Meissner Lab
Enabling Cell Therapy Through Cell Engineering
Principle Investigator
Torsten Meissner, Ph.D. 
Dr. Torsten Meissner is an Assistant Professor of Surgery at Harvard Medical School and holds an appointment in the Division of Surgical Sciences at BIDMC. His groundbreaking work began during his postdoctoral research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, where he discovered the role of NLRC5 as a key regulator of HLA class I genes—vital for transplant compatibility (PNAS 2010; 107(31):13794-9). This discovery laid the foundation for his future research. Mentored by renowned experts at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute, including Drs. Jack Strominger, Chad Cowan, and Douglas Melton, Dr. Meissner has advanced genome editing techniques to create human pluripotent stem cells that resist immune rejection (PNAS 2019; 116:10441-10446).
In 2019, Dr. Meissner joined BIDMC’s Department of Surgery, where his lab focuses on developing 'universal donor cells'—immune-resistant cells designed as off-the-shelf products for transplantation. These cells could make emerging cell therapies more accessible and affordable, especially for diseases like Type 1 diabetes (T1D), Parkinson's disease (PD), and macular degeneration (MD), which require replacing lost tissue with healthy cells (StemJournal 2020; 2(1):1-5).
The major challenge in stem cell therapies is immune rejection, but Dr. Meissner’s research is advancing solutions. In collaboration with Dr. Elliot Chaikof’s lab, his team is also working on hypoimmunogenic blood vessels derived from stem cells, aiming to develop living 'off-the-shelf' products for vascular reconstruction (Current Stem Cell Reports 2022; 8(4):206-218).
Research
Universal Donor Cells
The primary goal of our research is to create 'universal donor cells' that will resist immune rejection long-term. Designed as 'off-the-shelf' products, ready for transplantation into any patient in need, such cells will be crucial to drive down the cost of production and thus democratize access to emerging cell therapies.