Cambridge Healthtech Training Seminars offer real-life case studies, problems encountered and solutions applied, and extensive coverage of the basic science underlying each topic. Experienced Training Seminar instructors offer a mix of formal lectures, interactive discussions and activities to help attendees maximize their learning experiences. These immersive trainings will be of value to scientists from industry and academic research groups who are entering new fields – and to those working in supporting roles that will benefit from an in-depth briefing on a specific aspect of the industry.

Training Seminar 1: CAR-T Engineering for Protein Scientists

 
Seaport Hotel and World Trade Center | Boston, MA
Monday, August 27, 2018: 8:25 - 5:45
Tuesday, August 28, 2018: 8:25 - 12:00

Instructor: Dina Schneider, PhD, Manager, Cell Biology, Lentigen Technology, Inc.

This course is intended for academic and industry scientists new to the field of CAR T immunotherapy, and it offers an overview of basic concepts, strategies and tools in CAR T development. Topics will include the history of CAR T field, CAR structure and function, approaches to CAR gene delivery, target selection, the impact of CAR linkers and structural domains on function, multi-targeting CAR constructs, and the emerging technologies for temporal and spatial control of CAR T function.

• History of CAR T development
• Principles of CAR T structure and function
• Target identification
• Screening and selection of suitable binding domains
• Role of linkers and structural domains in CAR T function
• Role of tumor antigen expression in regulating CAR T activity
• Molecular boosters of CAR T function
• Approaches for temporal and spatial regulation of CAR T function
• Multi-targeting CAR T strategies to prevent disease escape
• Approaches to gene delivery for CAR T expression
• Future directions

Instructor Biography

 Dina Schneider, PhD, Manager, Cell Biology, Lentigen Technology, Inc.

Dina Schneider, BSPharm, PhD, is a scientist and inventor with over 15 years of experience in academia and industry. Her academic career spanned diverse areas of interest, including cellular and molecular immunology, immunotoxicology, viral exacerbation of inflammation, and molecular biology. Her doctoral thesis focused on the attenuation of immune responses by AhR, which recently became recognized as a key component of the IDO metabolic checkpoint blockade pathway, and a relevant target for cancer immunotherapy. In 2011, Dr. Schneider transitioned to industry, where she contributed to numerous projects in synthetic immunology, immunotherapy, and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell-based therapy, including molecular switch-controlled CARs, and transposon-based CAR gene delivery. Dr. Schneider leads the Cell Biology group at Lentigen Technology, Inc., a Miltenyi Biotec Company, in Gaithersburg, MD. Her group is focused on pre-clinical development of novel CAR-based therapies targeting hematologic malignancies as well as solid tumors, and on the implementation of CliniMACS Prodigy® clinical platform for preparation of cell-based therapeutics. Her recent work includes the development of a tandem CD19- CD20- targeting CAR therapy which is now in the clinic, and the exploration of CAR structural components and their effects on CAR function.

Training Seminar Information

Each CHI Training Seminar offers 1.5 days of instruction with start and stop times for each day shown above and on the Event-at-a-Glance published in the onsite Program & Event Guide. Training Seminars will include morning and afternoon refreshment breaks, as applicable, and lunch will be provided to all registered attendees on the full day of the class.

Each person registered specifically for the training seminar will be provided with a hard copy handbook for the seminar in which they are registered. A limited number of additional handbooks will be available for other delegates who wish to attend the seminar, but after these have been distributed, no additional books will be available.

Though CHI encourages track hopping between conference programs, we ask that Training Seminars not be disturbed once they have begun. In the interest of maintaining the highest quality learning environment for Training Seminar attendees, and because Seminars are conducted differently than conference programming, we ask that attendees commit to attending the entire program, and not engage in track hopping, as to not disturb the hands-on style instruction being offered to the other participants.