Prof. Marianne Carlon is an Assistant Professor at KU Leuven in the Laboratory of Respiratory Thoracic Surgery (BREATHE), affiliated with the Centre for Molecular Medicine. Her team investigates chronic lung diseases, with a focus on cystic fibrosis and pulmonary fibrosis. Their work aims to unravel inflammatory and fibrotic mechanisms and develop innovative therapeutic strategies, particularly CRISPR-based approaches.
Recent research highlights the safe and efficient correction of CFTR mutations in patient-derived models using base and prime editing. These genome editing tools are also being explored for gene modulation in lung tissue, including in the setting of lung transplantation.
Effective in vivo delivery of CRISPR components remains a major hurdle. To overcome this, her group uses virus-like particles (VLPs) as a "hit-and-run" strategy for transient, targeted delivery. Ongoing efforts aim to tailor VLPs for specific lung cell targeting. To accelerate translation, her lab develops advanced in vitro models such as patient-derived organoids and organ-on-chip systems, enabling functional validation of novel therapies.
She acts WP3 Leader and as the Main Supervisor of DC11.