For cancer immunotherapy, gently recovering lab-grown cells is key. Indian researchers may have just found a way
Researchers at IIT Bombay, led by Professor Prakriti Tayalia from the Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering, in collaboration with Monash University (Australia), have developed a simpler and gentler method to recover lab-grown T cells for use in cancer immunotherapy.
The key innovation: growing T cells on fibrous electrospun scaffolds that mimic the body's natural extracellular matrix environment, and then harvesting them using the mild enzyme accutase instead of the conventional harsh enzyme trypsin.
T cells grown on fibrous scaffolds demonstrated significantly improved cancer-killing efficacy compared to those grown on conventional flat plastic surfaces — suggesting a dual benefit: scaffold-based growth enhances potency, and gentle recovery preserves therapeutic function.
The research was published in the journal Biomaterials Science and was selected for the European Society for Biomaterials conference collection.
Future plans include testing the approach in animal models and exploring the possibility of implanting T-cell-loaded scaffolds directly into tumours.
CAR T-Cell Therapy — Mechanism and Significance
Chimeric Antigen Receptor T-cell (CAR T-cell) therapy is a form of adoptive cell immunotherapy in which a patient's own T lymphocytes (immune cells) are extracted, genetically engineered in a laboratory to express synthetic receptors (CARs) that recognise specific cancer cell surface antigens, expanded in large numbers, and then reinfused into the patient to selectively destroy cancer cells.
Key Details
- CAR T-cell therapy has shown remarkable results for haematological (blood) cancers — particularly B-cell lymphomas, leukaemia, and multiple myeloma — where conventional chemotherapy and radiation have failed.
- The CAR receptor most commonly targets CD19 (a protein on B-cells) or BCMA (B-cell maturation antigen).
- India's first approved CAR T-cell therapy — NexCAR19 — was developed at IIT Bombay and received CDSCO (Central Drugs Standard Control Organisation) approval in October 2023. It is also notable as the world's first humanised CAR T-cell therapy.
- In US clinical practice, CAR T-cell therapy costs approximately $400,000 per infusion; NexCAR19 is priced at approximately $50,000 — a dramatic reduction in cost that has global implications for affordable cancer care.
- Clinical trial data (64 patients): 67% objective response rate; cancer disappeared completely in approximately 50% of patients.
The IIT Bombay research addresses a critical bottleneck in CAR T-cell manufacturing — cell recovery. If T cells are damaged during harvesting (by harsh enzymes like trypsin), their cancer-killing effectiveness is diminished; this new method preserves cell function and could improve clinical outcomes.
Electrospun Scaffolds and Biomaterials in Regenerative Medicine
An electrospun scaffold is a three-dimensional fibrous matrix produced by forcing a polymer solution through a charged needle, creating nano- to micro-scale fibres that mimic the architecture of the body's natural extracellular matrix (ECM). These scaffolds provide cells with a physical environment more similar to their in-vivo (in the body) conditions than flat laboratory culture dishes.
Key Details
- The extracellular matrix is a network of proteins (collagen, fibronectin, laminin) and polysaccharides that surrounds cells in the body and provides structural support as well as biochemical signals that regulate cell behaviour.
- Electrospun scaffolds have been used in tissue engineering for wound healing, cartilage repair, bone regeneration, and vascular grafts — and are now being applied to immunotherapy manufacturing.
- The finding that fibrous scaffold-grown T cells are more potent than flat-surface-grown T cells is significant because it suggests cell culture environment is not merely a manufacturing detail but a determinant of therapeutic quality.
- The enzyme accutase (used for gentle cell detachment) preserves surface proteins on T cells that trypsin would digest — these surface proteins include the very receptors and ligands that T cells use to recognise and kill cancer cells.
By replacing flat surfaces with biomimetic scaffolds and trypsin with accutase, the IIT Bombay team has addressed two simultaneous problems in CAR T-cell manufacturing — cell potency and cell survival during recovery — making the therapy potentially more effective and more scalable.
India's Biotech Research Ecosystem and Cancer Care Policy
India is emerging as a significant player in biotechnology and biopharmaceuticals, with a stated goal (National Biotechnology Development Strategy) of becoming a top-5 global bioeconomy by 2025. Cancer remains a major public health burden — India records approximately 1.4 million new cancer cases annually, with the number projected to rise significantly.
Key Details
- The National Cancer Grid (NCG) connects over 250 cancer care centres across India to standardise treatment protocols and facilitate research.
- The Ayushman Bharat–PM-JAY scheme covers some cancer treatments under its benefit package, but CAR T-cell therapy at even the reduced NexCAR19 price remains unaffordable for most Indian patients without insurance or subsidy.
- India's National Biopharma Mission (2017, ₹1,500 crore) and the Biotechnology Industry Research Assistance Council (BIRAC) have been key funders of indigenous biotech development including immunotherapy research.
- IIT Bombay's ImmunoACT (the spin-off that commercialised NexCAR19) is an example of the academic-industry pathway that the government seeks to replicate across biotechnology domains.
The IIT Bombay T-cell recovery research builds on the same institutional ecosystem that produced NexCAR19 — if successful at scale, it could further reduce the manufacturing cost and improve the efficacy of India's indigenous CAR T-cell therapy pipeline.
- Institution: IIT Bombay (Department of Biosciences and Bioengineering), in collaboration with Monash University, Australia
- Lead researcher: Professor Prakriti Tayalia
- Key innovation: Electrospun fibrous scaffolds + accutase enzyme (replacing flat surfaces + trypsin) for T-cell culture and recovery
- Published in: Biomaterials Science (also featured in European Society for Biomaterials conference collection)
- India's first CAR T-cell therapy: NexCAR19, approved by CDSCO in October 2023 (developed at IIT Bombay)
- NexCAR19 cost: ~$50,000 (vs. ~$400,000 for US equivalents — approximately one-tenth the global price)
- NexCAR19 clinical trial results: 67% objective response rate in 64 patients with advanced lymphoma/leukaemia; ~50% complete response
- Global cancer burden context: India: ~1.4 million new cases annually
- Cancer cell targets: CD19 (most common), BCMA — surface antigens targeted by CAR T-cells
- Future research direction: Animal model testing; potential in-vivo scaffold implantation directly into tumours