(ORDO News) — Researchers from the Swiss cancer center Léman have made a revolutionary discovery in the field of immunotherapy.
By inhibiting a specific metabolic mechanism, they found a way to enhance the anti-tumor abilities of CAR-T cells – artificial immune “super cells” used to treat blood cancer. This discovery could significantly improve the effectiveness of CAR-T cell therapy and provide hope for patients who have not responded well to previous treatments.
CAR-T cell therapy has shown great promise in treating some types of blood cancer, but its effectiveness is limited to only half of patients. One of the main problems is the premature dysfunction of modified immune cells, which limits their ability to effectively fight tumor cells.
The research team, consisting of scientists from the Universities of Geneva and Lausanne, as well as the hospitals of the University of Geneva and the University of Vaud, set out to solve this problem by extending the functionality of CAR-T cells.
The researchers focused on inhibiting a metabolic mechanism called “reductive carboxylation,” which is commonly used by cancer cells as an alternative energy source. They found that T cells, including CAR-T cells, also use this mechanism. By inhibiting reductive carboxylation in CAR-T cells, the researchers were able to prevent their premature differentiation and preserve their antitumor function for longer.
In mouse models of leukemia and multiple myeloma, the modified CAR-T cells not only proliferated normally, but also retained the ability to attack tumor cells. In addition, these cells were transformed into memory T-lymphocytes – a type of immune cells that retain the memory of tumor elements that need to be acted upon.
Remarkably, mice that received these modified CAR-T cells were virtually cured of cancer.
“This discovery opens up new possibilities for improving CAR-T cell therapy and increasing its effectiveness in treating blood cancer,” said Professor Ping-Chih Ho, one of the researchers involved in the work. “By prolonging the functionality of CAR-T cells and promoting the development of memory T cells, we can potentially provide long-lasting protection against cancer recurrence.”
The results of this study were published in the journal Nature, which attracted the attention of the scientific community and gave hope to both patients and doctors. This breakthrough in CAR-T cell therapy could revolutionize the treatment of blood cancers and bring us closer to finding a cure.
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News agencies contributed to this report, edited and published by ORDO News editors.
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