1区 · 医学
Article
作者: Davis, Megan M ; Raymond, Hayley E ; Nobles, Christopher L ; Rech, Andrew J ; Vapiwala, Neha ; Bushman, Frederic D ; Chew, Anne ; Xu, Jun ; Moniak, Michael ; Church, Sarah E ; Gohil, Mercy ; Hether, Tyler D ; Haas, Naomi B ; Farwell, Michael D ; Narayan, Vivek ; Carpenter, Erica L ; Tien, Kyle ; Gilmore, Joan ; Maude, Shannon L ; Lledo, Lester ; Hexner, Elizabeth O ; Kulikovskaya, Irina ; Gonzalez, Vanessa E ; Barber-Rotenberg, Julie S ; Tian, Lifeng ; Jung, In-Young ; Fraietta, Joseph A ; Lal, Priti ; Hwang, Wei-Ting ; Dengel, Karen ; Sebro, Ronnie A ; Yee, Stephanie S ; Lacey, Simon F ; Marshall, Amy ; Siegel, Donald L ; Gladney, Whitney ; Chen, Fang ; June, Carl H ; Buckingham, Thomas H ; Plesa, Gabriela
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have demonstrated promising efficacy, particularly in hematologic malignancies. One challenge regarding CAR T cells in solid tumors is the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), characterized by high levels of multiple inhibitory factors, including transforming growth factor (TGF)-β. We report results from an in-human phase 1 trial of castration-resistant, prostate cancer-directed CAR T cells armored with a dominant-negative TGF-β receptor (NCT03089203). Primary endpoints were safety and feasibility, while secondary objectives included assessment of CAR T cell distribution, bioactivity and disease response. All prespecified endpoints were met. Eighteen patients enrolled, and 13 subjects received therapy across four dose levels. Five of the 13 patients developed grade ≥2 cytokine release syndrome (CRS), including one patient who experienced a marked clonal CAR T cell expansion, >98% reduction in prostate-specific antigen (PSA) and death following grade 4 CRS with concurrent sepsis. Acute increases in inflammatory cytokines correlated with manageable high-grade CRS events. Three additional patients achieved a PSA reduction of ≥30%, with CAR T cell failure accompanied by upregulation of multiple TME-localized inhibitory molecules following adoptive cell transfer. CAR T cell kinetics revealed expansion in blood and tumor trafficking. Thus, clinical application of TGF-β-resistant CAR T cells is feasible and generally safe. Future studies should use superior multipronged approaches against the TME to improve outcomes.