Scientists have discovered a protein that plays a central role in promoting immunity to viruses and cancer, opening the door to new therapies.
Experiments in mice and human cells have shown that the protein promotes the proliferation of cytotoxic T cells, which kill cancer cells and cells infected with viruses. The discovery was unexpected because the new protein had no known function and doesn’t resemble any other protein.
Researchers from Imperial College London who led the study are now developing a gene therapy designed to boost the infection-fighting cells, and hope to begin human trials in three years.
The study also involved researchers at Queen Mary University of London, ETH Zurich and Harvard Medical School. Their discovery, which has been six years in the making, is reported today in the journal Science.
Cytotoxic T cells are an important component of the immune system, but when faced with serious infections or advanced cancer, they are often unable to proliferate in large enough quantities to fight the disease.
By screening mice with genetic mutations, the Imperial team discovered a strain of mice that produced 10 times as many cytotoxic T cells when infected with a virus compared with normal mice. These mice suppressed the infection more effectively, and were more resistant to cancer. They also produced more of a second type of T cells, memory cells, enabling them to recognise infections they have encountered previously and launch a rapid response.
The mice with enhanced immunity produced high levels of a hitherto unknown protein, which the researchers named lymphocyte expansion molecule, or LEM. They went on to show that LEM modulates the proliferation of human T cells as well as in mice.
The researchers now aim to develop a gene therapy designed to improve immunity by boosting the production of LEM. With the support of Imperial Innovations, the technology commercialisation company for the College, the researchers have filed two patents. A company called ImmunarT has been formed with the aim of commercialising the technology.
Professor Philip Ashton-Rickardt from the Section of Immunobiology in the Department of Medicine at Imperial, who led the study, said: “Cancer cells have ways to suppress T cell activity, helping them to escape the immune system. Genetically engineering T cells to augment their ability to fight cancer has been a goal for some time and techniques for modifying them already exist. By introducing an active version of the LEM gene into the T cells of cancer patients, we hope we can provide a robust treatment for patients.
“Next we will test the therapy in mice, make sure it is safe and see if it can be combined with other therapies. If all goes well, we hope to be ready to carry out human trials in about three years.”
Read more: Scientists discover protein that boosts immunity to viruses and cancer
The Latest on: Cytotoxic T cell
[google_news title=”” keyword=”Cytotoxic T cell” num_posts=”10″ blurb_length=”0″ show_thumb=”left”]
via Google News
The Latest on: Cytotoxic T cell
- AUA 2024: Back to Medical School: Immunology in NMIBC and Neoadjuvant MIBC for the Urologiston May 9, 2024 at 6:59 am
Written by: Julian Chavarriaga, MD - Society of Urologic Oncology (SUO) Clinical Fellow at The University of Toronto, @chavarriagaj on Twitter during the 2024 American Urological Association (AUA) ...
- Karyopharm Therapeutics (KPTI) Q1 2024 Earnings Call Transcripton May 8, 2024 at 1:45 pm
My name is Liz and I'll be your conference operator today. At this time, I'd like to welcome everyone to the Karyopharm Therapeutics first-quarter 2024 financial results conference call. [Operator ...
- Revolutionary CAR-T cell therapy looks to break through beyond blood canceron May 8, 2024 at 1:00 pm
In just a decade, a new treatment has revolutionized the prognosis for people diagnosed with blood cancer. It’s called CAR-T cell therapy, a stunning achievement of genetic engineering that consists ...
- New influenza vaccine strategies aim to enhance protection with T-cell responseson May 5, 2024 at 11:13 pm
A recent review highlights the need for innovative influenza vaccines that combine T-cell and antibody responses to enhance protection across multiple strains and seasons.
- Regulating cholesterol levels key to improving cancer treatment, finds studyon May 5, 2024 at 2:00 pm
A team of researchers from Aarhus University has made a remarkable discovery that could improve cancer treatment and the treatment of a number of other illnesses. The key lies in ...
- A New Weapon Against Cancer: Checkpoint Inhibitors, A Double-Edged Swordon April 29, 2024 at 6:59 am
Checkpoint inhibitors act as a double-edged sword against cancer. Although they promote potent ... [+] antitumor responses, they can also cause several adverse effects. This article joins a ...
- Sona's Cancer Therapy Creates a Systemic Immune Response in Murine Breast Cancer Modelon April 29, 2024 at 6:33 am
Sona Nanotech Inc. (CSE: SONA) (OTCQB: SNANF) (the "Company" or "Sona") announces further results from the triple negative breast cancer murine model portion of its current research study at Dalhousie ...
- CD8-positive T cells articles from across Nature Portfolioon April 28, 2024 at 5:00 pm
CD8-positive T cells are a critical subpopulation of MHC class I-restricted T cell and are mediators of adaptive immunity. They include cytotoxic T cells, which are important for killing cancerous ...
- Tumor cells evade the immune system early on: Newly discovered mechanism could significantly improve cancer immunotherapieson April 24, 2024 at 4:04 pm
Tumors actively prevent the formation of immune responses by so-called cytotoxic T cells, which are essential in combating cancer. Researchers have now uncovered for the first time how this exactly ...
- RIPK3 inhibitor prevents lung damage in severe influenza infectionon April 23, 2024 at 5:00 pm
Remarkably, UH15-38 significantly improved survival outcomes even when given 5 days after infection. This contrasts with the current approved antiviral for influenza infection, oseltamivir, which ...
via Bing News