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Biology subjects

Hora, J.

Publications and source records attributed to Hora, J..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

Safe Redosable Low-Immunogenic In Vivo CAR-T Therapy for B Cell Malignancies and Solid Tumors

In vivo CAR-T cell therapy eliminates manufacturing complexities associated with ex vivo autologous approaches, but safety concerns have limited adoption. We developed viroVbot, a next-generation in vivo CAR-T platform, by combining computational immunogenicity prediction (CIMMEXTM) with envelope engineering. Screening 22,562 glycoprotein sequences, we identified 641 vesiculovirus homologs, from which we selected Piry virus glycoprotein (PIRYV) as the optimal candidate. PIRYV exhibited lower MHC-epitope density, reduced human seroprevalence, with decreased T cell activation compared to VSV-G. To enhance targeting specificity, we engineered receptor-binding-deficient PIRYV (ePIRYVRBD) displaying CD3/CD7 nanobodies for T cell-selective transduction. To maximize safety, we engineered CAR-TRAP producer cells to eliminate unwanted B cell transduction and incorporated machine learning-optimized T cell-specific promoters that restrict CAR activation exclusively to lymphocytes. Additional modifications suppressed hepatocyte expression and prevented phagocytic uptake. In humanized xenograft models, viroVbot3 generated potent BCMA/CD19 specific CAR-T responses against multiple myeloma and Claudin18.2-targeting gastric cancer, demonstrating sequential redosing with alternative envelopes. Critically, viroVbot3 exhibited minimal off-target organ biodistribution with CAR expression restricted to T lymphocytes. These findings establish viroVbot as a low-immunogenic platform for scalable in vivo CAR-T manufacturing with capability for sequential redosing across hematologic and solid tumors.

bioengineering↗

In silico codon optimization of the variant antigen-encoding genes of diverse strains of Zika Virus

AbstractWith the recent emergence of the coronavirus pandemic, the scare for other viral pandemics is on the rise. Already having caused an epidemic in 2015-16, Zika virus (ZIKV) poses a threat for potential havoc. Thus, there is an urgent need to produce drugs and vaccines for the same as no approved vaccinations exist for the virus as of now. With the optimization of codon usage, the process of vaccine development can be accelerated and efficacy can be ensured. ZIKV genome has 3 structural genes (envelope, capsid and membrane which is obtained from pre membrane) and 7 nonstructural genes (NS1, NS2A, NS2B, NS3, NS4A, NS4B and NS5). We have used these 10 genes in 5 different strains of ZIKV for in silico DNA optimization in Escherichia coli. The mean CAI, GC% and AT% of wild-type DNA and optimized DNA of each were compared. It was observed that the CAI and GC% had increased in optimized DNA as compared to wild- type while the opposite was seen for AT%. The results show that codon optimization helps in efficient expression of proteins in the host. These could be used in the development of biotherapeutics. The ideal genes to be overexpressed in development of biotherapeutics are the membrane precursor (prM) and envelope (E) genes as the results have shown.

bioinformatics↗