Off-the-shelf CAR‑engineered iNKT cell therapy for solid tumors
Official title: Advancing allogeneic CAR-iNKT for the treatment of solid tumors through comparative oncology
Funded at University of Pennsylvania · NIH-11173894 · Data updated 2026-11-12
Developing an off-the-shelf immune cell treatment using engineered iNKT cells to fight solid tumors in patients.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Pennsylvania NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Philadelphia, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2022 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $692,942 |
| NIH project number | 4U01CA272270-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11173894 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates would be patients with solid tumors (including those who have failed standard treatments) whose cancers express the therapy's target antigen and who meet eligibility for a cell‑therapy clinical trial.
✕Less likely to help
Patients whose tumors do not express the targeted antigen, who have severe organ dysfunction or active uncontrolled infection, or who are ineligible for cell‑therapy trials would likely not benefit.
What this research studies
Researchers will make donor-derived iNKT immune cells and genetically add chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) so the cells better find and kill solid tumors. They will test these CAR‑iNKT cells in laboratory experiments and in comparative oncology models, including naturally occurring cancers in pets, to study safety and how well the cells persist and work in a real tumor environment. The team will also explore the best pre-treatment regimens and dosing to help the infused cells survive and act in patients. The work aims to create a universal, ready-made cell product that could avoid some limits of patient-derived therapies.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to a ready-made cell therapy that reaches solid tumors more safely and effectively than current patient-derived approaches.
How similar studies have gone: CAR‑T therapies have worked very well for some blood cancers, and early preclinical studies of CAR‑enhanced iNKT cells show promise, but clinical evidence in human solid tumors is still very limited.
Where this research is happening
-
University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Mason, Nicola J — University of Pennsylvania
- Study coordinator: Mason, Nicola J
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About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.