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Harrer DC, Li SS, Kaljanac M, Bezler V, Barden M, Pan H, Herr W, Abken H. Magnetic CAR T cell purification using an anti-G4S linker antibody. J Immunol Methods 2024; 528:113667. [PMID: 38574803 DOI: 10.1016/j.jim.2024.113667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/09/2024] [Revised: 03/30/2024] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 04/06/2024]
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) redirected T cells are successfully employed in the combat against several hematological malignancies, however, are often compromised by low transduction rates making refinement of the CAR T cell products necessary. Here, we report a broadly applicable enrichment protocol relying on marking CAR T cells with an anti-glycine4-serine (G4S) linker antibody followed by magnetic activated cell sorting (MACS). The protocol is broadly applicable since the G4S peptide is an integral part of the vast majority of CARs as it links the VH and VL recognition domains. We demonstrate the feasibility by using the canonical second generation CARs specific for CEA and Her2, respectively, obtaining highly purified CAR T cell products in a one-step procedure without impairing cell viability. The protocol is also applicable to a dual specific CAR (tandem CAR). Except for CD39, T cell activation/exhaustion markers were not upregulated after separation. Purified CAR T cells retained their functionality with respect to antigen-specific cytokine secretion, cytotoxicity, and the capacity to proliferate and eliminate cognate tumor cells upon repetitive stimulation. Collectively, the one-step protocol for purifying CAR T cells extends the toolbox for preclinical research and specifically for clinical CAR T cell manufacturing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis Christoph Harrer
- Department of Internal Medicine III - Hematology and Medical Oncology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany; Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany.
| | - Sin-Syue Li
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany; Division of Hematology, Department of Internal Medicine, National Cheng Kung University Hospital, College of Medicine, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan, Taiwan
| | - Marcell Kaljanac
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany
| | - Valerie Bezler
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany
| | - Markus Barden
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany
| | - Hong Pan
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany
| | - Wolfgang Herr
- Department of Internal Medicine III - Hematology and Medical Oncology, University Hospital Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany
| | - Hinrich Abken
- Leibniz Institute for Immunotherapy, Div. Genetic Immunotherapy, Regensburg, and Chair Genetic Immunotherapy, University Regensburg, Germany
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Smith R, Shen R. Complexities in comparing the impact of costimulatory domains on approved CD19 CAR functionality. J Transl Med 2023; 21:515. [PMID: 37518011 PMCID: PMC10387212 DOI: 10.1186/s12967-023-04372-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/17/2023] [Indexed: 08/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) are engineered to target T cells specifically to tumor cells, resulting in the engineered T cell killing the tumor cell. This technology has been developed to target a range of cancers, with the most notable successes in the treatment of B-cell malignancies where four approved therapies, all targeting CD19, are on the market. These four products differ in the costimulation domains, with axicabtagene ciloleucel (Yescarta) and brexucabtagene autoleucel (Tecartus) both utilizing the CD28 costimulation domain whilst tisagenlecleucel (Kymriah) and lisocabtagene maraleucel (Breyanzi) both utilizing the 4-1BB costimulation domain. There are clearly defined differences in how the CD28 and 4-1BB domains signal, yet it is difficult to ascertain which domain affords a superior mechanism of action given many other differences between these products, including overall CAR architecture and manufacturing methods. Additionally, while in vitro and preclinical in vivo studies have compared CARs with different costimulation domains, it remains a challenge to extrapolate differences observed in this biology across different experimental systems to the overall product performance. While there has been extensive preclinical and clinical work looking at CARs with a variety of targeting domains and architectures, this review will focus on the differences between the four marketed anti-CD19 CAR-Ts, with an additional focus on the impact of hinge and transmembrane domain on CAR activity and interaction with the target cell as well as other proteins on the surface of the T-cell.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Rhine Shen
- Kite Pharma Inc, Santa Monica, CA, 90404, USA
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Hussein MS, Li Q, Mao R, Peng Y, He Y. TCR T cells overexpressing c-Jun have better functionality with improved tumor infiltration and persistence in hepatocellular carcinoma. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1114770. [PMID: 37215108 PMCID: PMC10192869 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1114770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Accepted: 04/21/2023] [Indexed: 05/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Background The overall 5-year survival rate of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), a major form of liver cancer, is merely 20%, underscoring the need for more effective therapies. We recently identified T cell receptors (TCR) specific for the HLA-A2/alpha fetoprotein amino acids 158-166 (AFP158) and showed that these TCR engineered T cells could control HCC xenografts in NSG mice. However, their efficacy was limited by poor expansion, loss of function, and short persistence of the TCR T cells. Here, we studied whether overexpression of c-Jun, a transcription factor required for T cell activation, in the TCR T cells could enhance their expansion, function, and persistence in HCC tumor models. Methods Recombinant lentiviral vectors (lv), expressing either the HLA-A2/AFP158-specific TCR or both the TCR and c-Jun (TCR-JUN), were constructed and used to transduce primary human T cells to generate the TCR or TCR-JUN T cells, respectively. We compared the expansion, effector function, and