ST6GAL1-enhanced chimeric antigen receptor T cells

ST6GAL1-enhanced chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells are an investigational glycoengineered cell therapy developed to overcome the immunosuppressive effects of the tumor microenvironment in diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL). By overexpressing the enzyme alpha-2,6-sialyltransferase (ST6GAL1), these CAR-T cells increase the levels of alpha-2,6-sialic acids on their surface glycans. This modification effectively masks the ligands for Galectin-3 (Gal-3), a carbohydrate-binding protein highly expressed in DLBCL that typically binds to CAR-T cells to induce apoptosis and functional exhaustion. The reduction in Gal-3 binding leads to enhanced T-cell persistence, increased cytotoxicity, and a shift toward a Th1-like cytokine profile—characterized by significantly reduced production of the Th2-associated cytokine interleukin-5 (IL-5). Preclinical studies in DLBCL xenograft models have demonstrated that this glycoengineering approach significantly reduces tumor burden and improves survival compared to standard CAR-T therapies.

Other names

ST6GAL1-overexpressing CAR-T cellsST-6GAL1-overexpressing CAR-T cellsST 6GAL1-overexpressing CAR-T cellsST6GAL1-modified CAR-T cellsST-6GAL1-modified CAR-T cellsST 6GAL1-modified CAR-T cellsST6 OE CAR T cellsST-6 OE CAR T cellsST 6 OE CAR T cells