The present invention features modified immune cells (e.g., T- or NK-cells) having increased resistance to hypoxia-adenosinergic immunosuppression. Methods for producing and using the same are also provided.

Several embodiments of the methods and compositions disclosed herein relate to immune cells that are engineered to Mexpress chimeric antigen receptors as well as genetically edited or otherwise engineered to alter the effectiveness with which another immune cell can target and induce cytotoxic effects on the engineered cells. In several embodiments, the methods and compositions disclosed herein reduce fratricide within a therapeutic cell population, which in some instances comprises mixture of immune cell types. Additionally, the methods and compositions disclosed herein enhance one or more aspects of the efficacy of the immune cells in cellular immunotherapy including cytotoxicity and/or persistence, as well as reduced graft versus host or host versus graft effects.

Compositions and methods are disclosed that relate to the discovery of citrullinated oligopeptides of 9-14 amino acids or 9-18 amino acids, comprising peptide sequences derived from the polypeptide sequence of human tenascin-C (TNC) containing citrullination-dependent immunological epitopes that, remarkably, are antigen-specifically recognized by both autoantibodies and CD4+ T cells from human subjects having rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The citrullinated TNC (citTNC) oligopeptides are useful for isolating autoantibodies from, and detecting autoantibodies in, biological fluids from subjects having or suspected of having RA. Also described are uses of citTNC oligopeptides to prepare compositions for induction of citTNC autoantigen-specific immunological tolerance, including tolerogens and citTNC-specific Treg cells.

Edited cells, e.g., genomically edited cells, with reduced levels of immune rejection and/or improved persistence are described.

Provided herein are antibodies and chimeric priming receptors that bind PSMA and antibodies and chimeric antigen receptors that bind CA9. Also provided are systems of chimeric priming receptors that bind PSMA and chimeric antigen receptors that bind CA9, cells expressing such systems, and methods of use thereof.

Porous silicon (pSi) microparticles (PSM) are disclosed, which provide an important advance in the area of cancer immunotherapeutics and molecular nanomedicine. In particular, potent PSM-based adjuvants are disclosed for dendritic cell-based vaccines compositions, and methods for their use in a variety of cancer immunotherapies. The PSM of the present invention are also useful in developing other types of vaccines, including those not necessarily related to the treatment of cancers, such as vaccines for the treatment of acne, Alzheimer's disease, asthma, atherosclerosis, autoimmune disorders, autoinflammatory disease, celiac disease, colitis, Crohn's disease, diabetes, glomerulonephritis, infectious diseases, inflammatory bowel disease, irritable bowel syndrome, ischemia, Lupus, pelvic inflammatory disease, reperfusion injury, rheumatoid arthritis, sarcoidosis, transplant rejection, West Nile virus, and related illnesses.

Compositions and methods for the prophylaxis and treatment of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections are disclosed herein. More specifically the present invention discloses describes an autologous dendritic cell (DC) vaccine product derived by culturing a patient's monocytes with granulocyte macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and interferon alpha 2b (IFN-?), loading the DC with a mixture of five lipopeptides of Gag, Nef and Pol HIV antigens, and, optionally activating the DC with lipopolysaccharide (LPS).

The present disclosure relates, at least in part, to mycobacterial polynucleotides and polypeptides, to fragments or variants thereof, to cells comprising the mycobacterial polynucleotides and polypeptides, to cells comprising the mycobacterial polynucleotides and polypeptides, that are engineered to expand T-cells ex vivo, and to methods of use thereof.