exhaustion status of the TCR and TCR-JUN T cells in vitro after HCC tumor stimulation. Additionally, we studied the persistence and antitumor effects of the TCR and TCR-JUN T cells using the HCC xenografts in NSG mice. Results We could effectively transduce primary human T cells to express both TCR and c-Jun. Compared to the HLA-A2/AFP158 TCR T cells, the TCR-JUN T cells have better expansion potential in culture, with enhanced functional capacity against HCC tumor cells. In addition, the TCR-JUN T cells were less apoptotic and more resistant to exhaustion after HepG2 tumor stimulation. In the HCC xenograft tumor model, c-Jun overexpression enhanced the TCR T cell expansion and increased the overall survival rate of the treated mice. Importantly, the TCR-JUN T cells were less exhausted in the tumor lesions and demonstrated enhanced tumor infiltration, functionality, and persistence. Conclusion c-Jun overexpression can enhance the expansion, function, and persistence of the A2/AFP158 TCR engineered T cells. The c-Jun gene co-delivery has the potential to enhance the antitumor efficacy of AFP specific TCR T cells when treating patients with HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mohamed S. Hussein
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Qi Li
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Rui Mao
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Yibing Peng
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Yukai He
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
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He C, Mansilla-Soto J, Khanra N, Hamieh M, Bustos V, Paquette AJ, Garcia Angus A, Shore DM, Rice WJ, Khelashvili G, Sadelain M, Meyerson JR. CD19 CAR antigen engagement mechanisms and affinity tuning. Sci Immunol 2023; 8:eadf1426. [PMID: 36867678 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.adf1426] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/05/2023]
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapy relies on T cells that are guided by synthetic receptors to target and lyse cancer cells. CARs bind to cell surface antigens through an scFv (binder), the affinity of which is central to determining CAR T cell function and therapeutic success. CAR T cells targeting CD19 were the first to achieve marked clinical responses in patients with relapsed/refractory B cell malignancies and to be approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). We report cryo-EM structures of CD19 antigen with the binder FMC63, which is used in four FDA-approved CAR T cell therapies (Kymriah, Yescarta, Tecartus, and Breyanzi), and the binder SJ25C1, which has also been used extensively in multiple clinical trials. We used these structures for molecular dynamics simulations, which guided creation of lower- or higher-affinity binders, and ultimately produced CAR T cells endowed with distinct tumor recognition sensitivities. The CAR T cells exhibited different antigen density requirements to trigger cytolysis and differed in their propensity to prompt trogocytosis upon contacting tumor cells. Our work shows how structural information can be applied to tune CAR T cell performance to specific target antigen densities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Changhao He
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jorge Mansilla-Soto
- Center for Cell Engineering, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Immunology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Nandish Khanra
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
| | - Mohamad Hamieh
- Center for Cell Engineering, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Immunology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Victor Bustos
- Fisher Drug Discovery Resource Center, Rockefeller University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Alice J Paquette
- Cryo-Electron Microscopy Core, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Andreina Garcia Angus
- Center for Cell Engineering, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Immunology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Derek M Shore
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
- Institute for Computational Biomedicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - William J Rice
- Cryo-Electron Microscopy Core, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
- Department of Cell Biology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - George Khelashvili
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
- Institute for Computational Biomedicine, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Michel Sadelain
- Center for Cell Engineering, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY, USA
- Immunology Program, Sloan Kettering Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Joel R Meyerson
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA
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Lu X, Song B, Weng W, Su B, Wu H, Cheung AKL, Zhang T, Gao Y. Characteristics of CD8 + Stem Cell-Like Memory T Cell Subset in Chronic Hepatitis C Virus Infection. Viral Immunol 2023; 36:25-32. [PMID: 36346310 DOI: 10.1089/vim.2022.0079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The dysfunction of memory CD8+ T cell cannot be reverted by successful clearance of hepatitis C virus (HCV) after direct-acting antivirals (DAAs) therapy, increasing the risk of reinfection with HCV. Stem cell-like memory T cells (Tscm) with superior properties of long-lasting, self-renewing, and multipotency contribute to the maintenance of immune function. We investigated the impact of HCV infection on CD8+ Tscm, and their possible role in disease progression, by using DAA-naive HCV-infected and human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/HCV-coinfected cohorts. The distribution of memory CD8+ T cell subsets and the level of T cell immune activation were determined by flow cytometry. Associations between CD8+ Tscm and other memory T cell subsets, HCV viral load, as well as the level of T cell immune activation were analyzed. We observed that the proportion of CD8+ Tscm increased in both HCV and HIV/HCV individuals. The proportion of CD8+ Tscm had positive and negative correlation with CD8+ Tcm (central memory T cells) and CD8+ Tem (effector memory T cell), respectively, representing the contribution of CD8+ Tscm in T cell homeostasis. In addition, higher frequency of CD8+ Tscm indicated lower HCV viral load and less T cell immune activation in HCV infection, which suggested that CD8+ Tscm is likely associated with effective control of HCV replication for protective immunity. Considering the characteristics of Tscm, our current findings provide implications for Tscm-based vaccine design and immunotherapy development to achieve HCV elimination.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaofan Lu
