NKTR-255, a polymer-conjugated IL-15, synergizes with CAR-T cell therapy to activate endogenous anti-tumor immunity and improve tumor control

Nutt, W. S.; Kluesner, M. G.; Bingham, E.; Gad, E.; Miller, D.; Zepeda, V.; Snyder, A. J.; Marsh, S. A.; Liudahl, S. M.; Hoffman, M.; LeBlanc, L.; Volfbeyn, M. E.; Garrison, S. M.; Sarvothama, M.; Barry, K. C.; Headley, M. B.; Marcondes, M.; Srivastava, S.

doi:10.64898/2025.12.11.693768

bioRxiv · 10.64898/2025.12.11.693768

NKTR-255, a polymer-conjugated IL-15, synergizes with CAR-T cell therapy to activate endogenous anti-tumor immunity and improve tumor control

Nutt, W. S.·Kluesner, M. G.·Bingham, E.·Gad, E.·Miller, D.·Zepeda, V.·Snyder, A. J.·Marsh, S. A.·Liudahl, S. M.·Hoffman, M.·LeBlanc, L.·Volfbeyn, M. E.·Garrison, S. M.·Sarvothama, M.·Barry, K. C.·Headley, M. B.·Marcondes, M.·Srivastava, S.

View original source ↗Export metadata ↓

Abstract

CAR-T cells have yet to show widespread efficacy in solid tumors due in part to their poor persistence and loss of function in the tumor microenvironment. Further, heterogenous expression of most CAR target antigens in solid tumors can lead to escape of antigen-null tumors that resist CAR-T killing. Strategies to cooperatively boost both CAR-T and endogenous anti-tumor immunity could curb tumor escape and may be critical for achieving durable efficacy in cancer patients. NKTR-255 is a polymer-conjugated IL-15 with extended half-life that can boost endogenous T and NK cells, as well as CD19 CAR-T activity in B cell malignancies. However, whether NKTR-255 is sufficient to overcome CAR-T dysfunction in the suppressive solid tumor microenvironment, and how NKTR-255 and CAR-Ts together re-shape endogenous anti-tumor immunity, is not known. Using an autochthonous mouse model of ROR1+ lung adenocarcinoma, we show that NKTR-255 significantly boosted accumulation, reduced exhaustion, and improved function of tumor-infiltrating CAR-T cells. Compared with NKTR-255 or CAR-T treatment alone, combination of NKTR-255 and CAR-T therapy synergistically increased tumor-infiltrating CD11b+ cytotoxic NK cells, activated dendritic cells, and endogenous tumor-specific T cells that preserved a PD-1+Tcf1+ stem-like phenotype. Consequently, NKTR-255 and CAR-T combination therapy induced complete elimination of ROR1+ tumor and significantly improved survival, with enhanced tumor control dependent on activity of both CAR-Ts and endogenous T cells. Altogether, our data suggest that combining NKTR-255 with CAR-T therapy is a promising strategy to enhance both CAR-T and endogenous anti-tumor immunity to promote coordinated control of aggressive tumors.

Explore related subjects

immunology Preprint

Keep this discovery

Explore connections, maps & timelines

BibTeX RIS

Nutt, W. S., Kluesner, M. G., Bingham, E., Gad, E., Miller, D., Zepeda, V., Snyder, A. J., Marsh, S. A., Liudahl, S. M., Hoffman, M., LeBlanc, L., Volfbeyn, M. E., Garrison, S. M., Sarvothama, M., Barry, K. C., Headley, M. B., Marcondes, M., Srivastava, S.. 2025-12-15. NKTR-255, a polymer-conjugated IL-15, synergizes with CAR-T cell therapy to activate endogenous anti-tumor immunity and improve tumor control. https://doi.org/10.64898/2025.12.11.693768

Cite the original work for its findings. Save a collection to share your selection of sources.

KEEP EXPLORING

Related preprints

bioRxiv2026

CTR1-mediated copper uptake orchestrates metabolic-epigenetic regulation of pathogenic TH17 cells in autoimmune disease

