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Docket #: S24-101

Engineered synthetic surface receptors to enhance T cell function

Stanford scientists have engineered synthetic surface receptors that combine domains from diverse natural receptors to enhance T cell function in challenging immunotherapeutic contexts. These novel receptors show promise for improving T cell performance during persistent antigen exposure, offering new possibilities for advancing cellular therapy approaches.

Current cellular therapies are limited by the finite number of natural surface receptors available and their predetermined signaling responses, which may not be optimal for specific therapeutic applications. While chimeric receptors have shown promise, systematic approaches to identify optimal receptor configurations for enhanced cellular function have been lacking. Enhanced T cell function, particularly under conditions of chronic antigen exposure and T cell exhaustion, remains a critical need in cellular therapy.

The technology combines extracellular binding domains with intracellular signaling domains from diverse immune receptors to create synthetic surface receptors with novel signaling behavior. Through systematic evaluation of over 7,500 receptor combinations, several novel synthetic receptors demonstrated enhanced T cell proliferation under persistent antigen exposure. Unlike traditional approaches, these synthetic receptors enable fundamental rewiring of cellular signaling pathways, offering potential applications in cellular therapies such as CAR-T cells and providing a platform for identifying optimal receptor configurations across different therapeutic contexts.

Stage of Development:
Proof of concept
Continued research – Validation of hits in in vitro assays and applying large-scale synthetic surface receptor discovery library we generated into additional environmental contexts

If interested in this technology, please reach out to us by March 30, 2025.

Applications

  • Development of enhanced T cell therapies for challenging immunotherapy contexts
  • Optimization of cellular engineering across therapeutic applications
  • Cellular state modification for regenerative medicine

Advantages

  • Comprehensive screening approach for identifying effective synthetic receptors
  • Validated receptor configurations that enhance T cell function
  • Modular platform adaptable to different cellular contexts and therapeutic needs

Docket S24-101 is Part of a Group of Related Technologies:

S23-103: Touchless Selection of Gene Modified Cell Therapies Through TRAC Intron Knockins
S23-104: Safer, more effective cell therapies enabled by coupled gene knock-in and knockout
S23-105: "CRISPR-All" enables genetic screens combining different types of genetic perturbations
S23-342: Chimeric transcription factors for engineering exhaustion-resistant CAR-T and other cell therapies
S24-100: Engineered transcription factors to enhance T cell function in cancer immunotherapy
S24-101: Engineered synthetic surface receptors to enhance T cell function

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