Clinical trial Recruiting at 1 site Phase 1 Interventional Ages 18 to 65

YTS109 cell therapy for relapsed or refractory systemic autoimmune diseases

Official title: An Exploratory Clinical Study of YTS109 Cell in Subjects With Relapsed/Refractory Autoimmune Diseases

Run by China Immunotech (Beijing) Biotechnology Co., Ltd. · NCT06978647 · Data updated 2026-11-12

This trial will try a single infusion of YTS109 cells to see if it's safe and helps adults 18–65 with relapsed or refractory systemic autoimmune diseases such as SLE, systemic sclerosis, inflammatory myopathies, ANCA-associated vasculitis, or antiphospholipid syndrome.

Quick facts

PhasePhase 1
Study typeInterventional
Ages18 Years to 65 Years
SexAll
Enrollment12 (estimated)
SponsorChina Immunotech (Beijing) Biotechnology Co., Ltd.
Industry-sponsored
Drugs / interventionsrituximab, belimumab, methotrexate, cyclophosphamide, CAR-T
Locations1 site (Beijing, Beijing Municipality)
StatusRecruiting
StartedMay 19, 2025
Main results expectedMay 19, 2027
Study endsMay 19, 2027
Registry record updatedOctober 21, 2026
Trial IDNCT06978647 on ClinicalTrials.gov

Is this trial a fit for you?

Likely a good fit

Ideal candidates are adults 18–65 with relapsed or refractory systemic autoimmune disease who have detectable CD19+ B cells, meet required organ-function criteria, and can undergo lymphodepletion and close post-infusion monitoring.

Probably not a fit

Patients without detectable CD19+ B cells, with severe organ failure, uncontrolled infection, pregnancy, or other exclusion criteria are unlikely to receive benefit from participation.

A plain-English reading of the study's rules. Only the study team can confirm whether you qualify.

What this trial studies

YTS109 is an allogeneic STAR-T cell product targeting CD19 intended to deplete B cells that drive autoimmune activity. In this single-center, open-label, single-arm Phase 1 trial at the Chinese PLA General Hospital, approximately 6–12 adults aged 18–65 with relapsed/refractory systemic autoimmune diseases and detectable CD19+ B cells will receive a single intravenous infusion of 1.5×10^6 cells/kg following a lymphodepletion regimen. The primary focus is safety, with collection of adverse event types, severity, and frequency alongside preliminary efficacy signals and pharmacodynamic measures. Investigators will monitor B-cell depletion, clinical response measures, and short-term tolerability after treatment.

Why it matters

Potential benefit: If successful, YTS109 could durably reduce pathogenic B cells and improve disease control for patients who have failed standard treatments.

How similar studies have gone: Autologous CD19-targeting CAR-T therapies have shown promising results in small studies and case reports for refractory autoimmune diseases, but universal allogeneic STAR-T products like YTS109 are novel and less well tested.

Who can join: the full rules

Show full inclusion / exclusion criteria
Inclusion Criteria:

* Subjects must meet both the following common inclusion criteria and disease-specific inclusion criteria simultaneously to be eligible for participation in this study:

Common inclusion criteria:

1. Age ranges from 18 to 65 years old (including threshold), regardless of gender.
2. Detection of positive CD19 expression on peripheral blood B cells by flow cytometry.
3. Essential Organ Function Criteria:

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1. Bone marrow: Neutrophils ≥1×10\^9/L (within 2 weeks, excluding granulocyte colony-stimulating factor use).

   Hemoglobin ≥60 g/L.
2. Liver: ALT/AST ≤3×ULN (disease-related elevations permitted). TBIL ≤1.5×ULN (disease-related elevations permitted).
3. Renal: CrCl≥30mL/min (Cockcroft-Gault formula, excluding acute declines).
4. Coagulation: INR/PT ≤1.5×ULN.
5. Cardiovascular: Hemodynamic stability. 4. Fertile females or males with partners of childbearing age must use medically approved contraception or abstain during and ≥12 months post- treatment. Negative serum HCG test (within 7 days pre-enrollment) for fertile females; non-lactating.

5\. Voluntary participation with signed informed consent and compliance.

Specific inclusion criteria:

Relapsing and refractory systemic lupus erythematosus:

1\. Meeting the EULAR/ACR 2019 SLE Classification Criteria; 2. SELENA SLEDAI≥6, or the presence of significant organ involvement, such as lupus nephritis (LN), etc; 3. Definition of relapsing and refractory condition: Persistence of disease activity or recurrence of disease activity after remission, despite undergoing treatment with a regimen containing at least two immunosuppressive agents (including glucocorticoids, cyclophosphamide, tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), and cyclosporine) and/or biological agents for a minimum duration of two months.

