Restore older patients' T cells to help CAR T therapy work better
Rescue T cell aging to improve CAR T cell production for elderly cancer patients
Seeing if fixing age-related problems in T cells can help make CAR T cell treatment work better for older people with CLL.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R21 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Ut Southwestern Medical Center NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Dallas, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11118161 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
Researchers will examine T cells from older adults and people with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) to see how aging changes their metabolism and response to signals. They will test lab methods to rebalance T cell receptor and cytokine signaling so the cells expand and function more like younger T cells. The team will apply these approaches to cells used to make autologous CAR T products to see if manufacturing and expansion improve. Work will be done using patient blood samples and ex vivo (outside the body) cell culture experiments.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Older adults, especially people with chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL) who might be candidates for autologous CAR T therapy, are the most appropriate participants.
Not a fit: Younger patients or people whose cancers are not treated with autologous CAR T therapy are unlikely to benefit directly from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could allow more older patients to have stronger, better-made CAR T cells from their own blood, improving their chances of treatment success.
How similar studies have performed: Prior laboratory studies have shown that changing T cell metabolism and signaling can improve expansion, but applying these fixes to improve CAR T manufacturing for older CLL patients is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Dallas, United States
- Ut Southwestern Medical Center — Dallas, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Wu, Tuoqi — Ut Southwestern Medical Center
- Study coordinator: Wu, Tuoqi
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 below.