A University of Minnesota research team was recently awarded a five-year, $3.8 million grant from the U.S. National Institutes of Health to develop a new cell therapy to combat Alzheimer's disease. More than 55 million people worldwide live with dementia, which includes Alzheimer's disease and other related conditions.
The project aims to adapt advanced techniques developed for cancer treatment to create specialized macrophages - immune cells that can surround and remove proteins from their environment - to seek out and clear harmful proteins in the brain.
Engineered immune cells have shown remarkable promise in the treatment of cancer. We hope to leverage these advances to develop an effective new way to treat Alzheimer's disease."
Beau Webber, PhD, associate professor in the University of Minnesota Medical School and a Masonic Cancer Center researcher
The team will genetically engineer human stem cells reprogrammed from adult cells, before converting them to a specialized immune cell type to target toxic Tau proteins, a key driver of Alzheimer's disease. The cells will also be engineered to control inflammation, which is a major challenge in treatment. This innovative approach could pave the way for a scalable, next-generation therapy to slow or halt Alzheimer's progression.
"Our team's success in garnering NIH funds for this exciting new technology highlights the impact of collaborations between the Medical School and the College of Science and Engineering. We're excited to innovate across disciplines to design breakthrough therapies with the potential to cure diseases of the brain," said Jonathan Sachs, PhD, a biomedical engineering professor in the University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering.
The project officially began in January.
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