Tal Danino Named Chan Zuckerberg Biohub Investigator to Advance Living Therapeutics

Tal Danino, associate professor of biomedical engineering at Columbia Engineering, has recently been named an investigator of the Chan Zuckerberg Biohub New York (CZ Biohub NY). Danino is among a select group of scientists who will receive $600,000 in flexible funding over the next three years for researching the immune system and how it can improve human health.

Danino was chosen for his leadership and groundbreaking work bringing together synthetic biology, cancer immunotherapy, and engineered microbial systems. Danino’s lab, the Synthetic Biological Systems Lab, is developing innovative technologies that reprogram living cells to detect and treat disease in more pioneering ways.

“We’re honored and excited to be part of this impressive team of investigators,” says Danino. “The support from CZ Biohub enables us to push the boundaries of how engineered cells can be designed to communicate and collaborate within tumors.”

Danino’s research focuses on the engineering of interactions between probiotic bacteria and immune cells, particularly CAR T-cells, to overcome the challenges of treating solid tumors. CAR T-cells, a type of immune cell, are genetically engineered and used to locate and attack certain cancer cells. While CAR T therapies have transformed treatment of some blood cancers, they have, to date, been less effective in treating solid tumors due to issues like poor infiltration, tumor diversity, and immune suppression.

The solution? Danino’s lab has developed a novel therapeutic platform where the probiotics are engineered to locally produce synthetic antigens and chemokines, signaling molecules that recruit and activate T-cells. These multifunctional probiotics enable CAR T-cells to recognize and kill cancer cells in tumors that otherwise wouldn’t be found. This award will enable Danino and his team to take this concept even further.

This research could create a new treatment option where the good bacteria and immune cells work together to treat disease, instead of separately. The CZ Biohub funding will help further advance Danino’s work and continue the progress in cancer precision medicine.

Lead Photo Caption: Tal Danino, associate professor of biomedical engineering

Lead Photo Credit: Synthetic Biological Systems Lab/Columbia Engineering