{
  "id": 6608149,
  "title": "AI-designed proteins outperform existing CAR T designs against BCMA tumors in mice",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/09/10/ai-designed-proteins-outperform-existing-car-t-designs-against-bcma",
  "topic": "ai",
  "section": "AI",
  "published": "2026-09-10T15:20:06.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Medical Xpress",
    "slug": "medical-xpress",
    "url": "https://medicalxpress.com/news/2026-09-ai-proteins-outperform-car-bcma.html"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "A study conducted by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center (MSK) has found that AI-designed proteins outperform existing CAR T therapies against a specific cancer target in mice. CAR T cell therapy involves genetically modifying a patient's immune cells to target and destroy cancer cells. However, only a small percentage of advanced or metastatic cancer patients in the US currently benefit from this treatment. The MSK lab led by computational biologist Caleb Lareau aims to improve CAR T therapies using generative AI to design better binders, proteins that recognize and bind to cancer cells. In a proof-of-concept study published in Nature Biomedical Engineering, the AI-driven approach significantly outperformed existing FDA-approved CAR T therapies targeting a protein called BCMA. The study also sheds light on why AI models have struggled to design effective binders for the CD19 target and why CAR T cells can sometimes activate prematurely. The ultimate goal is to replace the traditional \"guess and check\" approach in the field with a more evidence-based understanding of why some cancer-targeting proteins work well and others fail. The AI-driven approach could also be used to develop personalized treatments for rare cancers.",
  "summary": "CAR T cell therapy, which involves genetically modifying a patient's own immune cells to fight cancer, is a technique that has shown great promise, especially against blood cancers. But currently, only about 4% of patients with advanced or metastatic cancer in the United States are candidates for CAR T therapy, and closer to 3% will actually benefit, according to one recent analysis.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}