Engineering B Cells to Produce Therapeutic Proteins

Gene therapies that use viral vectors generally are not redosable because once patients are exposed to the virus used to insert the gene, their immune system will become activated against them. Immusoft is using a patient’s own B cell and engineering them to produce needed proteins by transforming them into biofactories without the use of a viral vector. The company’s lead experimental therapy is an autologous B cell therapy engineered to produce the enzyme that people with the rare lysosomal storage disorder MPS I are deficient. We spoke to Sean Ainsworth, CEO of Immusoft, about MPS I, the limits of existing enzyme replacement therapies, and the potential benefits of using engineered B cells to treat people with the metabolic disorder and other conditions.