Engineered bacteria for cancer treatment
This technology is an engineered bacterial strain with enhanced tumor colonization for targeted therapeutic delivery.
Unmet Need: Effective cancer therapy delivery
Despite increasing use of immunotherapy across multiple types of cancer, overall patient response rates remain low due to immunosuppressive tumor microenvironments (TMEs). Hypoxic and immunosuppressive TMEs prevent immune cell infiltration into tumors to allow for tumor clearance. Bacteria have been proposed as treatment options due to their ability to survive in anoxic environments; however, their clinical use is hampered by safety concerns.
The Technology: Tumor colonizing bacteria for enhanced cancer therapy delivery
This technology is an engineered strain of E. coli that has enhanced tumor colonization. Using a high-throughput genetic screen, key metabolic adaptation genes that drive bacterial intratumoral fitness were identified and integrated into a single bacterial strain. These bacteria are engineered to align with the metabolites available in the TME to promote tumor colonization and persistence. The tumor-specific colonization allows for a safer, more effective method of delivering cancer therapeutics to tumors.
This technology has been tested in mouse models.
Applications:
- Immunotherapy for cancer treatment
- Cancer therapy delivery mechanism
- Research tool for tumor microenvironment research
Advantages:
- Targets tumor colonization
- Optimized for intratumoral fitness
- Enhances delivery of therapeutic payloads
Lead Inventor:
Patent Information:
Patent Pending
Related Publications:
Tech Ventures Reference:
IR CU26149
Licensing Contact: Cynthia Lang