A chemokine checkpoint accelerant for the treatment of solid tumor disease – A CAR T cell chemokine checkpoint accelerant (CONAN)

Since May 1, 2021, the DRFZ is involved in the BMBF collaborative project A chemokine checkpoint accelerant for the treatment of solid tumor disease – A CAR T cell chemokine checkpoint accelerant (CONAN). The cooperation partners are the BIH Center for Regenerative Therapies (BCRT) and the company CheckImmune GmbH.

The aim of the consortium is to use genetically engineered T cells (CAR-T cells) to fight solid tumours. These CARs recognise specific surface molecules on the cancer cells and thus enable their own immune system to fight them. However, the targeted transport of CARs into the tumour remains a major hurdle in their implementation. With the help of the CXCR3 chemokine system, the CAR-T cells should migrate specifically into the tumor tissue.

Mir Farzin-Mashreghi leads the subproject “Identifying novel targets of the CXCR3-ligand pathway”

To adapt the CXCR3 system for CAR T cell products (CONAN) CONAN-modified T-cell products will be characterized and  the CXCR3 variants, CAR expression and their functionality will be analyzed, The variants will also be verified by scRNA sequencing. Furthermore, the researchers seek to identify novel targets for inducing a native expression state of CONAN in primary T cells that could be utilized for adoptive CAR immunotherapy.