Targeting Critical Regulators of Cancer Stem Cells
Research Objective We will develop a small molecule inhibitor that blocks the growth of human pancreatic cancer and AML cancer stem cells in vitro and in vivo. Impact This work…
Human iPSC-derived chimeric antigen receptor-expressing macrophages for cancer treatment
Research Objective These studies will produce a new CAR-targeted iPSC-derived macrophage-based cell therapy product for treatment of refractory malignancies such as ovarian cancer. Impact These studies eliminate a bottleneck in…
Preclinical Development of An HSC-Engineered Off-The-Shelf iNKT Cell Therapy for Cancer
Research Objective The expected outcome is a therapeutic candidate, allogeneic HSC-engineered HLA-I/II-negative human iNKT cells, that can potentially be used as an off-the-shelf cellular therapy for treating cancer. Impact The…
Chimeric Antigen Receptor-Engineered Stem/Memory T Cells for the Treatment of Recurrent Ovarian Cancer
Research Objective We are developing a tumor-associated glycan-targeting CAR T cell with inducible cytokine production that drives T cell stem/memory phenotype and persistence for effective treatment of ovarian cancer. Impact…
Pluripotent stem cell-derived bladder epithelial progenitors for definitive cell replacement therapy of bladder cancer
Research Objective We will 1) identify non-invasive bladder cancer patients with (pre)cancerous urothelium by single-cell RNA-seq and 2) replace this dangerous lesion with normal hESC-derived bladder progenitors. Impact Replacement of…
Non-viral reprogramming of the endogenous TCRα locus to direct stem memory T cells against shared neoantigens in malignant gliomas
Research Objective We will develop a non-viral gene editing technology to replace the endogenous TCRα locus of stem memory T cells with transgene TCRs that are specific to brain cancer…
Targeting Cancer Stem Cells in Hematologic Malignancies
Research Objective We will develop a biotherapeutic/monoclonal antibody that blocks the growth of human AML cancer stem cells in vitro and in vivo. Impact Treatment of the cancer stem cell…
Platform Technology for Pluripotent Stem Cell-Derived T cell Immunotherapy
Research Objective We will combine a novel method to produce T cells from stem cells with gene editing tools, to create pluripotent stem cells that can serve as a universal…
A Novel Approach to Eradicate Cancer Stem Cells
Research Objective The outcome is a therapeutic candidate ready for Investigational New Drug (IND)-enabling studies to target a central hub of stemness pathways of cancer stem cells (CSC) maintenance and…
A Novel Approach to Eradicate Cancer Stem Cells
Research Objective The outcome is a therapeutic candidate ready for Investigational New Drug (IND)-enabling studies to target a central hub of stemness pathways of cancer stem cells (CSC) maintenance and…
