New approach for the immunotherapeutic targeting of TEM1+ tumors
Cell Reports Medicine publishes research on development and validation of novel scFv-based reagents with the immunotherapeutic potential to kill tumor cells expressing endothelial marker 1 (TEM1)
TEM1 is a multidomain Type I cell surface protein expressed in the stroma and neo-vasculature of a significant proportion of human carcinomas, while being largely absent from healthy adult tissues. Additionally, TEM1 is directly expressed on the surface of tumor cells of mesenchymal origin, notably sarcoma.
Research by Steven Dunn and George Coukos, Director of the Ludwig Lausanne branch, has led to the isolation and characterization of two distinct antibody reagents capable of redirecting human T cells to selectively kill TEM1+ tumor cell lines, both as chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) and as experimental soluble bispecific trivalent engagers (‘TriloBiTEs’).
The findings of this study*, funded by the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, appear in Cell Reports Medicine.
* Soluble trivalent engagers redirect cytolytic T cell activity toward tumor endothelial marker 1
