About The Lab
Chronic illnesses such as cancer and autoimmune disorders significantly strain both patients and healthcare systems. Traditional long-term drug therapies, which often have non-specific effects, can lead to severe side effects. Advanced cell and gene therapies harness the powerful capabilities of the body’s cells, offering lasting and significant improvements through "living drugs." A prime example is CAR-T cell therapy, where T lymphocytes—immune cells—are modified with synthetic cancer-targeting receptors (Chimeric Antigen Receptors: CAR) to seek out and destroy blood cancer cells.
Our research group is dedicated to creating platform technologies to engineer the genetic code of cells to address medical challenges. We are focused on refining the latest gene editing tools, such as CRISPR-Cas and base editing, for clinical applications. Previously, we demonstrated that CRISPR-Cas can replace viral gene transfer to create CAR-T cells solely with synthetic nucleic acids and recombinant proteins. Our aim is to enhance the functionality of cell-based products and streamline their production, thereby reducing costs and expanding patient access to these innovative therapies. Ultimately, our goal is to develop impactful genetic medicines for various diseases with unmet clinical needs.
Primary Investigator
Dr. Dimitrios L. Wagner's research interests include the Immunology, Genome Editing and Synthetic Biology as well as the clinical translation of Cell and Gene Therapies.
