To support anti-BCMA CAR T cell persistence, Rakhshandehroo et al. generated an antigen- targeted “CAR enhancer” (CAR-E) by fusing BCMA to a low-affinity IL-2 molecule. bit.ly/3XmUThv Dana-Farber   Mohammad Rashidian

Focused on reducing severe and dose-limiting toxicities seen with prior IL-2 and IL-12 therapies, Mehta and Rakhra et al. engineered CLN-617, a first-in-class therapeutic for direct intratumoral (i.t.) administration. bit.ly/4cySvIz Cullinan Therapeutics

In cocultures of glioblastoma stem cells and in PDX mouse models of glioblastoma, Shanley et al. showed that arming NK cells with IL-21 was safe and induced long-term antitumor activity, while arming [...] bit.ly/4dPYUjQ  Mayra Shanley  Katy Rezvani, M.D., Ph.D

Herault et al. demonstrated the efficacy of targeting the costimulatory receptor NKG2D with a bispecific antibody (BsAb) to enhance NK- and CD8+ T cell-mediated antitumor immunity. bit.ly/3AwEv53 Genentech

🎓 Improving your bad marks: Targeting TE-specific CCR8 expressing Tregs to restore immunity bit.ly/3WKQa7I

🔴 Tumor blood lines - Targeting pericyte and endothelial cell antigens in the TME bit.ly/4fI3dPR

Nie et al. showed that thonzonium bromide (TB) occupied the Npl4-binding site on p97 and blocked p97–Npl4 interaction instead of targeting the enzymatic activity of p97. bit.ly/4dqk1cy

💉 3 is better than 1: an off-the-shelf TAA-targeting mixed whole tumor cell vaccine bit.ly/3AjPBKk

🆙 A sugar high? - glycosylated peptides are abundant in the MHC-II immunopeptidome bit.ly/3SQxW3p

Azar et al. engineered TG6050, an oncolytic vaccinia virus encoding a single-chain human IL-12 p40/p35 fusion and a full-length, ADCC-competent anti-CTLA-4 Ab. bit.ly/3Md6nO0 Transgene

No digest this week! We will be back on September 4th. #Vacations #StayTuned

🍦 Still trying to melt the tip of the iceberg: Can IL-2, the first approved immunotherapy, find its use? bit.ly/3X3kv2q

📦 Getting it where it is needed most: delivering antigen-encoding mRNA directly to DCs ex vivo with LNPs bit.ly/3M6IQOH

How tumors go in stealth mode. Read our digest here 👉 bit.ly/3MvoRcy  Boston Children's  BIDMC Pathology  Harvard Medical School

To target high-risk neuroblastoma, which expresses surface GPC2 (tumor-exclusive, but downregulated under immune pressure) and GD2 (not tumor-exclusive) and is infiltrated by CD16a+ innate immune cells [...] bit.ly/47gwNrG  CHOP Research

Wang et al. performed paired single-cell RNA and T cell receptor sequencing in 36 patients with stage IV melanoma treated with anti-PD-1, anti-CTLA-4, or combination therapy to study the pharmacodynamic [...] bit.ly/4dQT7uB  Univ. of Pennsylvania Department of Cancer Biology

Wakamatsu et al. demonstrated a mechanism of Lag3-mediated cell-extrinsic suppression of T cell activation. Lag3 is a structural homolog of CD4, and following initial TCR–pMHC stimulation, formed clusters with MHC-II molecules [...] bit.ly/3AS6UT4  YOKOSUKA TADASHI

Cieri et al. set out to identify immunologically relevant genetic differences (SNPs) between stem cell transplant donors and recipients resulting in minor histocompatibility antigens (mHAgs) of clinical relevance. bit.ly/3Xu6gnz  @danafarber

In melanoma and some other cancers, tumor cell PD-1 expression promotes tumorigenesis, and PD-1 blockade limits tumor growth, even in the absence of T cells. bit.ly/3Xg4CEM  Brigham and Women’s Research

To improve anti-PD-1/PD-L1 responses in cancer, Kumar, Tailor, and Dheeraj et al. developed an ex vivo, high-throughput screen to identify drugs that could inhibit macrophage-mediated T cell suppression. bit.ly/3Td88yA  OHSU School of Medicine