Objective
"Cancer remains a leading cause of death worldwide, urging for innovative therapies. Infusion of natural killer (NK) cells, which possess an intrinsic capacity to eliminate cancer cells, is a promising treatment option for various tumours. Genetic engineering of NK cells before transfer allows to specifically tailor and modulate their anti-tumour responses. One particularly attractive strategy for broad implementation of NK cell immunotherapy in an “off-the-shelf” setting is to expand large numbers of NK cells from induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs). However, this approach is limited by two main bottlenecks: i) poor persistence of allogeneic iPSC-derived NK (iNK) cells due to rejection by the recipient immune system and ii) impaired functionality due to failure to achieve complete differentiation in vitro.
The SYNKIT project seeks to address both of these current limitations through genetic engineering of iNK cells for increased persistence and function. Deletion of human leukocyte antigen (HLA) ""self-ligands"" allows the transferred cells to escape from host T cells. However, absence of HLA also triggers “missing-self” recognition and rejection by host NK cells. In addition, new insights from the host laboratory into the molecular mechanism underlying NK cell education have unravelled a pathway of functional disarming in NK cells that lack self-ligands, further diminishing the anti-tumour efficacy of HLA-deficient NK cells.
In SYNKIT, I will use HLA-deficient iNK cells as a platform to assess how introduction of synthetic self-ligands modulates the allogenicity and functionality of iNK cells. The overall goal of SYNKIT is to identify synthetic self-ligands, which reduce recognition by the host immune system and yet prevent functional disarming of the engineered iNK cells, thereby resulting in optimised anti-tumour function.
Successful completion of SYNKIT will pave the way for development of next generation immunotherapy to more effectively combat cancer.
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Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology genetic engineering
- medical and health sciences medical biotechnology cells technologies stem cells
- medical and health sciences clinical medicine oncology
- medical and health sciences basic medicine immunology immunotherapy
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Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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H2020-EU.1.3. - EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions
MAIN PROGRAMME
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H2020-EU.1.3.2. - Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
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Topic(s)
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
Funding Scheme
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
MSCA-IF - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Individual Fellowships (IF)
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Call for proposal
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
Procedure for inviting applicants to submit project proposals, with the aim of receiving EU funding.
(opens in new window) H2020-MSCA-IF-2018
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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.
171 77 STOCKHOLM
Sweden
The total costs incurred by this organisation to participate in the project, including direct and indirect costs. This amount is a subset of the overall project budget.