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Exploiting fundamental insights of m6A methylation on CD8 T cell differentiation and function to boost medicinal T cell products

Objective

Adoptive T cell therapies have revolutionised cancer treatment in some haematological tumours. Despite astounding advances, patients often relapse because the transferred T cells have low persistence and they lose their effector function against cancer cells. The prime challenge for improving T cell therapies is to decipher the mechanisms that define T cell effector function and memory formation. The MA6TCELL project aims to disentangle this problem by defining how m6A methylation on mRNA regulates human CD8 T cell differentiation and function. m6A is the most abundant mRNA methylation and determines gene expression by regulating mRNA metabolism, altering as such cell function. Using the miCLIP assay, I previously mapped genome-wide the m6A sites on the mRNAs of human CD8 T cells (unpublished data I will provide the host with). This map revealed that m6A occurs not only at the known DRACH sequences, but also at AU-rich sequences (AREs). Intriguingly, the host has uncovered that AREs are critical regulators of cytokine production in memory CD8 T cells (host expertise). My pilot experiments revealed that chemical inhibition of a m6A demethylase in CD8 T cells decreased cytokine production, further supporting my hypothesis that m6A methylation controls CD8 T cell differentiation and function. To test this hypothesis the M6ATCELL project will: 1) define the regulatory mechanisms of m6A methylation in human CD8 T cell differentiation and effector function and 2) test whether m6A enzyme inhibitors improve the potency of CD8 T cell therapies using chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells. Our findings will yield fundamental insights in T cell biology, which can be relevant for multiple adoptive T cell therapies. My long-term aim is to transfer my scientific findings from bench-to-bedside. Thus, I also secured a placement at the European Medicines Agency and if this proposal is granted, I will be trained on the regulatory guidelines of medicinal T cell products.

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Topic(s)

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HORIZON-TMA-MSCA-PF-EF - HORIZON TMA MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships - European Fellowships

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Call for proposal

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(opens in new window) HORIZON-MSCA-2022-PF-01

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Coordinator

Stichting Sanquin Bloedvoorziening
Net EU contribution

Net EU financial contribution. The sum of money that the participant receives, deducted by the EU contribution to its linked third party. It considers the distribution of the EU financial contribution between direct beneficiaries of the project and other types of participants, like third-party participants.

€ 234 530,40
Address
Plesmanlaan 125
1006 AN Amsterdam
Netherlands

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