BYU MOTO-CAR Macrophage Reprogramming Yields 90% In Vitro Lung Cancer Cell Kill and 46% Mouse Tumor Shrinkage

BYU microbiology researchers engineered the MOTO-CAR construct into nanoparticles that selectively target tumor-associated macrophages, the dominant immune population inside solid tumors. Once internalized, the construct converts these cells into antigen-presenting effectors that phagocytose tumor cells and prime adaptive memory responses. The approach is positioned as an off-the-shelf alternative to autologous CAR-T manufacturing.

Data remain limited to unpublished in-vitro assays and small mouse cohorts; independent contract labs confirmed similar tumor-size reductions across multiple cancer types when receptor specificity was swapped. No peer-reviewed manuscript, survival curves, or dose-escalation toxicology have been released. Patents were issued and licensed to Thunder Biotech in 2024.

Compared with CAR-T, macrophage-based therapy may better penetrate hypoxic solid-tumor cores and avoid cytokine-release syndrome, yet macrophage plasticity risks rapid phenotype reversion. The absence of large-animal or human data leaves open whether systemic immune memory will translate to durable remissions in glioblastoma or pancreatic cancer.

Next milestones include GLP toxicology studies and an IND filing; Thunder Biotech projects first-in-human testing in 2027 if financing closes.