Dr hab. Grzegorz Chodaczek, leader of the Immunotherapy Research Group at Łukasiewicz – PORT, demonstrates that appropriately selected gamma-delta T lymphocytes obtained from human blood may constitute an effective tool in the fight against the most aggressive brain tumor – glioblastoma multiforme. Nearly PLN 15 million granted to the Wrocław-based researchers by the Medical Research Agency (ABM) will enable the continuation of studies aimed at developing an innovative anticancer therapy based on human immune cells.
Glioblastoma multiforme is the most common malignant brain tumor, characterized by the poorest prognosis and an average patient survival of approximately 10 months. What makes it so difficult to defeat?
– Complete removal of the tumor using surgery, chemotherapy, or radiotherapy is often impossible due to its location, and the cancer itself can additionally modify the patient’s immune system to its own advantage, growing in an uncontrolled manner – explains Grzegorz Chodaczek.
The low effectiveness of currently available therapies necessitates the search for new treatment strategies, such as those that use immune cells with natural anticancer activity and low susceptibility to the inhibitory effects of the tumor microenvironment.
– One particularly promising candidate is a unique subtype of T lymphocytes expressing the gamma-delta T-cell receptor, which allows them to recognize and destroy transformed cells under less restrictive conditions than the numerically dominant alpha-beta T cells in the body – explains the scientist. He adds that the uniqueness of gamma-delta T cells lies in the possibility of harvesting them from healthy donors and using them to treat unrelated recipients. This has not been possible so far in other cellular cancer therapies (e.g. CAR-T therapy used in leukemia).
In a previous research project, Dr hab. Chodaczek compared the anticancer activity of various gamma-delta T-cell subtypes and observed that cells derived from some healthy donors were significantly more effective at combating glioblastoma cells than others. This observation formed the basis for proposing new studies.
In the newly launched project at Łukasiewicz – PORT entitled “Optimization of Blood Donor Selection for the Production of Therapeutic Gamma-Delta T Lymphocytes in the Treatment of Malignant Brain Tumors,” the Immunotherapy Research Group will analyze blood cells from many healthy individuals. This will be made possible through collaboration with the Regional Blood Donation and Blood Treatment Center named after Prof. Tadeusz Dorobisz in Wrocław.
The team focuses on two key aspects:
– On the one hand, we want to investigate the cytotoxicity of gamma-delta T lymphocytes, i.e. their ability to kill cancer cells. On the other hand, we aim to analyze which genetic factors and proteins (gene products) are responsible for the effectiveness of these cells in fighting tumors. Our goal is to identify the “optimal donor” by determining the characteristics of gamma-delta T lymphocytes that most efficiently eliminate glioblastoma cells. In the long term, our research may contribute to the development of innovative anticancer therapies – explains Dr hab. Chodaczek.
The funds obtained through the project will allow the institute to acquire additional highly specialized equipment (including a high-throughput imaging microscope and a spectral flow cytometer) and to expand facilities for spectrometric protein analysis, significantly improving the acquisition and analysis of vast amounts of data. The remaining ABM funding will be allocated, among other things, to the purchase of reagents and consumables, genetic analyses (next-generation sequencing), and training programs that will enhance the research team’s competencies.
As emphasized by the leader of the Immunotherapy Research Group, who gained many years of experience in research institutions in the United States, including the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston and the La Jolla Institute for Immunology in San Diego:
– The expansion of research infrastructure at Łukasiewicz – PORT, made possible through government programs supporting applied research, allows us to operate at the level of the world’s leading scientific centers. Investments in modern technologies are a step toward even greater efficiency and innovation in Polish science.
The next stage of research led by Dr hab. Grzegorz Chodaczek will focus on developing a technology for manufacturing therapeutic cells for future clinical trials and on expanding the use of gamma-delta T lymphocytes to combat other types of cancer.
