a core assumption in the field. Equally significant was identifying that regulatory T cells actively orchestrate intestinal regeneration independently of their classical immunosuppressive functions. These principles have extended beyond alloimmunity to radiation-induced tissue injury.
Collaboration has been central to Fischer's work, connecting experimental research with clinical questions and fostering an integrated view of immune-mediated tissue injury and repair across transplantation, oncology, and radiation biology.