- Beijing Key Laboratory for HIV/AIDS Research, Sino-French Joint Laboratory for Research on Humoral Immune Response to HIV Infection, Clinical and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Bingbing Song
- Department of Dermatology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China.,Department of Dermatology, Beijing Rehabilitation Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Wenjia Weng
- Department of Dermatology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Bin Su
- Beijing Key Laboratory for HIV/AIDS Research, Sino-French Joint Laboratory for Research on Humoral Immune Response to HIV Infection, Clinical and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Hao Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory for HIV/AIDS Research, Sino-French Joint Laboratory for Research on Humoral Immune Response to HIV Infection, Clinical and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Allen Ka Loon Cheung
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Hong Kong Baptist University, Hong Kong, China
| | - Tong Zhang
- Beijing Key Laboratory for HIV/AIDS Research, Sino-French Joint Laboratory for Research on Humoral Immune Response to HIV Infection, Clinical and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
| | - Yanqing Gao
- Department of Dermatology, Beijing Youan Hospital, Capital Medical University, Beijing, China
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Menasché P. Immunothérapie par CAR-T cells : du traitement des hémopathies malignes à celui des maladies cardiaques ? BULLETIN DE L'ACADÉMIE NATIONALE DE MÉDECINE 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.banm.2022.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Mao R, Kong W, He Y. The affinity of antigen-binding domain on the antitumor efficacy of CAR T cells: Moderate is better. Front Immunol 2022; 13:1032403. [PMID: 36325345 PMCID: PMC9618871 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.1032403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2022] [Accepted: 09/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
The overall efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor modified T cells (CARTs) remain limited in solid tumors despite intensive studies that aim at targeting multiple antigens, enhancing migration, reducing tonic signaling, and improving tumor microenvironment. On the other hand, how the affinity and engaging kinetics of antigen-binding domain (ABD) affects the CART's efficacy has not been carefully investigated. In this article, we first analyzed 38 published solid tumor CART trials and correlated the response rate to their ABD affinity. Not surprisingly, majority (25 trials) of the CARTs utilized high-affinity ABDs, but generated merely 5.7% response rate. In contrast, 35% of the patients treated with the CARTs built from moderate-affinity ABDs had clinical responses. Thus, CARTs with moderate-affinity ABDs not only have less off-target toxicity, but also are more effective. We then reviewed the effects of ABD affinity on the biology and function of CARTs, providing further evidence that moderate-affinity ABDs may be better in CART development. In the end, we propose that a fast-on/fast-off (high Kon and Koff ) kinetics of CART-target engagement in solid tumor allow CARTs to generate sufficient signaling to kill tumor cells without being driven to exhaustion. We believe that studying the ABD affinity and the kinetics of CART-tumor interaction may hold a key to designing effective CARTs for solid tumors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Mao
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
| | - Wanqing Kong
- South Carolina Governors School for Science and Math, Hartsville, SC, United States
| | - Yukai He
- Georgia Cancer Center, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
- Department of Medicine, Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, Augusta, GA, United States
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Lv M, Liu Y, Liu W, Xing Y, Zhang S. Immunotherapy for Pediatric Acute Lymphoblastic Leukemia: Recent Advances and Future Perspectives. Front Immunol 2022; 13:921894. [PMID: 35769486 PMCID: PMC9234114 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.921894] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/16/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) is the most common subtype of childhood leukemia, which is characterized by the abnormal proliferation and accumulation of immature lymphoid cell in the bone marrow. Although the long-term survival rate for pediatric ALL has made significant progress over years with the development of contemporary therapeutic regimens, patients are still suffered from relapse, leading to an unsatisfactory outcome. Since the immune system played an important role in the progression and relapse of ALL, immunotherapy including bispecific T-cell engagers and chimeric antigen receptor T cells has been demonstrated to be capable of enhancing the immune response in pediatric patients with refractory or relapsed B-cell ALL, and improving the cure rate of the disease and patients’ quality of life, thus receiving the authorization for market. Nevertheless, the resistance and toxicities associated with the current immunotherapy remains a huge challenge. Novel therapeutic options to overcome the above disadvantages should be further explored. In this review, we will thoroughly discuss the emerging immunotherapeutics for the treatment of pediatric ALL, as well as side-effects and new development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meng Lv
- Department of Pharmacy, Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yan Liu
- Department of Pharmacy, The First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Wei Liu
- Department of Hematology Oncology, Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
| | - Yabing Xing
- Department of Pharmacy, Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Yabing Xing, ; Shengnan Zhang,
| | - Shengnan Zhang
- Department of Pharmacy, Children’s Hospital Affiliated to Zhengzhou University, Zhengzhou, China
- *Correspondence: Yabing Xing, ; Shengnan Zhang,
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