B-SYNC therapy eliminated DMG tumors in all mice in two models — ScienceDaily
Scientists at the University of California, San Francisco, in the United States, developed an experimental B-SYNC CAR-T cell therapy that completely eliminated diffuse midline glioma (DMG) tumors in all mice across two models using human tumor cells. As ScienceDaily reports, researchers are preparing a clinical trial of the method at UCSF Health, which could potentially begin as early as April 2027.
Activation only in the brain
B-SYNC CAR-T consists of modified immune-system T cells. They were programmed to produce tumor-attacking receptors only after reaching the brain. Brevican, a protein common in brain tissue, serves as the activation signal. Once activated, the cells can recognize the tumor proteins EphA2 or IL13Rα2.
Initially, scientists administered the cells intravenously to mice implanted with human DMG cells. Some of the cells reached the brain and began attacking the tumor, while in the blood and spleen they did not produce antitumor receptors. The most pronounced result was obtained after intraventricular administration of the cells: conventional CAR-T therapy could not bring the tumors under control, whereas B-SYNC CAR-T eliminated them in every tested mouse.
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Protection after repeated injection of tumor cells
Nearly seven weeks after treatment, researchers reinjected the mice with DMG cells. All animals that received B-SYNC CAR-T rejected these cells. According to the team’s observations, the modified immune cells remained functional for more than 70 days after therapy.
DMG is an aggressive childhood brain cancer that grows into the brainstem, an area that regulates breathing, heartbeat, and swallowing. Nearly all children with this diagnosis die within a year, and existing treatments have limited success in containing disease progression. The effectiveness of B-SYNC CAR-T in humans has not yet been studied; the planned trial is to use patients’ own T cells, genetically modified for this therapy.
