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CellRaft Array for Screening and Isolation of Highly Effective Cytotoxic T Cells

Award Number: R41AI126905
ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES
OPDIV: NIH
AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY
AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 06/16/2016
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/02/2017

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CellRaft Array for Screening and Isolation of Highly Effective Cytotoxic T Cells - PROJECT SUMMARY: Cell Microsystems, Inc. is an early-stage biotechnology company whose mission is the commercialization of a novel, cost-effective platform enabling the identification and efficient isolation of viable cells based on morphologic and fluorescence signatures as well as characteristics that change over time. The CellRaft™ technology is based on a unique cell array recently developed by the Allbritton Lab at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The commercially available CellRaft platform for cell identification and isolation consists of a sterile, disposable microarray (the CellRaft Array) for culturing cells and a motorized release device fitting on a standard inverted laboratory microscope for cell isolation. In the current grant application, we propose to expand our market applications by developing the technology for identifying and isolating non-adherent immunologic cells based on a unique time-resolved selection criterion, a feat not possible with other cell isolation procedures. The approach will combine the CellRaft Array with a cell-based cytotoxicity assay to identify and collect antigen-specific cytotoxic CD8+ T lymphocytes (CTLs). The eventual goal for this project will be to use the platform to isolate highly efficient killer cells for adoptive cell therapy (ACT). ACT is an emerging immunotherapy which shows significant promise in the treatment of both leukemia and solid tumors. ACT consists of the isolation and ex vivo expansion of CTLs recognizing epitopes of a mutated or aberrantly expressed protein present almost exclusively on the surface of a patient’s tumor cells. We envision the CellRaft system will serve both as a research tool enabling correlation of killing efficiency with the molecular characteristics of the T cell receptor (TCR) and eventually as a clinical tool for producing and identifying efficacious CTLs for cell-based therapies. In this regard, we envision the ideal approach to individualize ACT would be to identify, enrich and expand a population of highly efficient CTLs against a patient’s tumor without a priori defining a tumor-specific antigen, but this feat is not currently possible, primarily due to technical limitations. To overcome this and other obstacles, we seek to develop a high-throughput technology to efficiently generate highly-active, tumor- directed CTLs. In this initial Phase I STTR proposal, we will optimize the array for the cell-based cytotoxicity assay, improve the protocol for isolating the non-adherent lymphocytes and perform feasibility testing by using the CellRaft technology to identify and isolate effective CTLs. These efforts will lay the groundwork for a follow-on Phase II proposal to scale-up the array size, and integrate automated high-throughput image cytometry and cell isolation procedures to enable the molecular characterization of efficient killer T cells.


Issue Date FY	Funding FY	Legal Entity Name	Legal Entity Address	Legal Entity City	Legal Entity State	Legal Entity Zip Code	Legal Entity COUNTY	Legal Entity COUNTRY	Assistance Listing	Award Code	Budget Year	Action Date	Action Type	Action Amount

Issue Date FY: 2018 ( Subtotal = -$2,015 )
2018	2016	CELL MICROSYSTEMS, INC.	2 DAVIS DRIVE ROOM 119 AND 118	RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK	NC	27709	DURHAM	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	1	11/6/2017	NEW	-$2,015
														Subtotal = -$2,015

Issue Date FY: 2017 ( Subtotal = $0 )
2017	2016	CELL MICROSYSTEMS, INC.	2 DAVIS DRIVE ROOM 119 AND 118	RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK	NC	27709	DURHAM	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	1	6/28/2017	NEW	$0
														Subtotal = $0

Issue Date FY: 2016 ( Subtotal = $224,129 )
2016	2016	CELL MICROSYSTEMS INC	907 GREENWOOD ROAD	CHAPEL HILL	NC	27514	ORANGE	USA	Allergy and Infectious Diseases Research	000	1	6/16/2016	NEW	$224,129
														Subtotal = $224,129

Grand Total All Awards = $222,114

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CellRaft Array for Screening and Isolation of Highly Effective Cytotoxic T Cells

Award Number: R41AI126905

ORGANIZATION: NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF ALLERGY & INFECTIOUS DISEASES

OPDIV: NIH

AWARD CLASS: DISCRETIONARY

AWARD ACTIVITY TYPE: SCIENTIFIC/HEALTH RESEARCH (INCLUDES SURVEYS)

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE START DATE: 06/16/2016

PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE END DATE: 07/02/2017

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