Pathogenic T helper 17 (pTH17) cells are a subset of CD4+ T cells driving autoimmune diseases including multiple sclerosis (MS). Compared to homeostatic TH17 cells and other TH subsets, pTH17 have enhanced mitochondrial function and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) that supports their differentiation and pathogenic function. Here we identify Copper Transporter 1 (CTR1), encoded by Slc31a1, as essential for copper uptake in CD4+ T cells, OXPHOS and pTH17 cell differentiation and function. While copper levels are known to be higher in the cerebrospinal fluid of patients with MS compared to healthy individuals, and excess copper contributes to oligodendrocyte loss in murine models of MS, the effect of copper on T cell function and pathogenicity in MS are unclear. We demonstrate that deletion of Slc31a1 in CD4+ T cells decreased intracellular copper levels, disrupting mitochondrial respiration and rewiring metabolism. These changes altered the epigenetic landscape of pTH17 cells by impairing DNA demethylation capacity, leading to hypermethylated DNA and altered chromatin accessibility at key binding sites for AP-1 transcription factors essential for pTH17 differentiation. As a result, CTR1-deficient T cells showed defective differentiation into pTH17 cells, with decreased production of IL-17A and expression of TH17 signature genes, while the differentiation of other CD4+ T cell subsets remained largely unaffected. Moreover, T cell-specific deletion of Slc31a1 protected mice from central nervous system (CNS) inflammation in the experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) model of MS by suppressing clonal expansion of autoreactive CD4+ T cells. These findings establish copper as a critical regulator of pTH17 differentiation and function, revealing a previously unknown molecular link between copper homeostasis, metabolism and epigenetic regulation governing pTH17-mediated autoimmunity.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2026

Fetal-intrinsic antiviral mechanisms emerge over the course of gestation

Congenital viral infections have variable effects on pregnancy outcomes with implications for maternal and fetal health. However, the maternal and fetal immune mechanisms that emerge over the course of gestation to determine protective or pathological outcomes remain poorly understood. Here, we use the emerging congenital pathogen Oropouche virus (OROV) to examine gestational stage-dependent differences in maternal and fetal outcomes in a mouse model of congenital infection. Pregnant mice (dams) infected during early gestation resist severe OROV disease, whereas mid-gestation-infected dams succumb to infection. In contrast, fetal pathology is substantial following early gestation infection but limited following infection during mid-gestation, revealing discordant maternal and fetal susceptibility across gestation. Mid-gestation fetal tissues effectively restricted vertical transmission compared to early gestation fetal tissues, corresponding with reduced fetal pathology. Moreover, both placental and fetal tissue cleared OROV RNA over the course of infection, independent of gestational stage, and failure to clear viral RNA was associated with severe fetal pathology. Spatial analysis of early gestation implantation sites further revealed distinct regional susceptibility to OROV infection across the maternal-fetal interface. We identified potential instances of placental-independent vertical transmission via direct fetal contact with highly infected regions of the contralateral maternal uterus. Finally, we uncovered an unexpected mechanism by which type I interferon signaling contributes to inter-fetal immune crosstalk to restrict both OROV vertical transmission and pathology. Together, these findings establish the fetus as an active participant in antiviral defense and reveal previously unrecognized mechanisms by which fetal-intrinsic antiviral immune responses limit congenital viral infection and disease.

immunology↗

bioRxiv2026

Interferon lambda drives immunological maturation in the infant lung and protects against lethal Bordetella pertussis infection

Serious pertussis infections disproportionately affect infants but the biological basis for this age-dependent susceptibility remains unclear. Infant mouse models recapitulate features of severe human infant pertussis. We investigated the role of interferon lambda (IFN-{lambda}), a key regulator of mucosal immunity, in Bordetella pertussis infection of infant mice. While infected adult mice upregulate lung IFN-{lambda}, infant mice inoculated at P7 fail to upregulate IFN-{lambda} and succumb to infection. We hypothesized that failure to produce IFN-{lambda} during infection represents a critical immunological deficit in infant mice, and that restoring IFN-{lambda} signaling would improve survival outcomes. Whereas wild-type mice gained complete protection from lethal B. pertussis infection by P10, mice lacking the IFN-{lambda} receptor component IFNLR1 did not achieve full protection until P21. Loss of IFNLR1 was associated with enhanced bacterial dissemination to systemic organs. Infant mice possessed a functional IFN-{lambda} receptor in the lungs but failed to upregulate IFN-{lambda} during infection, and supplementing IFN-{lambda} exogenously extended survival. RNA sequencing of lung tissue from infected and uninfected wild-type and IFNLR1-deficient mice inoculated at different ages identified an immune transcriptional framework distinguishing susceptible from resistant animals at a systems level and revealed IFN-{lambda} signaling as a critical driver of immunological maturation in the infant lung. Infected infant IFNLR1-deficient mice had dysregulated immune cell recruitment to the lungs, indicating a quantitatively expanded but qualitatively impaired response. These findings demonstrate that IFN-{lambda} affects immune maturation accounting for a critical window of age-dependent resistance to lethal pertussis with novel therapeutic possibilities for human infants with this disease.

immunology↗