EBV-Tscm Cytotoxic T Cells (CTLs) for EBV- Driven Lymphomas/ Diseases

Epstein Barr virus (EBV)-driven lymphomas and diseases are associated with poor prognosis. EBV proteins are recognized by T cells providing opportunities for EBV-specific T-cell therapy. Recent findings show that early differentiated T cells (T memory stem cells, Tscm) improve the prognosis in chronic viral diseases and are associated with effective tumor cell killing in melanoma patients. Tscm might be superior to highly differentiated T cells because of their longevity, robust proliferative potential, and capacity to reconstitute a wide T-cell receptor (TCR) diversity. This project will test the hypothesis that Tscm are efficacious for EBV-specific T-cell therapy. Clinical-grade enriched EBV-specific Tscm-CTLs will be prepared and used to treat patients with primary EBV lymphomas, diseases or post-transplant lymphoproliferative disease (PTLD) with limited other treatment options.