Co-expression of IL-7 and PH20 Promote anti-GPC3 CAR-T Tumor Suppressor Activity in Vivo and in Vitro

Abstract

While CAR-T therapy has successfully treated hematological malignancies, it has proved sub-optimal for solid tumors. The main limitation is the inability of CAR-T cells to infiltrate and then proliferate within tumors. In this study, we co-expressed IL-7 and PH20, a type of hyaluronidase, with CAR targeting GPC3 (G3CAR-7×20) to address these issues. We found (G3CAR-7×20) exhibited better proliferation in vivo and in vitro than G3CAR, reduced the level of apoptosis after stimulation by tumor cells, and maintained the memory phenotype of CAR-T cells. G3CAR-7×20 also increased the ability of CAR-T cells to infiltrate tumor tissue. G3CAR-7×20 may significantly enhance the efficacy of CAR-T cells in solid tumors.