Development of novel cell and gene therapies

Clinical Center

Investigators

Linked publications, trials & patents

Abstract

The Center for Cellular Engineering (CCE) is working to develop and improve cancer cellular therapies including Dendritic Cell (DC) therapies, Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapies and T cells engineered to express T cell receptors (TCRs) specific to tumor antigens. The laboratory is also working to improve the methods used to produce CAR T cells and induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells for regenerative medicine applications. The CCE New Production Management (NPM) laboratory has developed and is manufacturing several CAR T cell therapies. CD22-CAR T cells, CD19/CD22-bispecific T cells and CD19/CD22-bicistronic CAR T cells are being manufactured in order to treat pediatric patients with B cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The laboratory has also developed CD19/CD20-bispecific CAR T cells which will soon be used to treat patients with lymphoma. The laboratory has developed procedures to manufacture CD19/CD22-CAR T cells using a completely automated instrument. This automated instrument has been used to develop anti-Glypican-3 CAR T cells which are being used to treat patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. The laboratory has also compared the characteristics of the same CAR T cells manufactured using different methods and found some important differences. Human Papillomavirus (HPV) infection is associated with a number of cancers. The NPM laboratory has developed a method to produce T cells that express a T cell receptor (TCR) that is specific for the HPV-16 oncoprotein E7. These cells are being used to treat patients with HPV-associated cervical and oropharyngeal cancers. The laboratory has also recently completed the development of KK-LC-1 specific TCR engineered T-cells. These cells will also be used to treat patients with HPV-associated cancers.