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Immunology
A new way to predict lung cancer treatment response: The blood test
A Penn study shows a better clinical response to immunotherapy correlates with higher ratio of tumor mutations detected by a liquid biopsy.
CRISPR-edited immune cells can survive and thrive after infusion into cancer patients
In the first U.S. clinical trial, cells removed from patients and brought back into the lab were able to kill cancer months after their original manufacturing and infusion.
Defect driving resistance to CAR T therapy identified
A new study identifies the mechanism that prevents cell death, and can guide future immunotherapy strategies in patients whose blood cancers are resistant to CAR T therapy.
Penn nanoparticles are less toxic to T cells engineered for cancer immunotherapy
By using messenger RNA across the T cell’s membrane via a nanoparticle instead of a DNA-rewriting virus on extracted T cells, CAR T treatments could have fewer side effects.
These overlooked global diseases take a turn under the microscope
Faculty at the School of Veterinary Medicine target neglected tropical diseases with advanced science, cross-disciplinary collaborations, and work in the lab and the field.
Positive results in first-in-U.S. trial of CRISPR-edited immune cells
Genetically editing a cancer patient’s immune cells using CRISPR/Cas9 technology, then infusing those cells back into the patient appears safe and feasible based on early data from the first-ever clinical trial to test the approach in humans in the United States.
To monitor cancer therapy, researchers tag CAR T cells with imaging markers
With CAR T cell therapy, a patient’s own immune cells are genetically modified and inserted back into the body to find and kill cancer. Now scientists have now discovered a new way to track CAR T cells in the body.
Researchers unravel the early makings of an exhausted T cell
Knowing which T cells will lose the battle against cancer earlier could inform treatments and the development of new immunotherapies.
Algorithm personalizes which cancer mutations are best targets for immunotherapy
A new model developed by researchers in the Abramson Cancer Center hand-picks cancer cells to target for more effective, customized cancer vaccines.
CAR T cell therapy may be harnessed to treat heart disease
Penn Med researchers used genetically modified T cells to improve heart function in an animal model after cardiac injury, a step forward in expanding the use of the technology to treating, or even reversing, heart failure.
In the News
The mRNA miracle workers
Nobel laureates Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman of the Perelman School of Medicine appear on “Sunday Morning” to discuss their careers, their mRNA research, and the COVID-19 vaccines.
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Blood tests can help diagnose Alzheimer’s—if they’re accurate enough. Not all are
Virginia Man-Yee Lee of the Perelman School of Medicine says it’s likely in the future that anyone older than 60 will get an Alzheimer’s test.
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AI detects cancers and immunotherapy biomarker
Daiwei Zhang and Mingyao Li of the Perelman School of Medicine and colleagues have developed an AI tool called iStar that can automatically spot tumors and types of cancer that are difficult for clinicians to see or identify and can predict candidates for immunotherapy.
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Godfather of mRNA vaccines reveals plans to immunize people against cancer years before tumors strike to ‘the disease from ever appearing’
Drew Weissman of the Perelman School of Medicine, who won the Nobel Prize for mRNA vaccines along with Katalin Karikó, is researching an mRNA vaccine against cancer.
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Is the flu shot market a slam dunk for mRNA vaccines? Experts aren’t so sure
Scott Hensley of the Perelman School of Medicine is working on a flu vaccine to provide protection against 20 subtypes of flu that may pose a pandemic threat in the future.
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Trial results offer hope to Kiwis with ‘incurable’ blood cancer
Carl June of the Perelman School of Medicine praises New Zealand research into a new CAR T-cell cancer treatment for patients with blood cancer.
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