"Dr. Edward Chuong is investigating the unexpected role of transposons in shaping immune responses and potentially influencing cancer immunotherapy outcomes. Long considered genomic junk or inert fossils, transposons mobile genetic elements that make up over 50% of the human genome are now emerging as important regulators of host gene expression. Dr. Chuongs research has revealed that transposon-derived regulatory elements have been co-opted as enhancers and transcriptional switches, playing essential roles in innate immune signaling across multiple mammalian lineages, including primates, rodents, and bats."