Ronald Chen

Ronald Chen studies Toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists as immune activators for cancer therapy and vaccine adjuvants. His research has characterized TLR signaling pathways in dendritic cells and macrophages within the tumor microenvironment and identified mechanisms by which cancer cells suppress innate sensing through epigenetic silencing of TLR pathway components. He has evaluated TLR7/8 and TLR9 agonists in combination with cancer vaccines and checkpoint inhibitors to drive coordinated innate and adaptive anti-tumor immunity. His work advances TLR-based immunotherapy from preclinical mechanisms to clinical application.