Principal investigator
Koen AIMs to create a safe haven
for creativity
and innovation
Koen Breyne is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at Harvard Medical School (HMS) and Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), with a background in Biochemistry and Biotechnology. He completed his Ph.D. in 2015 at Ghent University and pursued postdoctoral training at UChicago and MGH. Dr. Breyne has extensive expertise in molecular biology, extracellular vesicles, and immunology. His research is dedicated to advancing innovative diagnostics and therapies, with a focus on hereditary neurological disorders and brain cancer.
the BreyneLAb
PHD student
Ayrton
turns EVS INTO vectors for DELIVERY TO
the brain
Ayrton is a PhD Student from the University of Geneva. In the Breyne Lab, Ayrton focuses on bridging the gap between genome editing precision and targeted delivery to the CNS. Specifically, he is using engineering extracellular vesicles to cross the blood-brain barrier to treat hereditary neurological disorders, like DYT1 dystonia, with prime editing. Additionally, Ayrton is engineering new EV platforms capable of overcoming the cargo limitations and immunogenicity concerns of existing platforms.
PHD STUDENT
PIERRE
examines Adenosine
in the GBM
MICROENVIRONMENT
Pierre is a PhD student from the University of Geneva, where he completed his studies in pharmacy. In the BreyneLab, he investigates how adenosine-mediated immunosuppression shapes the glioblastoma microenvironment, focusing on its impact on dendritic cell function and CD8⁺ T cell activity. His project aims to develop therapeutic strategies that combine A2A receptor blockade with standard chemotherapy to restore dendritic cell–driven T cell priming and enhance anti-tumor cytotoxic responses. Through in vivo glioma models and ex vivo analyses of human tumor samples, Pierre’s work seeks to uncover how adenosine signaling impairs immune activation and to identify ways to reinvigorate local anti-tumor immunity.
Postdoctoral FELLOW
Edwina
tests NEW gene therapy against TSC
AND NF tumor formation
Edwina Abou Haidar is a medical graduate from St. George’s University of London and holds a master’s degree in molecular biology from the Lebanese American University. Currently, as a postdoctoral research fellow at HMS/MGH, she is dedicated to advancing pre-clinical gene therapy in mouse models of Tuberous Sclerosis Types 1 and 2 and Neurofibromatosis Types 1 and 2. In the BreyneLab, Edwina is exploring the potential of EVs released by AAV-transduced cells to enhance therapeutic protein delivery in a TSC1 mouse model.
research technician
Cristiana
TARGETS spinocerebellar
ATAXIA with CRispr
Cristiana is a PhD student at MGH/HMS from the Algarve Biomedical Center Research Institute at the University of Algarve, Portugal. In the Breyne Lab, Cristiana engineers extracellular vesicles to deliver CRISPR-Cas therapeutics for PolyQ spinocerebellar ataxias and develops next-generation EV platforms designed to cross the blood–brain barrier and target specific neurons. Her research aims to improve the precision and efficiency of therapeutic delivery to the brain.
PHD student
KeVIN
OPTIMIZES EVs as DELIVERY
SYSTEMS FOR GENOME EDITORS
Kevin Leandro is a visiting PhD student at MGH/HMS from the Center for Neuroscience and Cell Biology at the University of Coimbra, Portugal. He is engineering extracellular vesicles as a platform to deliver CRISPR-Cas technologies in the context of neurodegenerative disorders. In the BreyneLab, Kevin aims to enhance the delivery of therapeutic cargo to the brain.
research technician
Alessandro
STUDIES
mitochondrial
STRESS
in GBM
Alessandro is a Master’s student from the University of Geneva. In the Breyne Lab, he studies how temozolomide (TMZ)-induced stress regulates extracellular ATP release and mitochondrial function in tumor cells, and how these changes shape immune signaling in the brain tumor microenvironment.
ALUMNI
2025
Tyler (Tianhe Xiao), PhD graduate Student, University of Ohio, MA, USA
Yaroslav Ivanchenko, PhD graduate Student, Bowdoin University, MA, USA
Emilie Vilaylack Sayavongsa, MS, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Elie Roumeih, MD, Residency at Henry Ford Health, Detroit, MI, USA
Mia Gurevich, PhD graduate Student, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, FL
Kevin Leandro, PhD, University of Coimbra, Portugal, EU
2024
Wata Obuchi , Postdoctoral fellow, Tohoku University, Japan
Katia Maalouf, Postdoctoral fellow, Leibniz University of Hanover, Germany, EU
Madison (Dawn M.) Frederick, PhD graduate Student, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, USA
Markus W. Schweiger, PhD graduate Student, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Netherlands, EU
Merel Korstanje, PhD graduate student, Leiden University Medical Center, Netherlands, EU
2023
Taral R Lunavat, Postdoctoral fellow, University of Bergen, Norway
Nourhan Saied, master student, Beni-Suef University, Egypt
2022
Sanne Van De Looij, master student, Utrecht University, Netherlands, EU
Alexandra De Reus, master student, Utrecht University, Netherlands, EU
Emily Anahid Grandell, master student, Northeastern University, USA
Shadi Mahjoum, undergraduate student UMass, USA
David Rufino-Ramos, PhD graduate student, Portugal, EU
Christine Lee, undergraduate student, Harvard University, USA
2021
Eesha Yadav, undergraduate student Johns Hopkins University 2019, USA
2020
Stefano Ughetto, PhD graduate student, University of Turin 2019, Italy, EU