Opis projektu
Stworzona sztucznie nisza uczy limfocyty T, jak walczyć z guzem
W ciągu ostatnich lat opracowano wiele podejść do immunoterapii nowotworów. Należą do nich inhibitory punktów kontrolnych układu immunologicznego czy zmodyfikowane limfocyty T. Pomimo doskonałych efektów, jakie udaje się uzyskać w przypadku leczenia nowotworów krwi, skuteczność immunoterapii w leczeniu guzów litych okazała się ograniczona. Naukowcy skupieni wokół finansowanego ze środków UE projektu INCITE postawili hipotezę, że nieskuteczność kliniczna immunoterapii wynika z braku właściwego wyszkolenia limfocytów T w zakresie rozpoznawania antygenów nowotworowych. Dlatego badacze stworzą funkcjonalną niszę odpornościową służącą do selekcji i ekspansji przeciwnowotworowych limfocytów T. Wytworzenie wysoce uzdolnionych limfocytów T do celów terapii adoptywnej istotnie zwiększy skuteczność leczenia onkologicznego.
Cel
Cancer is rapidly becoming the most frequent cause of morbidity and mortality in the EU, accounting for a quarter of all deaths in EU. Without breakthroughs in treatment, cancer is likely to remain one of the biggest killers in the 21st century. Immunotherapy of cancer by checkpoint inhibitors, vaccines or adoptive T cell therapy is coming of age and has the potential to cure cancer, but is still hampered by some major limitations. For instance, Adoptive Cell Therapy (ACT) with unmanipulated or engineered T cells (TCR-transgenic and CAR-T cells) has indeed demonstrated success in the treatment of patients affected by leukemias, but is much less effective against lymphomas and solid tumors. One likely explanation is that we do not educate the right type of anti-tumor T cells. The T cells considered to be the gold standard for tumor therapy have stem cell memory features, but the proper and safe way to generate these fit T cells for clinical purposes is still an unresolved matter. Here we propose an advanced transformative technology termed INCITE, utilizing a novel high-resolution 3D microfabrication technology to engineer a specially tailored microenvironment that will be inhabited by cells central for T cells education in order to generate the fittest anti-tumor T cells for advanced adoptive T cell therapy. INCITE will bring together a transdisciplinary consortium capable of developing this innovative platform by combining state-of-the-art 3D printing, computer modeling, bioengineering, bioinformatics, immunology, developmental and cancer biology approaches, toward the development of a functional immune niche for selection and expansion of tumor-rejecting T cells. The INCITE platform will revolutionize the treatment of cancer patients with ACT, with a profound impact on the quality of life and well-being of millions of people.
Dziedzina nauki
- medical and health sciencesmedical biotechnologycells technologiesstem cells
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicinepharmacology and pharmacypharmaceutical drugsvaccines
- medical and health sciencesbasic medicineimmunologyimmunotherapy
- engineering and technologymechanical engineeringmanufacturing engineeringadditive manufacturing
- medical and health sciencesclinical medicineoncologyleukemia
Słowa kluczowe
Program(-y)
Zaproszenie do składania wniosków
Zobacz inne projekty w ramach tego zaproszeniaSzczegółowe działanie
H2020-FETOPEN-2018-2019-2020-01
System finansowania
RIA - Research and Innovation actionKoordynator
7491 Trondheim
Norwegia