Comparing CAR and TCR engineered T cell performance as a function of tumor cell exposure

Autor: Tassilo L. A. Wachsmann, Anne K. Wouters, Dennis F. G. Remst, Renate S. Hagedoorn, Miranda H. Meeuwsen, Eline van Diest, Jeanette Leusen, Jürgen Kuball, J. H. Frederik Falkenburg, Mirjam H. M. Heemskerk
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: OncoImmunology, Vol 11, Iss 1 (2022)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 2162-402X
2162402X
DOI: 10.1080/2162402X.2022.2033528
Popis: Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies have resulted in profound clinical responses in the treatment of CD19-positive hematological malignancies, but a significant proportion of patients do not respond or relapse eventually. As an alternative to CAR T cells, T cells can be engineered to express a tumor-targeting T cell receptor (TCR). Due to HLA restriction of TCRs, CARs have emerged as a preferred treatment moiety when targeting surface antigens, despite the fact that functional differences between engineered TCR (eTCR) T and CAR T cells remain ill-defined. Here, we compared the activity of CAR T cells versus engineered TCR T cells in targeting the B cell malignancy-associated antigen CD20 as a function of antigen exposure. We found CAR T cells to be more potent effector cells, producing higher levels of cytokines and killing more efficiently than eTCR T cells in a short time frame. However, we revealed that the increase of antigen exposure significantly impaired CAR T cell expansion, a phenotype defined by high expression of coinhibitory molecules and effector differentiation. In contrast, eTCR T cells expanded better than CAR T cells under high antigenic pressure, with lower expression of coinhibitory molecules and maintenance of an early differentiation phenotype, and comparable clearance of tumor cells.
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