| Posted on January 10th, 2025 by Dr. Monica M. Bertagnolli Millions of people in the U.S. have an autoimmune disease, from type 1 diabetes to inflammatory bowel disease, in which the immune system attacks the bodyâs own organs, tissues, or cells to cause damage. While treatments that tamp down the immune system can help, they can increase risk for infection or cancer due to systemic immune suppression. Similarly, for people whoâve received an organ or tissue transplant, immunosuppressants used to prevent rejection can leave the whole body vulnerable. What if there was a way to suppress the immune system only right where itâs needed, in tissues or organs at risk for immune attack? An NIH-supported study reported in Science describes a way to do just that by using a cell-based therapy approach. The therapeutic approach involves taking a blood sample from a patient, modifying certain immune cells in the laboratory, and then reintroducing the engineered cells back into the body. Such cell-based therapeutics can be designed to recognize specific molecules to target tissues. This approach is already used to treat many cancers, utilizing a patientâs own engineered immune cells, known as CAR T cells, to attack and kill their cancer. Inspired by the success of the CAR T-cell example, the researchers behind this new work see the technology theyâre developing as a potential platform for tackling many types of immune dysfunction. | 