Relapsing and refractory Sjögren's syndrome:

1. Meeting the 2002 American-European Consensus Group (AECG) criteria or the 2016 American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism (ACR/EULAR) classification criteria for primary Sjögren's syndrome;
2. Having a disease activity score of EULAR Sjögren's Syndrome Disease Activity Index (ESSDAI) ≥ 6;
3. Testing positive for anti-SSA/Ro antibodies;
4. Definition of relapsing and refractory condition: Persistence of disease activity or recurrence of disease activity after remission, despite undergoing conventional treatment for more than six months. Definition of conventional treatment: Administration of glucocorticoids in combination with any of the following immunosuppressive agents or biological agents: cyclophosphamide, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil, methotrexate, leflunomide, tacrolimus, cyclosporine, as well as biological agents including rituximab, belimumab, telitacicept, etc.

Relapsing and refractory Sjogren's Syndrome:

1. Meeting the 2013 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) classification criteria for systemic sclerosis;
2. Testing positive for systemic sclerosis-related antibodies;
3. Presenting with diffuse cutaneous sclerosis or active interstitial lung disease (as indicated by ground-glass opacities on high-resolution computed tomography, HRCT);
4. Definition of relapsing and refractory condition: Persistence of disease activity or recurrence of disease activity after remission, despite undergoing conventional treatment for more than six months. Definition of conventional treatment: Administration of glucocorticoids and cyclophosphamide, in combination with any one or more of the following immunomodulatory agents: antimalarial drugs, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil, methotrexate, leflunomide, tacrolimus, cyclosporine, as well as biological agents including rituximab, belimumab, telitacicept, etc.;
5. Definition of progressive condition: Demonstrating rapid skin progression (an increase in modified Rodnan skin score, mRSS, of \>25%) or pulmonary disease progression (a 10% decrease in forced vital capacity, FVC, or a \>5% decrease in FVC accompanied by a 15% decrease in diffusion capacity for carbon monoxide, DLCO).

Note: Meeting either criterion 4 or 5 is sufficient.

Relapsing and refractory Inflammatory Myopathy:

1. Meeting the 2017 European League Against Rheumatism/American College of Rheumatology (EULAR/ACR) classification criteria for inflammatory myopathies (including dermatomyositis, DM; polymyositis, PM; antisynthetase syndrome, ASS; and necrotizing myopathy, NM);
2. Testing positive for myositis-specific antibodies;
3. For patients with muscle involvement, having a Manual Muscle Testing-8 (MMT-8) score below 142 and at least two abnormal findings among the following five core measures (Physician's Global Assessment, PhGA; Patient's Global Assessment, PtGA, or extra-muscular disease activity score ≥ 2 points; Health Assessment Questionnaire, HAQ, total score ≥ 0.25; muscle enzyme levels 1.5 times the upper limit of normal range); or having an MMT-8 score ≥ 142 but presenting with active interstitial lung disease (as indicated by ground-glass opacities on high-resolution computed tomography, HRCT);
4. Definition of relapsing and refractory condition: Persistence of disease activity or recurrence of disease activity after remission, despite undergoing conventional treatment for more than six months. Definition of conventional treatment: Administration of glucocorticoids and cyclophosphamide, in combination with any one or more of the following immunomodulatory agents: antimalarial drugs, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil, methotrexate, leflunomide, tacrolimus, cyclosporine, as well as biological agents including rituximab, belimumab, telitacicept, etc.;
5. Definition of progressive condition: Demonstrating worsening myositis or rapidly progressive interstitial pneumonia.

Note: Meeting either criterion 4 or 5 is sufficient.

Relapsing and refractory Anti-Neutrophil Cytoplasmic Antibody-Associated Vasculitis:

1. Meeting the 2022 American College of Rheumatology/European League Against Rheumatism (ACR/EULAR) diagnostic criteria for ANCA-associated vasculitis, including microscopic polyangiitis, granulomatosis with polyangiitis, and eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis.
2. Testing positive for ANCA-related antibodies (either MPO-ANCA or PR3-ANCA positive).
3. A Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS) of ≥15 points (out of a total of 63 points), indicating active vasculitis.
4. Definition of relapsing/refractory condition: Persistence of disease activity or recurrence of disease activity after remission, despite undergoing conventional treatment for more than six months. Definition of conventional treatment: Administration of glucocorticoids and cyclophosphamide, in combination with any one or more of the following immunomodulatory agents: antimalarial drugs, azathioprine, mycophenolate mofetil, methotrexate, leflunomide, tacrolimus, cyclosporine, as well as biological agents including rituximab, belimumab, telitacicept, etc.

