Researchers devise more efficient, enduring CAR gene therapy to combat HIV

FINDINGSA UCLA research team has shown that using a truncated form of the CD4 molecule as part of a gene therapy to combat HIV yielded superiorand longer-lastingresults in mouse models than previous similar therapies using the CD4 molecule.This new approach to CAR T gene therapy — a type of immunotherapy that involves genetically engineering the body ’s own blood-forming stem cells to create HIV-fighting T cells— has the potential to not only destroy HIV-infected cells but to create “memory cells” that could provide lifelong protection from infection with the virus that causes AIDS.BACKGROUNDCAR therapies have emerged as a powerful immunotherapy for various forms of cancer and show promise for treating HIV-1, the more prevalent of the two main forms of the virus. However,current applications of these therapies may not impart long-lasting immunity. Researchers have been seeking a T cell –based therapy that can respond to malignant or infected cells that may reappear months or years after treatment.In a  previous study, the UCLA researchers describedthe creation of blood-forming stem cells that carry genes for chimeric antigen receptors, or CARs. Once these genetically engineered stem cells are transplanted into the body, they form specialized infection-fighting white blood cells known as CAR T cells that specifically seek out and kill cells infected with HIV.METHODBecause HIV binds to CD4 molecules in order to infect cells in the body, the researchers previously c...
Source: UCLA Newsroom: Health Sciences - Category: Universities & Medical Training Source Type: news