AG Hudecek

Michael Hudecek: CAR T-cell Engineering

Summary

The Chair of Cellular Immunotherapy researches and develops innovative, personalized immune cell therapies for the treatment of malignant and non-malignant diseases. Our research focuses on the modification of T cells that recognize and kill tumor cells via chimeric antigen receptors, or CARs for short. We support the entire process of developing a cellular immunotherapy, from basic research to establishing innovative technologies and identifying new antigen targets, to preclinical development and testing of cell products, to translation into clinical studies at the University Hospital of Würzburg and transfer of cell products to partners in the biotechnological and pharmaceutical industry.

The Chair of Cellular Immunotherapy provides the basis for the clinical research program at the Medical Clinic and Polyclinic II of the University Hospital of Würzburg with a state-of-the-art research infrastructure featuring cutting-edge technologies in the field of cell culture and molecular biology, a project team for clinical studies and a management team for national and international collaborative projects.

Our research and expertise has enabled us to realize nationally and internationally visible projects and maintain networks with other leading experts in the field of CAR T-cell therapy. The chair is funded by the Free State of Bavaria as part of the Bavarian High-Tech Agenda. As a branch of the Fraunhofer Institute for Cell Therapy and Immunology, the chair acts as an interface between the Fraunhofer ecosystem and the University Hospital of Würzburg.

Recent Publications

1. Peter J, Toppeta F, Trubert A, Danhof S, Hudecek M, Däullary T. Multi-Targeting CAR-T Cell Strategies to Overcome Immune Evasion in Lymphoid and Myeloid Malignancies. Oncol Res Treat. 2025 Mar 14:1-15. doi: 10.1159/000543806. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40090318.
2. Dragon AC, Bonifacius A, Lienenklaus S, Verboom M, Gerhards JP, Ius F, Hinze C, Hudecek M, Figueiredo C, Blasczyk R, Eiz-Vesper B. Depletion of alloreactive B cells by drug-resistant chimeric alloantigen receptor T cells to prevent transplant rejection. Mol Ther. 2025 Mar 5;33(3):1031-1047. doi: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2025.01.009. Epub 2025 Jan 11. PMID: 39799394; PMCID: PMC11897811.
3. Fleischer A, Kurth S, Duell J, Topp M, Strunz PP, Mersi J, Rasche L, Sanges C, Hudecek M, Einsele H, Maatouk I. Neuropsychiatric manifestations following chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy for cancer: a systematic review of clinical outcomes and management strategies. J Immunother Cancer. 2024 Dec 22;12(12):e009174. doi: 10.1136/jitc-2024-009174. PMID: 39794934; PMCID: PMC11667355.
4. Jacobs JJL, Beekers I, Verkouter I, Richards LB, Vegelien A, Bloemsma LD, Bongaerts VAMC, Cloos J, Erkens F, Gradowska P, Hort S, Hudecek M, Juan M, Maitland-van der Zee AH, Navarro-Velázquez S, Ngai LL, Rafiq QA, Sanges C, Tettero J, van Os HJA, Vos RC, de Wit Y, van Dijk S. A data management system for precision medicine. PLOS Digit Health. 2025 Jan 9;4(1):e0000464. doi: 10.1371/journal.pdig.0000464. PMID: 39787064; PMCID: PMC11717228.
5. Gehrke L, Gonçalves VDR, Andrae D, Rasko T, Ho P, Einsele H, Hudecek M, Friedel SR. Current Non-Viral-Based Strategies to Manufacture CAR-T Cells. Int J Mol Sci. 2024 Dec 21;25(24):13685. doi: 10.3390/ijms252413685. PMID: 39769449; PMCID: PMC11728233.
6. Alb M, Reiche K, Rade M, Sewald K, Loskill P, Cipriano M, Maulana TI, van der Meer AD, Weener HJ, Clerbaux LA, Fogal B, Patel N, Adkins K, Lund E, Perkins E, Cooper C, van den Brulle J, Morgan H, Rubic-Schneider T, Ling H, DiPetrillo K, Moggs J, Köhl U, Hudecek M. Novel strategies to assess cytokine release mediated by chimeric antigen receptor T cells based on the adverse outcome pathway concept. J Immunotoxicol. 2024 Oct;21(sup1):S13-S28. doi: 10.1080/1547691X.2024.2345158. Epub 2024 Dec 10. PMID: 39655500.
7. Dinh-Le T, Escobar J, Poisson L, Adkins K, Jornet Culubret M, Scheller L, van den Brulle J, Hudecek M, Drake Iii DR, Alb M, Luna E. Identifying CD19-targeted CAR-T cell immune pathways in an in vitro human immune mimetic cytokine release assay. J Immunotoxicol. 2024 Oct;21(sup1):S29-S37. doi: 10.1080/1547691X.2024.2378729. Epub 2024 Dec 10. PMID: 39655494.
8. Vera-Cruz S, Jornet Culubret M, Konetzki V, Alb M, Friedel SR, Hudecek M, Einsele H, Danhof S, Scheller L. Cellular Therapies for Multiple Myeloma: Engineering Hope. Cancers (Basel). 2024 Nov 19;16(22):3867. doi: 10.3390/cancers16223867. PMID: 39594822; PMCID: PMC11592760.
9. Mestermann K, Garitano-Trojaola A, Hudecek M. Accelerating CAR-T Cell Therapies with Small-Molecule Inhibitors. BioDrugs. 2025 Jan;39(1):33-51. doi: 10.1007/s40259-024-00688-9. Epub 2024 Nov 26. PMID: 39589646; PMCID: PMC11750903.
10. Navarro S, Moukheiber C, Inogés Sancho S, Ruiz Guillén M, López-Díaz de Cerio A, Sanges C, Tanaka T, Arnould S, Briones J, Dolstra H, Hudecek M, Choudhary R, Schapitz I, Juan M, Worel N, Ammar D, Luu M, Müller M, Schroeder B, Negre H, Franz P. Optimizing CAR-T treatment: A T2EVOLVE guide to raw and starting material selection. Mol Ther. 2025 Mar 5;33(3):847-865. doi: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.11.017. Epub 2024 Nov 12. PMID: 39533710; PMCID: PMC11897765.