Relapsing and refractory Antiphospholipid Syndrome:

1\. Meeting the 2006 Sydney-revised diagnostic criteria for primary antiphospholipid syndrome; 2. Testing positive for antiphospholipid antibodies at moderate to high titers (IgG/IgM antibodies against lupus anticoagulant, LA; beta-2 glycoprotein I, B2GP1; or anticardiolipin, acL, detected positive on more than two occasions within a 12-week period); 3. Definition of relapsing/refractory condition: Recurrence of thrombosis despite standard treatment with warfarin anticoagulation or alternative vitamin K antagonist (i.e., maintaining the required international normalized ratio, INR, for therapeutic management) or standard therapeutic doses of low molecular weight heparin (LMWH), in addition to previous treatment with corticosteroids and cyclophosphamide; 4. For catastrophic antiphospholipid syndrome, the following four criteria must be met: (1) involvement of three or more organs, systems, and/or tissues; (2) onset of symptoms within one week; (3) histological confirmation of small vessel occlusion in at least one organ or tissue; (4) presence of aPL (antiphospholipid antibodies).

Note: Meeting either criterion 3 or 4 is sufficient.

Relapsing and refractory Rheumatoid arthritis:

1\. Diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) according to the 2010 American College of Rheumatology (ACR)/European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) classification criteria, with a history of RA ≥ 3 months; 2. Inadequate response to at least two conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) and at least one biological agent targeting cytokines/signal transduction pathways (such as TNFα inhibitors, IL-6R antagonists, anti-CD20 monoclonal antibodies, etc.). (Note: Inadequate response to methotrexate or leflunomide, with stable treatment for ≥ 3 months prior to screening); 3. Moderate to severe active RA: swollen joint count (SJC) ≥ 6, tender joint count (TJC) ≥ 6; 4. Elevation of at least one inflammatory marker: erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) ≥ 28 mm/h or C-reactive protein (CRP) ≥ upper limit of normal (ULN).

Relapsing and refractory IgG4-Related Disease:

1. Meeting the 2019 American College of Rheumatology (ACR)/European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) diagnostic criteria for IgG4-related disease (IgG4-RD);
2. Having an IgG4-RD responder index (RI) ≥ 2 during the screening period, indicating active disease;
3. Meeting the criteria for refractory or relapsing IgG4-RD:

1\) Refractory: Defined as a lack of response to steroid therapy or steroid plus immunosuppressive therapy (no clinical or radiological improvement, with a decrease in RI \< 2); 2) Relapse: Defined as new progression or recurrence of clinical symptoms or radiological manifestations in patients who have previously achieved remission, with or without an elevation in serum IgG4 levels (an increase in RI ≥ 2).

Exclusion Criteria:

* Subjects who meet any of the following exclusion criteria will not be admitted to the study:

  1. Individuals with a severe history of drug allergies or those with an allergic constitution;
  2. Individuals with existing or suspected uncontrolled or treatable fungal, bacterial, viral, or other infections;
  3. Subjects with central nervous system diseases (excluding those with a history of epilepsy, psychiatric disorders, organic brain disease syndromes, cerebrovascular accidents, encephalitis, or central nervous system vasculitis resulting from the underlying disease);
  4. Subjects whose cardiac function cannot tolerate the study interventions;
  5. Subjects with congenital immunoglobulin deficiencies;
  6. Subjects with a history of malignant tumors within the past five years;
  7. Subjects with end-stage renal failure;
  8. Subjects who are positive for hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) and hepatitis B core antibody (HBcAb) with peripheral blood HBV DNA titers exceeding the upper limit of detection; subjects who are positive for hepatitis C virus (HCV) antibody and peripheral blood HCV RNA; subjects who are positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) antibody; and subjects who are positive for syphilis testing;
  9. Subjects with psychiatric disorders or severe cognitive dysfunction;
  10. Subjects who have participated in other clinical trials within the past three months prior to enrollment;
  11. Subjects who have received immunosuppressive agents with therapeutic effects on the disease within five half-lives prior to enrollment or biological agents within four weeks prior to enrollment;
  12. Pregnant women or women planning to become pregnant;
  13. Subjects whom the investigator believes have other reasons that preclude their inclusion in this study.

Where it's running

  • The First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital
    Beijing, Beijing Municipality, China
    Recruiting

Study contacts

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How to take part

  1. Review the eligibility criteria above with your treating physician.
  2. Check the official listing on ClinicalTrials.gov for the latest contact details and recruitment status.
  3. Contact the study coordinator or principal investigator to ask for pre-screening. Pre-screening is free and never obligates you to enroll.
Last reviewed 2026-11-14 by the Find a Trial editorial team. Information on this page is for educational purposes and is not medical advice. Always consult qualified healthcare professionals about clinical trial participation.