autologous collagen-reactive T-cell vaccine

The autologous collagen-reactive T-cell vaccine is an experimental personalized cell therapy developed for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The therapy involves isolating T-lymphocytes from a patient's blood or synovial fluid and identifying those that specifically react to Type II collagen, a major autoantigen in RA. These collagen-reactive T-cells are expanded in vitro and then attenuated, typically through gamma irradiation, to render them non-pathogenic while preserving their immunological identity. Upon re-injection into the patient, these attenuated cells act as a vaccine by stimulating the host's immune system to generate anti-idiotypic and anti-ergotypic regulatory T-cells. These regulatory populations specifically target and suppress the endogenous, pathogenic collagen-reactive T-cells responsible for joint inflammation and cartilage destruction, thereby aiming to restore immune tolerance and induce clinical remission.

Other names

T-cell vaccinationTCVcollagen-specific T-cell vaccineTCV-RA