Shalu Sharma Kharkwal, Christopher T Johndrow, Natacha Veerapen, Himanshu Kharkwal, Noemi A Saavedra-Avila, Leandro J Carreño, Samantha Rothberg, Jinghang Zhang, Scott J Garforth, Peter J Jervis, Lianjun Zhang, Alena Donda, Amareeta K Besra, Liam R Cox, Steven C Almo, Alan Howell, Elizabeth E Evans, Maurice Zauderer, Gurdyal S Besra, Steven A Porcelli
CD1d-restricted invariant natural killer T cells (iNKT cells) mediate strong antitumor immunity when stimulated by glycolipid agonists. However, attempts to develop effective iNKT cell agonists for clinical applications have been thwarted by potential problems with dose-limiting toxicity and by activation-induced iNKT cell anergy, which limits the efficacy of repeated administration. To overcome these issues, we developed a unique bispecific T-cell engager (BiTE) based on covalent conjugates of soluble CD1d with photoreactive analogues of the glycolipid α-galactosylceramide...
April 1, 2021: Cancer Research