Clinical-scale generation of human anti-Aspergillus T cells for adoptive immunotherapy

L Tramsen, U Koehl, T Tonn, JP Latge… - Bone marrow …, 2009 - nature.com
L Tramsen, U Koehl, T Tonn, JP Latge, FR Schuster, A Borkhardt, L Uharek, R Quaritsch…
Bone marrow transplantation, 2009nature.com
Invasive aspergillosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing
allogeneic hematopoietic SCT. There is a growing body of evidence that T cells are
important in the host defense against Aspergillus, and adoptively transferred anti-Aspergillus
T-helper 1 (TH) 1 cells might reduce infectious mortality in hematopoietic transplant
recipients. Here we present for the first time a simple and rapid method for the clinical-scale
generation of functionally active anti-Aspergillus T cells according to good manufacturing …
Abstract
Invasive aspergillosis is a major cause of morbidity and mortality in patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic SCT. There is a growing body of evidence that T cells are important in the host defense against Aspergillus, and adoptively transferred anti-Aspergillus T-helper 1 (T H) 1 cells might reduce infectious mortality in hematopoietic transplant recipients. Here we present for the first time a simple and rapid method for the clinical-scale generation of functionally active anti-Aspergillus T cells according to good manufacturing practice conditions. A total of 1.1× 10 9 WBCs derived from a leukapheresis product were incubated with Aspergillus antigens. Stimulated cells were selected by means of the IFN-γ secretion assay and expanded. In three independent experiments, a median number of 2× 10 7 CD3+ CD4+ cells (range, 0.9–3.2× 10 7) were obtained within 13 days. The cultured CD3+ CD4+ cells exhibited almost exclusively a memory activated T-helper cell phenotype. Upon restimulation, the generated T cells produced IFN-γ, but no IL-4 or IL-10, indicating a T H 1-cell population. Additionally, the cells proliferated upon restimulation and showed reduced alloreactivity compared to unselected CD4+ cells. This method of generating is suitable for future prospective trials designed to evaluate the effect of adoptive immunotherapy in hematopoietic transplant recipients with invasive aspergillosis.
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