An in vitro expansion process for rapid expansion of antigen specific T cells, such as allogeneic antigen specific cells comprising the steps culturing in a gas permeable vessel a population of PBMCs (such as allogeneic PBMCs) in the presence of antigen, for example a peptide or peptide mix relevant to a target antigen(s), in the presence of an exogenous cytokine characterized in that the expansion to provide the desired population of T cells is 14 days or less, for example 9, 10, 11 or 12 days, such as 10 days. The disclosure also extends to T cell populations generated by and obtained from the method and the use of same in therapy.

A genetically modified cytotoxic T cell includes one or more exogenous nucleic acid molecules encoding a transgenic antigen-targeting construct. Estrogen receptor-binding fragment-associated antigen 9 (EBAG9) activity is inhibited in the cells. The antigen-targeting construct can be a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) or T cell receptor (TCR). The modified T cell can be used in the treatment of a proliferative disease, in particular for the treatment of hematologic malignancies. A pharmaceutical composition includes the modified T cell, a nucleic acid vector encoding the antigen-targeting construct and an inhibitor of EBAG9, such an RNA interference molecule. An in vitro method can increase the cytolytic activity of a cytotoxic T cell.

The present invention describes a method for obtaining lymphoid cells having a desired phenotype for adoptive transfer therapies useful for the treatment of cancer. Especially, this invention is related to strategies for inducing preferential signaling through the intermediate affinity IL-2 receptor in order to expand the cells with a desired central memory phenotype. The method of the present invention is useful for obtaining tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes, TCR or chimeric antigen receptor engineered T cells for the treatment of cancer.

Embodiments of the disclosure concern multi-respiratory vims specific T cell lines and methods of using the same to treat and prevent viral infections.

The present invention relates to a method for inducing an immune response in a human or animal subject, as well as to a pharmaceutical composition for inducing an immune response, furthermore to a method for producing the pharmaceutical composition in vitro and the use of cytotoxic CD8+ T-lymphocytes activated to recognize an antigenic peptide in a pharmaceutical composition or in a method for inducing an immune response.

A method of generating an isolated population of cells comprising anti-third party cells having a central memory T-lymphocyte (Tcm) phenotype, the cells being tolerance-inducing cells and/or endowed with anti-disease activity, and capable of homing to the lymph nodes following transplantation is disclosed. The method comprising: (a) contacting peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) with a third party antigen or antigens in the presence of IL-21 so as to allow enrichment of antigen reactive cells; and (b) culturing the cells resulting from step (a) in the presence of IL-21, IL-15 and IL-7 in an antigen free environment so as to allow proliferation of cells comprising the central memory T-lymphocyte (Tcm) phenotype.

The present invention aims to increase cytotoxic activity of an immunocompetent cell to thereby enhance a therapeutic effect against diseases such as cancers, and provides an immunocompetent cell having decreased diacylglycerol kinase activity, which cell expresses a fusion protein including IL-15 and an IL-15 receptor α subunit, and which cell expresses a chimeric antigen receptor.

The invention involves generating a T cell response to subdominant antigens and using the cells to therapeutically change the cellular homeostasis and nature of the immune response. In a preferred embodiment, the cells are generated outside of the patient avoiding the influence of the patient's immunologic milieu. By stimulating and growing the T cells from a patient in a tissue culture to one or more subdominant antigens and the transplanting them into the patient, if enough cells are expanded and transplanted, the transplanted cells overwhelm the endogenous dominant T cells in the response to either break or induce immune tolerance or otherwise modify the immune response to the cells or organism expressing that antigen. When the memory cells are established they are then reflective of this new immunodominance hierarchy so that the desired therapeutic effect is long lasting. In effect, the transplantation exogenously generated T cells reactive to the subdominant antigens is recapitulating priming and rebalancing the patient's immune response to target previously subdominant antigens in the cells or organism to produce a therapeutic benefit.

Provided herein are methods for delaying or inhibiting T cell maturation or differentiation in vitro for a T cell therapy, comprising contacting one or more T cells from a subject in need of a T cell therapy with an AKT inhibitor and at least one of exogenous Interleukin-7 (IL-7) and exogenous Interleukin-15 (IL-15), wherein the resulting T cells exhibit delayed maturation or differentiation. In some embodiments, the method further comprises administering the one or more T cells to a subject in need of a T cell therapy.

Provided herein are methods and customized media compositions for culturing CIK NKT cells.