AUTHOR=Brezinger-Dayan Karin , Itzhaki Orit , Melnichenko Jenny , Kubi Adva , Zeltzer Li-at , Jacoby Elad , Avigdor Abraham , Shapira Frommer Ronnie , Besser Michal J. TITLE=Impact of cryopreservation on CAR T production and clinical response JOURNAL=Frontiers in Oncology VOLUME=12 YEAR=2022 URL=https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2022.1024362 DOI=10.3389/fonc.2022.1024362 ISSN=2234-943X ABSTRACT=
Adoptive cell therapy with chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells has become an efficient treatment option for patients with hematological malignancies. FDA approved CAR T products are manufactured in centralized facilities from fresh or frozen leukapheresis and the cryopreserved CAR T infusion product is shipped back to the patient. An increasing number of clinical centers produce CAR T cells on-site, which enables the use of fresh and cryopreserved PBMCs and CAR T cells. Here we determined the effect of cryopreservation on PBMCs and CD19 CAR T cells in a cohort of 118 patients treated with fresh CAR T cells and in several patients head-to-head. Cryopreserved PBMCs, obtained from leukapheresis products, contained less erythrocytes and T cells, but were sufficient to produce CAR T cells for therapy. There was no correlation between the recovery of PBMCs and the transduction efficacy, the number of CAR T cells obtained by the end of the manufacturing process, the