This editorial will discuss the potency assays available for cellular immunotherapies, the regulatory criteria they must meet, and the challenges faced in measuring immune cell cytotoxicity.
This application note demonstrates a robust method for performing real-time antibody internalization assays using the Agilent xCELLigence RTCA eSight combined with CypHer5E pH-sensitive dyes.
The Agilent xCELLigence RTCA HT-BioTek BioSpa 8 integrates the xCELLigence Real-Time Cell Analyzer (RTCA) HT instrument with the BioTek BioSpa 8 automated incubator to expand the screening throughput of your RTCA HT instrument to eight 384-well plates.
Immuno-oncology research is changing the landscape of cancer treatment by harnessing the immune system to attack cancer cells. These immunotherapies utilize both the adaptive and innate arms of the immune system, playing a pivotal role in a host’s defense against tumors. Join the Agilent Immuno-Oncology webinar series and learn how experts in the field are making groundbreaking discoveries and taking steps towards a cancer-free world.
Glioblastoma is an aggressive tumor with poor survival rates. Bispecific T cell engagers (BTEs) against different cancers are in various stages of clinical development. Toxicity resulting from cytokine release syndrome and the short half-life of BTEs, which necessitates continuous infusion—complicating delivery and increasing costs—are major challenges in the field. Here we describe the development of in vivo DNA-launched BTEs (dBTEs) with highly focused targeting of interleukin-13 receptor a2 (IL-13Ra2), a glioblastoma cell-surface target. We developed 4 BTEs targeting 2 epitopes of IL-13Ra2 and studied how heavy-light chain orientation affects BTE function. The dBTEs induced T cell activation, cytokine production, and tumor cytolysis in the presence of IL-13Ra2+ tumor cells, but we observed unique patterns of immune activation. We found a strong correlation between granzyme B secretion and dBTE-induced cytolysis of specific and nonspecific tumors. We down-selected dBTE PB01-forward based on lower cytokine induction profile and highest activation specificity. In vivo, dBTE PB01-forward demonstrated an improved half-life versus intravenous recombinant BTE delivery. In an orthotopic glioblastoma model, dBTE PB01-forward controlled tumor growth, improving animal survival, supporting the hypothesis that the blood-brain barrier does not affect the function of systemically delivered dBTE. Further study of PB01-forward for targeting glioblastoma and other IL-13Ra2+ cancers is warranted.