INsTRuCT — INnovative Training in Myeloid Regulatory Cell Therapy

Results in brief

INnovative Training in Myeloid Regulatory Cell Therapy

Chronic immune-mediated diseases are common and greatly impact people’s lives. Current options for treating diseases like rheumatoid arthritis or multiple sclerosis are unsatisfactory because they only control disease progression, but do not cure it. Patients are typically treated lifelong with medicines that suppress their immune system, which improves their symptoms, but makes them more susceptible to infections and some cancers. In future, researchers think it might be possible to re-educate patients’ immune systems to stop harmful reactions by restoring a natural process called “immune regulation” that breaks down in patients. One high-tech strategy to restore immune regulation in patients is using their own cells as medicine. This approach was studied by researchers in the INsTRuCT Consortium, an MSCA Doctoral Network focusing on scientific and technological innovations in myeloid regulatory cell (MRC)-based therapy. Over 4 years, INsTRuCT’s partners from academia and industry created a framework for advancing original basic scientific discoveries into novel cell products and processes, leading to higher quality immune therapies. MRC-based therapies represent an attractive strategy for treating chronic immune-mediated diseases. Very importantly, because MRC-based therapy can induce antigen-specific immune non-reactivity, it could be used to treat the root cause of immune-mediated diseases, sparing the toxic effects of general immunosuppression. Moreover, because MRC-based therapy induces a self-reinforcing immune regulation, its clinical effects could be very long-lived. Hence, MRC-based therapy opens the remarkable possibility of curative therapy. First-generation MRC-based cell therapies are now being investigated in early-phase clinical trials across a broad range of indications, including solid organ transplantation, rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and multiple sclerosis (MS). Preliminary success in these proof-of-principle studies justifies their further pharmaceutical development, hopefully leading to their implementation as routine medical treatment over the next 10 to 15 years.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

Cell therapy is an active area of immunological research and represents a highly innovative and rapidly expanding sector of pharmaceutical industry. The INsTRuCT Consortium answers an unmet need in the field for postdoctoral researchers experienced in scientifically excellent research and cell therapy development. INsTRuCT draws upon complementary expertise of its academic and industrial partners to offer a unique research and training programme. INsTRuCT proposes 15 distinctive research projects based at European companies or universities recognized for their scientific achievements and innovation. INsTRuCT is structured to promote interdisciplinary and intersectoral cooperation between partners, thereby accelerating pharmaceutical development and clinical application of novel myeloid regulatory cell (MRC)-based therapies. INsTRuCT is a primarily research-based training programme, which will be complemented by theoretical and practical training opportunities. INsTRuCT will encourage a translational view of research, which will be reinforced by intersectoral secondments. Teaching transferrable and communication skills is a high priority for INsTRuCT. ESR will gain a comprehensive overview of the drug development process in Europe as it applies to cell-based therapies; hence, INsTRuCT’s graduates will be fitted for future roles as innovative leaders in the field. INsTRuCT will strengthen interactions between cooperating research groups at junior and senior levels, thereby promoting dissemination of standardized research approaches and data-sharing. Overall, INsTRuCT constitutes an original research and training concept that responds to the specific needs of a growing sector for postdoctoral scientists trained in Basic Immunology and cell therapy development. Consequently, INsTRuCT has a very high impact potential, both in terms of its scientific and technical advancements, and its future contribution to innovation and economic development within the European Union.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

KLINIKUM DER UNIVERSITAET REGENSBURG · RegensburgCoordinatorGermany
CHARITE - UNIVERSITAETSMEDIZIN BERLIN · BerlinGermany
INSTITUT DE INVESTIGACIO EN CIENCIES DE LA SALUT GERMANS TRIAS I PUJOL · Badalona BarcelonaSpain
INSTITUTO DE SALUD CARLOS III · MadridSpain
KING'S COLLEGE LONDON · LondonUnited Kingdom
MILTENYI BIOTEC BV & CO KG · Bergisch GladbachGermany
NANTES UNIVERSITE · NantesFrance
OSPEDALE SAN RAFFAELE SRL · MilanoItaly
Stichting Sanquin Bloedvoorziening · AmsterdamNetherlands
THE PROVOST, FELLOWS, FOUNDATION SCHOLARS & THE OTHER MEMBERS OF BOARD, OF THE COLLEGE OF THE HOLY & UNDIVIDED TRINITY OF QUEEN ELIZABETH NEAR DUBLIN · DublinIreland
UNIVERSITEIT ANTWERPEN · AntwerpenBelgium
UNIVERSITY OF NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE · Newcastle Upon TyneUnited Kingdom

INsTRuCT · INnovative Training in Myeloid Regulatory Cell Therapy

Results in brief

INnovative Training in Myeloid Regulatory Cell Therapy

Project objective

Participants

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