Glioblastoma multiforme are aggressive and deadly brain tumors with no effective treatment strategies. While microglia, the brain’s immune cells, act as ‘first responders’ to brain tumors and are naturally capable of phagocytosis of cancer cells, the tumor microenvironment subverts their normal responses and further promotes glioblastoma growth. I will combine novel cell culture techniques with molecular biology approaches to deliver chimeric antigen receptors into microglia to harness their natural ability to phagocytose tumor cells.
