Researchers at Mount Sinai are using neon green "JEDI T-cells" to see how the body combats disease.
In the fight against cancer, it's easy to forget the best weapon: the human body. Through millions of years of evolution, our bodies have become experts at fighting illness, whether that illness is something external like a virus or something as internal as cancer. In fact, every person has cells containing DNA damage, but our bodies do a great job at ratting those cells out and repairing them; it's when that process fails that "cancer," as we know it, arises. How does the body so expertly rid itself of suspicious problems, and can we use that knowledge to develop new cancer-fighting treatments?
Scientists at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai have figured out a way to watch that process in action. The process centers on a special kind of white blood cell called a T-cell. You may have heard of T-cells before; they are critical in fighting off illness and are the kind of cells that are lacking in a person who has HIV/AIDS. T-cells are able to look at other cells in the body and decide if they are renegades that either harbor a germ or are mutating and becoming cancerous. Until now, that process has been mysterious. Immunologists wondered: How do T-cells perform this sort of X-ray vision to see inside cells?
To figure it out, these researchers took enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP), the protein that makes jellyfish glow, and inserted it into T-cells. Then, they traced the glowing cells as they did their dirty work, ratting out enemies in their midst. The resultant T-cells are called Just EGFP Death-Inducing T-cells, or JEDI T-cells. In the opinion of this author, the name might be stretching it a bit, but the doctors seem very proud of it, so let's let them have this.
"In a galaxy far, far away, the Jedi knights defeated the dark side," said Judith Agudo, first author of the study, in a press release. "We believe the JEDI T-cells will help us win the fight against cancer, autoimmunity, and infectious disease."
Using the new technology, the scientists watched the JEDI T-cells find cells in the brain that reflect their chosen antigen — the substance that the body is fighting. That could help future immunologists target therapies for brain cancers, as the T-cells show them exactly where to go. The study was performed on a mouse model, so time will tell how this plays out in humans.
"[T]his has the potential to revolutionize immunology research," said Brian D. Brown, senior author of the paper. "Immunotherapy is considered one of the most important breakthroughs in cancer care in decades, but there is more research needed to improve its success in the clinic. The JEDI technology will be integral to this effort, as well as helping to advance other areas of drug development."
The article was first published online in the journal Nature Biotechnology.
