Disease specific engineering of CAR T cells utilizing chemokine receptors (B01)

• Subject Area: Hematology, Oncology ; Biochemistry ; Immunology
• Term: since 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 452881907

Adoptive cell therapy is hampered by limited homing of transferred cells to the tumor-site. Chemokine receptor expression profiles of transferred cells determine tissue and possibly tumor-specific cell homing. Hence, chemokine-engineered CAR T cells might be suitable to enhance tumor-tissue homing in a disease specific way and thereby improve CAR T cell potency. Suitable chemokine-chemokine receptor pairs for colon cancer and acute myeloid leukemia will be identified and functionally tested in in-vitro and in-vivo model system. The most promising chemokine modification of CAR T cells will be further explored for integration in an early clinical trial in a disease-specific manner.

• DFG Programme: CRC/Transregios
• Subproject of: TRR 338: LETSIMMUN - Lymphocyte Engineering for Therapeutic Synthetic Immunity
• Applicant Institution: Technische Universität München (TUM)
• Project Heads: Professor Dr. Sebastian Kobold; Professorin Dr. Marion Subklewe