CDTR: Stem Cell-Derived Thymus Rejuvenation
Thymmune Therapeutics’ Stem Cell-Derived Thymus Rejuvenation (CDTR) project aims to restore immune and endocrine function in patients lacking a functional thymus by using engineered stem cell-derived treatment. The thymus is an organ responsible for supporting normal immune cell development. The project is divided into two phases. The goal of the first phase is to use a combination of chemical and genetic factors to make best-in-class human induced pluripotent stem thymic epithelial cells (iPS-TECs) with capacity for supporting T lymphocytes (white blood cells) development in vivo. In the second phase, Thymmune plans to develop protocols for transplantation and long-term engraftment of iPS-TEC in animal models to achieve effective immune function, demonstrating a path towards using iPS-TEC to ultimately treat patients lacking functional thymus. Overall, Thymmune’s disease-agnostic approach to combat thymus dysfunction by bolstering immune responses against pathogens, cancer, and vaccines presents a potentially revolutionary means to reboot immunity. Thymmune has the potential to both rescue patients lacking a functional thymus from morbidity and mortality and addresses a crucial unmet need to rejuvenate immunity in the aging population.