Early Identification of Target Candidates for Pancreatic Adenocarcinoma Immunotherapy

Effective immunotherapy of pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is hampered by the lack of suitable tumor-specific antigens. To address this challenge, we have combined high-throughput flow cytometry with high-content cyclic immunofluorescence for the early identification of target candidates for cellular immunotherapy. Within this webinar, we aim to guide the viewers through our most recently published scientific findings[1] and related cutting-edge tools, ranging from the preparation of primary and xenografted tumor specimens to the comprehensive antigen screening and deep phenotyping.

[1] Schäfer, D., Tomiuk, S., Küster, L.N. et al. Identification of CD318, TSPAN8 and CD66c as target candidates for CAR T cell based immunotherapy of pancreatic adenocarcinoma. Nat Commun 12, 1453 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-021-21774-4  

Learning Objectives:

1. Breakdown a problem of solid tumor CAR T cell therapies is that most identified tumor-associated antigens are also expressed in healthy tissue.

2. Explain how we systematically screened for PDAC CAR targets by high-throughput flow cytometry followed by high-content immunoflourescent imaging.

3.  Duscuss how CD318, TSPAN8 and CD66c were identified as potential targets for CAR T cell based immunotherapy of PDAC.