New Delhi, April 4 (IANS) US researchers have engineered a new ‘smart’ immune cell that when activated by ultrasound can continuously sense and destroy cancer cells for extended periods.
The “EchoBack CAR T-cell,” developed by biomedical engineers at the University of Southern California (USC), could soon be a game changer in the field of cancer immunotherapy.
The study, published in the scientific journal Cell, demonstrates that the powerful new EchoBack-CAR T-cells can attack tumour cells five times longer than regular CAR T-cells, in technology ready for medical applications.
The cells can be remotely controlled to target tumours using focused ultrasound, potentially making treatments safer yet more effective.
The novel approach could overcome major obstacles in treating tumours that are not usually candidates for immunotherapy, while keeping healthy tissue safe, said the team.
Unlike the first-generation, ultrasound-controllable CAR T-cells which usually only attack cancer cells for up to 24 hours before expiring, lead author Longwei Liu, Assistant Professor at the USC Viterbi School of Engineering, said that the EchoBack CAR T-cells function by being activated by ultrasound in the tumour location.
From there, the CAR T-cells continue to seek and destroy cancer cells for at least five days without fatiguing.
“You can imagine that when patients come to the hospital using the first-generation cells, the patient may need to come in every day for treatment. But using the new generation, the treatment now requires far fewer visits, such as once every two weeks, or even less frequently,” Liu said.
The team focused on ultrasound technology, which works as an “on switch” for the CAR T-cells — engineered to respond to a short 10-minute pulse of ultrasound. That then triggers the cells to sense cancer cells in their surroundings.
The new CAR T-cells were analysed, in lab-based experiments in mouse models, on a selection of tumour cells including prostate cancer and glioblastoma.
“We can clearly see that the ultrasound controllable CAR plus two rounds of ultrasound stimulation outperformed the standard CAR T-cells,” Liu said. “Also, when we kept challenging our CAR T-cells with tumour cells, the standard CAR was already exhausted and in a dysfunctional state, but our ultrasound controllable CAR has a better function, less exhaustion, and more enhanced killing.”
–IANS
rvt/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
