Goal of the project
We aim to engineer a novel ANDgate system compatible with TCR, CAR and NKG2 receptor families for use in cancer immunotherapy. The strategy can potentially both expand the number of available therapeutic targets and at the same time reduce the risk of off-tumor side effects.
Status update
We are currently in the early phase of expression, stabilization, and signaling optimization. We have engineered several construct variants and have successfully achieved robust transduction and expression in both cell lines and freshly isolated human cytotoxic cells. Our next stage of research will involve testing combinations of these receptors in vitro for their ability to effectively differentiate between target cells expressing different combinations of cognate target antigens.
Grant details
- Awardees: Nicholas Chandler (PhD) and Lamberto Torralba-Raga (PhD)
- PRIMA Synergy Grant (02): 200 000 NOK
- Title of project: A universal ANDgate system for activating immune receptors
- Collaborative groups: Olweus and Malmberg
- Project participants: Nicholas Chandler from Olweus’ group and Lamberto Torralba-Raga from Malmberg’s group
What you think of the grant mechanism?
This grant has allowed us to take a chance on a project which would otherwise be difficult to obtain external funding for as early career researchers, in this way the format of the synergy grant has been incredibly beneficial. This is particularly important for the funding of early stage or high-risk project ideas such as ours, as these projects are inherently difficult to fund with traditional grant mechanisms. Deliberately encouraging synergy between members of different labs we believe is also an incredibly valuable part of this grant mechanism as it inevitably opens the possibility for further, organic collaborations between different labs.