Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells seem like the ideal way to turn a patient’s own immune system into a tumor-fighting army. But in practice, these cellular foot soldiers can be fickle. Sometimes they follow their marching orders; other times they wreak havoc on healthy cells. New advances in synthetic biology may help train more disciplined tumor-killing immune cells by teaching them to pay attention to their surroundings.
In a pair of recently published studies in Science Translational Medicine,1,2 scientists showed that CAR T-cells are more effective when their killing activity is tied to two receptors: one that recognizes the tumor and another that recognizes a different aspect of either the tumor or the environment. These double-trouble CAR T cells have more precision and stamina, making them effective against many tumors that have not been successfully treated with CAR T cells before.
“It really illustrates what you can do with ...
