Remote-controlled PC-CAR T cells for hard-to-treat solid tumors
Official title: Remote-Controlled PC-CAR T-Cell Therapy for Hard-to-Treat Solid Tumors
Funded at Mabswitch, INC. · NIH-11313251 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A new drug-free approach aims to let immune cells recognize and fight certain solid cancers by remotely adjusting their activity against tumor targets.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Sbir 1 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Mabswitch, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Van Nuys, United States) |
| Project start | September 18, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $399,998 |
| NIH project number | 1R43CA310118-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11313251 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates are patients with solid tumors that express intracellular targets via peptide-MHC complexes, especially low-mutational-burden cancers like neuroblastoma.
✕Less likely to help
Patients whose tumors do not express the targeted peptide-MHC complexes or who cannot tolerate cellular therapies may not benefit.
What this research studies
This grant supports developing PC-CAR T cells that can target intracellular cancer signals presented on MHC molecules, with a remote-control system to modulate activity and reduce toxicity. Researchers will engineer CARs whose affinity can be switched in real time using UNASMA technology, then test them in a controlled, multi-reporter setup to verify precise activation. The work focuses on neuroblastoma and other tumors with few obvious surface targets, where current CAR-T therapies often fail. If successful, patients could benefit from more effective and safer CAR T-cell therapies for solid tumors.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, patients with hard-to-treat solid tumors could gain more effective and safer CAR T-cell options.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work with PC-CARs shows promise, but real-time affinity control is a novel enhancement.
Where this research is happening
-
Mabswitch, INC.
Van Nuys, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Onakunle, Yemi — Mabswitch, INC.
- Study coordinator: Onakunle, Yemi
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Image-guided, flexible CAR T therapy for solid tumors
A new, image-guided CAR T approach uses a universal adaptor to target solid tumors and help predict where therapy goes, aiming to reduce relapse and off-target effects.
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Using tumor-targeting viruses to boost CAR T cell treatment for solid tumors
This work aims to help CAR T cell therapy work better for people with solid tumors by combining CAR T cells with cancer-killing viruses that ramp up the immune response.
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Improving CAR T cell therapy for lung and other solid tumors
This project works to make CAR T cell therapy more effective for people with lung and other solid tumors by building realistic tumor models and testing ways to overcome the tumors' immune defenses.
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Improving CAR T cell therapy for children with solid tumors
This study is testing a new way to make CAR T cell therapy work better for kids with solid tumors by using special T cells that target a protein called B7-H3, and it aims to see how safe and effective these modified cells are in helping children whose tumors haven't responded to other treatments.
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Using oncolytic viruses to enhance CAR T cell therapy for solid tumors
This study is looking at how using special viruses with CAR T cell therapy might help make the treatment work better for people with solid tumors by helping the CAR T cells find and attack the cancer more effectively.
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Improving CAR T cell therapy for lung cancer
This study is looking at ways to make CAR T cell therapy work better for lung cancer by creating a model that simulates the tumor environment, helping researchers figure out why it struggles with solid tumors and how to improve treatment for patients.
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.