AAI Clinical Immunology Committee: Lymphocyte Engineering for Cancer and Beyond
Chairs:
Thomas F. Gajewski, Univ. of Chicago Med. Ctr.; AAI Clinical Immunology Committee Chair
Agnes M. Azimzadeh, Univ. of Maryland
Speakers:
- Marcela V. Maus, Massachusetts Gen. Hosp., The human T cell as a therapeutic drug
- David W. Scott, Uniformed Serv. Univ. of Hlth. Sci., Driving CARs to BARs: the road to engineered human antigen-specific regulatory and cytotoxic T cells
- Malcolm K. Brenner, Baylor Col. of Med., Adoptive immunotherapy of cancer: beyond the B cell barrier
- Charles L. Sentman, Geisel Sch. of Med., Dartmouth, Design and engineering of immune receptors for adoptive cell therapy
The adoptive transfer of specific lymphocyte subsets has been pursued as a strategy for immunotherapy over the past several decades, either for immune potentiation or immune suppression. Advances in genetic engineering technologies have enabled the reprogramming of lymphocytes, providing these cells with new specificities and even new functional attributes. Perhaps the most advanced of these strategies in clinical development is the application of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-transduced T cells for the treatment of B cell malignancies. This session will explore the diversity of approaches being investigated in lymphocyte engineering, both in the context of cancer and in other clinical scenarios.