ArticleNature communications2021
Engineering T cells to enhance 3D migration through structurally and mechanically complex tumor microenvironments.
Article in Nature communications, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 94 papers.
What it found
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The trial behind it
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Who cites it
94 citing papers in PubMed.
- Decoding spatiotemporal fibrotic and cellular immunosuppression of therapeutic T cells in live pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma.Molecular systems biology · 2026Article
- Genetically inducible coordinators of cytokine signaling pathways for interrogating T cell motility.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- Decoding mechanoregulation in immunological synapses using biomimetic artificial cells.Nature methods · 2026Article
- Microfluidic perspectives on chimeric antigen receptor T-cell migration in solid tumours: highlighting physical confinement as a key barrier.Molecular systems design & engineering · 2026Review
- Stiff matrix impairs cytotoxic T lymphocyte function at multiple levels.Science advances · 2026Article
- Mechanobiology of CAR-T cell therapy: regulatory mechanisms and strategies for enhanced antitumor immunity.Journal of translational medicine · 2026Review
- Analyzing cell migration history in vivo using fluorescent fibrillar collagen trails.Communications biology · 2026Article
- Injectable and viscoelastic click alginate hydrogels for spatio-temporal T cell administration in vivo.Materials today. Bio · 2026Article
- Ferrofluid microrobot driven by an adjustable magnetic tweezer for soft tissue mechanical measurement.Microsystems & nanoengineering · 2026Article
- Immune cells employ intermittent integrin-mediated traction forces for 3D migration.Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America · 2026Article
- The extracellular matrix in inflammation and cancer.Molecular biomedicine · 2026Review
- Mechanotransduction through T cell receptors: consensus, controversies and future outlooks.Experimental & molecular medicine · 2026Review
- Cytokine-Engineered Chimeric Antigen Receptor-T Cell Therapy: How to Balance the Efficacy and Toxicity.Advanced science (Weinheim, Baden-Wurttemberg, Germany) · 2026Review
- Mechanoimmunology: past, present, and future perspectives.Mechanobiology in medicine · 2026Review
- Targeting organelle function in T cells for cancer immunotherapy.Nature reviews. Immunology · 2026Review
- Biophysical modeling identifies an optimal hybrid amoeboid-mesenchymal mechanism for maximal T cell migration speeds.Cell reports · 2026Article
- On the curvature and relaxation of microtubule plus-end tips.Biophysical journal · 2026Article
- Piezo1 as a mechanical checkpoint in T cell immunotherapy for solid tumors.Frontiers in pharmacology · 2026Review
- Mechanical Microenvironment in Tumor Immune Evasion: Bidirectional Regulation Between Matrix Stiffness and Immune Cells and Its Therapeutic Implications.International journal of biological sciences · 2026Review
- Blood Mechanical Intelligence: From Force Sensing to Precision Mechanomedicine.Research (Washington, D.C.) · 2026Review
34 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
13 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Defining the principles of T cell migration in structurally and mechanically complex tumor microenvironments is critical to understanding escape from antitumor immunity and optimizing T cell-related therapeutic strategies. Here, we engineered nanotextured elastic platforms to study and enhance T cell migration through complex microenvironments and define how the balance between contractility localization-dependent T cell phenotypes influences migration in response to tumor-mimetic structural and mechanical cues. Using these platforms, we characterize a mechanical optimum for migration that can be perturbed by manipulating an axis between microtubule stability and force generation. In 3D environments and live tumors, we demonstrate that microtubule instability, leading to increased Rho pathway-dependent cortical contractility, promotes migration whereas clinically used microtubule-stabilizing chemotherapies profoundly decrease effective migration. We show that rational manipulation of the microtubule-contractility axis, either pharmacologically or through genome engineering, results in engineered T cells that more effectively move through and interrogate 3D matrix and tumor volumes. Thus, engineering cells to better navigate through 3D microenvironments could be part of an effective strategy to enhance efficacy of immune therapeutics.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.