Chimeric antigen receptor-based therapies beyond cancer

CAR-macrophage: Breaking new ground in cellular immunotherapy

Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) technology has revolutionized cellular immunotherapy, particularly with the success of CAR-T cells in treating hematologic malignancies. However, CAR-T cells have the limited efficacy of against solid tumors. To address these limitations, CAR-macrophages (CAR-Ms) leverage the innate properties of macrophages with the specificity and potency of CAR technology, offering a novel and promising approach to cancer immunotherapy. Preclinical studies have shown that CAR-Ms can effectively target and destroy tumor cells, even within challenging microenvironments, by exhibiting direct cytotoxicity and enhancing the recruitment and activation of other immune cells. Additionally, the favorable safety profile of macrophages and their persistence within solid tumors position CAR-Ms as potentially safer and more durable therapeutic options compared to CAR-T cells. This review explores recent advancements in CAR-Ms technology, including engineering strategies to optimize their anti-tumor efficacy and preclinical evidence supporting their use. We also discuss the challenges and future directions in developing CAR-Ms therapies, emphasizing their potential to revolutionize cellular immunotherapy. By harnessing the unique properties of macrophages, CAR-Ms offer a groundbreaking approach to overcoming the current limitations of CAR-T cell therapies, paving the way for more effective and sustainable cancer treatments.

CD6 and Its Interacting Partners: Newcomers to the Block of Cancer Immunotherapies

Cancer management still requires more potent and safer treatments, of which immunomodulatory receptors on the lymphocyte surface have started to show promise in new cancer immunotherapies (e.g., CTLA-4 and PD-1). CD6 is a signal-transducing transmembrane receptor, mainly expressed by all T cells and some B and NK cell subsets, whose endogenous ligands (CD166/ALCAM, CD318/CDCP-1, Galectins 1 and 3) are overexpressed by malignant cells of different lineages. This places CD6 as a potential target for novel therapies against haematological and non-haematological malignancies. Recent experimental evidence for the role of CD6 in cancer immunotherapies is summarised in this review, dealing with diverse and innovative strategies from the classical use of monoclonal antibodies to soluble recombinant decoys or the adoptive transfer of immune cells engineered with chimeric antigen receptors.

Enhancing Regulatory T Cells to Treat Inflammatory and Autoimmune Diseases

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) control immune responses and are essential to maintain immune homeostasis and self-tolerance. Hence, it is no coincidence that autoimmune and chronic inflammatory disorders are associated with defects in Tregs. These diseases have currently no cure and are treated with palliative drugs such as immunosuppressant and immunomodulatory agents. Thereby, there is a great interest in developing medical interventions against these diseases based on enhancing Treg cell function and numbers. Here, we give an overview of Treg cell ontogeny and function, paying particular attention to mucosal Tregs. We review some notable approaches to enhance immunomodulation by Tregs with therapeutic purposes including adoptive Treg cell transfer therapy and discuss relevant clinical trials for inflammatory bowel disease. We next introduce ways to expand mucosal Tregs in vivo using microbiota and dietary products that have been the focus of clinical trials in various autoimmune and chronic-inflammatory diseases.