tumor-microenvironment
CAR-T and CAR-NK cells are T cells or NK cells engineered to express a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR), enabling antigen-specific, MHC-independent recognition and killing of tumor cells.
Trogocytosis is an underappreciated resistance mechanism in CAR-T/CAR-NK therapy: CAR cells can strip target antigen (e.g., CD19, BCMA, MSLN) from tumor cells, causing antigen escape, triggering fratricide among CAR cells, and driving exhaustion via chronic stimulation (the ATF3–CH25H axis). For example, CD19 CAR-T cells trogocytose CD19 from NALM6 leukemia cells, reducing CD19 density and CAR-T efficacy — an effect that is partially reversible over about six days.
Related terms
Source papers
- Trogocytosis-mediated immune evasion in the tumor microenvironment doi:10.1038/s12276-024-01364-2