Evidence map›Paper›PMID 42349383›Full record

ArticleCell2026

AI-driven discovery of GPNMB CAR T cells as a multi-cancer therapy.

Daniel J Baker, Leon M Frommer, Ugur Uslu, Kisha K Patel, Daniel Zhu, Nils W Engel, James M George, Wencao Zhao, Samuel I Kim, Lisa Sun and 7 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Cell, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
2citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

2 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

17 authors.

Daniel J BakerCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Cardiovascular Institute, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Electronic address: bakerdj@upenn.edu.
Leon M FrommerDepartment of Medicine 2, RWTH Aachen University, Medical Faculty, Aachen, Germany.
Ugur UsluCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Dermatology, Venereology and Allergology, University Hospital Würzburg, 97080 Würzburg, Germany.
Kisha K PatelCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Daniel ZhuCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Nils W EngelCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
James M GeorgeMichigan Center for Translational Pathology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
Wencao ZhaoCardiovascular Institute, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Samuel I KimCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Lisa SunCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Christopher RoselleCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Philipp C RommelCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Regina M YoungCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
Jonathan A EpsteinCardiovascular Institute, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Institute for Regenerative Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA.
Sikander HayatDepartment of Medicine 2, RWTH Aachen University, Medical Faculty, Aachen, Germany; Cardiovascular Research Institute, Department of Medicine, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA; Windreich Department of Artificial Intelligence and Human Health, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA. Electronic address: shayat@ukaachen.de.
Zoltan AranyCardiovascular Institute, Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Medicine, Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA; Department of Physiology, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA. Electronic address: zarany@upenn.edu.
Carl H JuneCenter for Cellular Immunotherapies, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA; Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy at University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA. Electronic address: cjune@upenn.edu.

Funding

Project 3: Combinatorial and gene-editing approaches to enhance the efficacy of CAR T cell therapy of multiple myeloma.P01CA214278 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI Joseph Anthony Fraietta · 2017 to 2026
$26.8M
Branched chain amino acids in pancreatic carcinogenesisR01CA248315 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI Zoltan P Arany, Kathryn Elaine Wellen · 2020 to 2026
$2.8M
Directing the metabolic fate of CAR T cellsR01CA226983 · NCI · UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA · PI JUNE, CARL H. · 2018 to 2022
$2.1M
NCI NIH HHS P01 CA214278NCI NIH HHS R01 CA226983NCI NIH HHS R01 CA248315
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have demonstrated curative potential in hematologic cancers and increasing efficacy in solid tumors and non-malignant diseases. However, target identification remains a major bottleneck. We developed an artificial intelligence (AI)-driven approach for CAR T cell target discovery by integrating single-cell RNA sequencing datasets from human skin cancer and healthy tissue. Candidates were refined using public datasets to optimize for tumor composition, tissue specificity, and clinical feasibility. Large language models were applied to prioritize and nominate targets with therapeutic promise. Glycoprotein non-metastatic melanoma protein B (GPNMB) was the most frequently nominated target. We validated its expression across hematologic and solid tumors. We engineered a human GPNMB-directed CAR T cell, which showed potent anti-tumor activity in mouse models of monoblastic leukemia, melanoma, and colorectal adenocarcinoma. These findings establish a scalable pipeline for CAR T cell target discovery and support the translation of GPNMB-directed CAR T cells as a multi-cancer therapeutic.

Indexed as

Immunotherapy, AdoptiveMembrane GlycoproteinsNeoplasmsReceptors, Chimeric AntigenT-LymphocytesAnimalsCell Line, TumorHumansIntelligent SystemsMelanomaMiceSkin NeoplasmsGPNMB protein, humanMembrane GlycoproteinsReceptors, Chimeric Antigenartificial intelligencecancer immunotherapyCAR T cell therapylarge language modelssingle-cell transcriptomicstarget discovery

Identifiers

PMID42349383
PMCPMC13428302

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

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.