Main Menu

The chemokine receptor, CCR4 is a seven transmembrane G protein-coupled cell surface receptor molecule with selective expression on cells of the hematopoietic system. In adult T cell leukemia (ATL), the cell-surface expression of CCR4 on leukemic cells has been found to be nearly universal. Therefore, a CCR4-directed chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) -cell may provide an effective therapeutic against ATL.

Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer covering anatomic surfaces (e.g. lining of the lungs, heart, abdomen, etc.) that resists multi-modality therapies. Regional recurrence of mesothelioma from residual tumor cells prevents long-term benefits after surgical resection. Furthermore, there is no clinical consensus on intracavitary adjuvants that are effective in extending the tumor reduction effect of surgery.

Hematopoietic and pluripotent stem cells can be differentiated into T cells with potential clinical utility. Current approaches for in vitro T cell production rely on Notch signaling and artificial mimicry of thymic selection. However, these approaches result in unconventional or phenotypically aberrant T cells; which may lead to unpredictable behavior in clinical use. Thus, there exists a need for improved methods of generating conventional T cells in vitro from stem cells.
 

RNA interference (RNAi) is a biological response to double-stranded RNA that regulates expression of protein-coding genes and is a natural mechanism for gene silencing. Delivery of short, interfering RNA (siRNA) leads to RNAi of the targeted genes. 

Peptides corresponding to transmembrane domains of a number of integral proteins were discovered to spontaneously self-assemble in aqueous solutions into stable and remarkably uniform nanoparticles.  Researchers at the NCI’s Cancer and Inflammation Program have developed fully synthetic, peptide-based, virus-like nanoparticles capable of delivering cytotoxic, radioactive, and imaging agents. 

Structure and function of tumor-target self-assembling particles:

Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) using tumor-specific T cells can produce positive clinical responses in some cancer patients. Nevertheless, several obstacles to the successful use of ACT for the treatment of cancer and other conditions remain. For example, one or more of the in vivo persistence, survival, and antitumor activity of tumor-specific T cells can, in some cases, decrease following adoptive transfer. Accordingly, there is a need for methods of obtaining a robust population of tumor-specific T cells for ACT.

The baculovirus-based protein expression system has gained increased prominence as a method for expressing recombinant proteins that are used in a wide range of biomedical applications. An important step in the use of this system is the ability to determine the virus infectious titer, i.e., the number of active baculovirus particles produced during an infection of the insect host cell.

Cancer is the second leading cause of death worldwide. The primary cause of mortality from cancer is metastasis. While the underlying mechanisms of cancer metastasis are still being unraveled, the gp78 protein involved in ER-associated degradation (ERAD) appears to play a role in metastasis in sarcoma. Targeting gp78 may be a therapeutic option in cancer treatment.

Interleukin-15 (IL-15) and IL-21 have been reported to support the function of anti-tumor T cells.  However, their use in the clinic has been constrained, in part, by dose-limiting toxicity and the need for repeated administration.  To overcome these limitations, researchers in the National Cancer Institute (NCI) Experimental Transplantation and Immunology Branch (ETIB) have developed synthetic IL-15 and IL-21 molecules for autocrine expression by the engineered therapeutic T cel

Primary liver tumors and secondary hepatic malignancies are among the leading causes of cancer-related deaths. Liver metastases account for 95% of all hepatic cancers, and the liver is the most common site for organ metastasis in the body. The gut microbiome serves an important role in antitumor immunity regulating the efficacy of chemo- and immunotherapies. The liver is exposed to gut bacteria through blood from the intestine, with 70% of the whole liver’s blood supply coming from intestinal blood. Changes in the commensal microbiome may affect immune cell function in the liver.