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Immunology
Removing the barrier surrounding solid tumors clears path for T cells
Penn researchers uncover a new way to target solid tumors. Using CAR T cells to remove cancer-associated fibroblasts surrounding pancreatic tumors allows T cells to infiltrate and attack the tumor cells.
Penn Medicine’s Carl June to receive 2024 Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences
The Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy in the Perelman School of Medicine is honored for pioneering the development of CAR T cell therapy, which programs patients’ own immune cells to fight their cancer.
A suit of armor for cancer-fighting cells
New research from the University of Pennsylvania offers a safer path for CAR T cell immunotherapy.
An immunotherapy strategy against all blood cancers
Researchers at Penn Medicine have demonstrated a new potential treatment using CAR T cell therapy using a CRISPR base-editing to develop a method called “epitope editing.”
Carl June on the boundless potential of CAR T cell therapy
In a Q & A, June, the Richard W. Vague Professor in Immunotherapy, and Daniel Baker, a fourth-year doctoral student in Penn’s Cell and Molecular Biology department, discuss how the treatment can extend to treating diseases beyond cancer.
Putting biomedical research advances within reach
Treatments and vaccines are only useful in the hands of the people who need them, and Penn Medicine is working toward better access and equity for biomedical innovations.
Two Penn faculty elected to the American Philosophical Society
Paul Offit and Dorothy Roberts have been recognized for extraordinary accomplishments in their fields.
The path from innovation to implementation
Penn’s infrastructure in both supporting clinical research and forging commercial partnerships smooths the way from idea to approval.
Improved gene editing method could power future cell and gene therapies
A new technique based on special cell-penetrating peptides promises advantages over current methods for editing the genomes of primary cells, such as patients’ T cells.
Why Penn research powers many FDA-approved treatments
Since 2017, the FDA approved more than two dozen new therapies with roots at Penn Medicine—almost half of which are first-in-class for their indications.
In the News
CAR-T cell therapies show promise for autoimmune diseases
Daniel Baker, a Ph.D. student in Carl June’s lab at the Perelman School of Medicine, discusses the results of a study on donor CAR-T cell therapy.
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‘Any protein you can imagine, it can deliver’: AI will help discover the next breakthrough in RNA, says Nobel Prize winner Dr. Drew Weissman
Drew Weissman of the Perelman School of Medicine is launching a new RNA research hub that will use artificial intelligence to help train scientists and guide their experiments.
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Is bird flu spreading among people? Data gaps leave researchers in the dark
Scott Hensley of the Perelman School of Medicine says that there are fears of bird flu spreading at low levels through humans in a Missouri community.
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Carl June: 2024 will be seen as a breakthrough year for brain cancer
Carl June of the Perelman School of Medicine shares five insights on using CAR T cell therapy to combat cancer, featuring remarks from Bruce Levine.
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How to make yourself sneeze and find relief fast, according to doctors
John V. Bosso of the Perelman School of Medicine says that sneezing helps clear the nose of irritants, dirt, allergens, viruses, and bacteria.
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A bird-flu pandemic in people? Here’s what it might look like
Scott Hensley of the Perelman School of Medicine says that the bird flu virus would have to change significantly to be able to bind effectively to human cells.
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