Key points from article :
Carisma Therapeutics announced its first human participant assessing the safety of CAR macrophages.
First CAR cell treatment involved modified T cells that target liquid cancer cells.
"Tumors have evolved to keep T cells out," - Michael Klichinsky, cofounder of Carisma Therapeutics.
Unlike T cells, macrophages recognize multiple proteins expressed on the surface of cancer cells.
An adenovirus vector could be used to engineer macrophages carrying a CAR that bound to the HER2 protein on solid cancers.
Introducing the virus into the immune cells made them remain proinflammatory.
Macrophages recognize and engulf cancer cells, then presenting T cells with cancer-specific antigens.
Treated mice survived for up to several weeks longer.
"...macrophages had instilled long-lasting memory against the cancer,” - Klichinsky.
Beginning to study two other candidates to widen the number of cancers that could potentially be treated.
Study published in the journal Nature Biotechnology.
