Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZISimplified method developed for monitoring CAR T-cell therapies using flow cytometry
CAR T-cell therapy, a novel cancer immunotherapy, uses patients' own T cells, which have been genetically engineered, for treatment. Currently, this therapy is used for some forms of blood cancer and lymphoma. In order to assess both the success and side effects of CAR T-cell therapies, intensive monitoring after administration is necessary.
Currently, radiological and molecular biological methods are used for this purpose. Flow cytometry enables the identification and characterization of CAR-T cells and patient immune cells in a rapid manner and at the single cell level. In addition, flow cytometry provides analyses at the protein level and can thus provide information on the functionality of CAR-T cells. Researchers at the University of Leipzig, in cooperation with the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology IZI and Beckman Coulter Life Sciences GmbH, have established a flow cytometry method that simplifies the analysis of CAR-T cells from patients' blood.
The results have now been published in the journal Frontiers in Immunology:
Blache U, Weiss R, Boldt A et al. (2021) Advanced Flow Cytometry Assays for Immune Monitoring of CAR-T Cell Applications. Front. Immunol. 12:658314. doi: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.658314
