Funded by the Dick Vitale Pediatric Cancer Research Fund
Neuroblastoma is the most common cancer in babies. It can act in surprising ways. Some forms grow quickly and are very hard to treat. Others, especially in babies under 18 months old, can shrink or even disappear without treatment. Doctors do not fully understand why this happens, but the immune system may play a key role. One type of immune cell, called the CD8⁺ T cell, is especially good at finding and killing cancer cells.This project will study whether the immune system in babies works differently from that of older children or adults, and whether these differences can explain why some tumors go away on their own. Baby T cells are often thought of as immature, but new research shows they can grow faster, work more efficiently, and resist “burning out” better than adult T cells.In our early work, we trained baby T cells to recognize neuroblastoma cells. They were better at killing these cancer cells than adult T cells. We also found that baby T cells rely on a nutrient called pyruvate for energy and function. They process pyruvate in a special way using an enzyme called GPT.We will test whether this unique metabolism is the reason for their strong performance. We will also see how the tumor environment changes T cell metabolism, and whether changing the way T cells use pyruvate can make them even better at fighting cancer.We will use umbilical cord blood as a safe, widely available source of baby T cells. If this approach works, it could lead to new cancer treatments designed for children. The goal is to make these treatments safer, more effective, and take advantage of the natural strengths of the infant immune system.
