Magic™ Anti-SAA monoclonal antibody

Survival rates for sarcoma patients have plateaued in the past few decades and remain especially grim for those with recurrent or metastatic disease. This has prompted investigation into novel immunotherapies for sarcomas, especially after their recent and well-recognized successes in other cancers. One such modality, the Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T Cell therapy, has shown promising results in treating B-cell lymphoma and acute lymphoblastic leukemia. This novel therapy functions by fusing a specific antibody derived single-chain variable fragment (scFv) with a T-cell which recognizes a specific tumor-associated antigen (TAA). Several sarcoma-associated antigens (SAA) amenable to CAR-T cell treatment have recently emerged with encouraging results. These include human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (HER2), disialoganglioside (GD2), interleukin 11 Receptor Subunit Alpha (IL-11RA), fibroblast activation protein (FAP), B7-H3, CD44v6, insulin-like growth factor 1 receptor (IGF-1R), and tyrosine kinase orphan-like receptor 1 (ROR1). Given the limitations of current medical therapies, novel treatment strategies are urgently needed. As a sarcoma treatment modality, CAR-T cell therapy is highly promising and continues to draw interest especially as new clinical trials emerge. Here we review recent breakthrough CAR-T cell studies in sarcoma, the targets which define them, and approaches to minimizing host cytotoxicity.

Aim of the work: It was to estimate the carotid intima-media thickness (CIMT), lipid profile, serum amy- loid A and vitamin D in Familial Mediterranean Fever (FMF) patients and to explore the relationship between CIMT and FMF. Patients and methods: The study comprised forty-five FMF patients diagnosed during the attack free per- iod and 40 healthy children with similar demographic features as control. The diagnosis of the FMF cases was confirmed by clinical, laboratory assessments and confirmed by the molecular diagnosis. The CIMT, lipid profile, complete blood picture, serum amyloid A (SAA) levels, vitamin D and the growth pattern were investigated. Results: The study showed no significant difference of CIMT among patients and controls, significant decrease of vitamin D levels, while lipid profile parameters, triglyceride (TG) to HDL-Cholesterol (HDL- C) ratio, serum amyloid A were significantly increased. A significant correlation was present between the CIMT with the serum cholesterol, low density lipoprotein and triglycerides as well as between SAA and the number of attacks. In addition, vitamin D levels showed significant negative correlation with col- chicine. M694I mutation was the most prevalent among FMF patients. Growth parameters were normal in FMF cases. Conclusion: This study sheds light that the normal CIMT in the FMF patients makes it difficult to describe the children as having subclinical atherosclerosis although the higher TG/HDL ratio reflects their risk of atherosclerosis. Moreover, significant decrease of vitamin D in FMF patients was observed. The growth parameters of the FMF patients on regular treatment of colchicine were not affected. (c) 2020 Egyptian Society of Rheumatic Diseases. Publishing services provided by Elsevier B.V. This is an open access article under the CC BY -NC -ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).