Dr. Lili Yang receives $7.49 million CIRM Grant

A team of UCLA researchers led by Lili Yang has received a $7.49 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to develop a universal CAR-NKT cell immunotherapy for multiple sclerosis. 

Multiple sclerosis is a chronic autoimmune disease in which the immune system attacks and damages myelin – the protective sheath surrounding nerve fibers – disrupting signals between the brain and the body. This assault triggers inflammation throughout the central nervous system, which compounds the damage over time and can lead in some patients to loss of mobility, paralysis and impaired organ function.

The approach Yang and her collaborators are developing is designed to address the core biological mechanisms of MS that current treatments cannot reach. It builds on a CAR-NKT cell therapy platform that Yang’s lab has spent more than a decade developing to fight cancer. 

Read more on the UCLA Board Stem Cell Research Center news press.