Atara partners with Moffitt Cancer Center to develop CAR T therapies

Atara Biotherapeutics Inc. (NASDAQ:ATRA) partnered with H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center and Research Institute (Tampa, Fla.) to develop multi‑targeted CAR T immunotherapies to treat cancers with diverse cell types that often become resistant to treatment, including acute myelogenous leukemia (AML) and B-cell malignancies.

Atara will gain access to Moffit's CAR T targeting and co-stimulation domains based on CD28 and tumor necrosis factor receptor superfamily member 9 (4-1BB; TNFRSF9; CD137) which are designed to improve T cell proliferation when responding to an appropriate antigen and enhance persistence by reducing T cell exhaustion. The company said it will provide resources and relevant experience to research activities conducted at Moffitt. Additional terms were not disclosed...