LOS ANGELES — Theodore Scott Nowicki, an assistant professor at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, received a $100,000 Hero Grant from MIB Agents. The grant will support research into developing a next-generation CAR-T cell therapy for osteosarcoma.

Nowicki is an assistant professor in the department of pediatrics hematology/oncology and microbiology, immunology, & molecular genetics. MIB Agents is a nonprofit organization focused on improving outcomes for children and young adults with osteosarcoma. The $100,000 award represents the highest funding level provided through the OutSmarting Osteosarcoma program.

CAR-T cell therapy uses a patient's genetically engineered immune cells to recognize and attack cancer cells. While CAR-T therapies have shown success in some blood cancers, they have been less effective against solid tumors like osteosarcoma. This diminished effectiveness is partly due to the tumor's surrounding environment, which can suppress immune activity.

Nowicki's research involves a novel "armed" CAR-T platform targeting GD2, a protein found on osteosarcoma cells. These engineered CAR-T cells are designed to release increased amounts of tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha), an immune-signaling molecule. TNF-alpha is intended to strengthen the anti-tumor response and resist immune suppression within the tumor microenvironment; it is only secreted when tumor cells are present.

The grant funding will support expanded preclinical studies. These studies will evaluate the safety and effectiveness of the TNF-alpha-armed GD2 CAR-T cells in laboratory and animal models of osteosarcoma. Researchers plan to compare this engineered therapy to conventional GD2 CAR-T cells and investigate how TNF-alpha enhances anti-tumor activity within the tumor microenvironment. The team will also use advanced molecular profiling technologies to understand how the treatment influences interactions between cancer cells and the immune system.

"Patients with relapsed or metastatic osteosarcoma continue to face poor outcomes with limited treatment options," Nowicki said. He added, "This funding will help us advance a promising new immunotherapy strategy that has the potential to improve outcomes while reducing reliance on toxic treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation." Nowicki is also a member of the UCLA Health Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center and the UCLA Broad Stem Cell Research Center.