Ping-Chih Ho

Ping-Chih Ho discovered that cholesterol accumulation in tumor-infiltrating T cells upregulates immune checkpoint receptors and drives T cell exhaustion through ER stress and XBP1 activation, identifying lipid metabolism dysregulation as a novel mechanism of immune evasion in the tumor microenvironment. His work on oxidized lipids in the tumor microenvironment showed that tumor-derived oxidized LDL impairs dendritic cell cross-presentation and T cell priming against tumor antigens. He develops lipid-modulating interventions including statin combinations with checkpoint inhibitors and lipid droplet-targeting strategies to restore anti-tumor immune function in lipid-rich tumors.