Syngeneic Mouse Models for Pre-Clinical Evaluation of CAR T Cells.

Simple Summary: CAR T cells are a type of immune cell that is genetically engineered to better recognize and attack cancer cells. Before this treatment can be used to treat humans, it undergoes testing in pre-clinical models. Most of these models use mice that do not have an immune system, which means that these models may not accurately recapitulate CAR T cell actions in humans. This review focuses on how using syngeneic mouse models that have a functional immune system can result in better pre-clinical assessment of CAR T cells. Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have revolutionized the treatment of hematological malignancies. Unfortunately, this improvement has yet to be translated into the solid tumor field. Current immunodeficient models used in pre-clinical testing often overestimate the efficacy of CAR T cell therapy as they fail to recapitulate the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment characteristic of solid tumors. As CAR T cell monotherapy is unlikely to be curative for many solid tumors, combination therapies must be investigated, for example, stromal remodeling agents and immunomodulators. The evaluation of these combination therapies requires a fully immunocompetent mouse model in order to recapitulate the interaction between the host's immune system and the CAR T cells. This review will discuss the need for improved immunocompetent murine models for the pre-clinical evaluation of CAR T cells, the current use of such models and future directions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]