[In vitro and in vivo validation of cytotoxicity of targeting human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 chimeric antigen receptor T (HER2-CAR-T) cells].

Objective To evaluate the toxicology of targeting human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 chimeric antigen receptor T (HER2-CAR-T) cells and to provide a safety basis for the clinical evaluation of HER2-CAR-T cell therapy. Methods The recombinant lentiviral vector was used to generate HER2-CAR-T cells. Soft agar colony formation assay was used to observe the colony formation of HER2-CAR-T cells, and the colony formation rate was statistically analyzed. The HER2-CAR-T cell suspension was co-incubated with rabbit red blood cell suspension, and the hemolysis of red blood cells was evaluated by direct observation and microplate reader detection. The HER2-CAR-T cell preparation was injected into the ear vein of male New Zealand rabbits, and the stimulating effect of HER2-CAR-T cells on the blood vessels of the animals was observed by staining of tissue sections. The vesicular stomatitis virus envelope glycoprotein (VSV-G) gene of pMD 2.G vector was used as the target sequence, and the safety of the lentiviral vector was verified by real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR. The heart, liver, lung, and kidney of mice receiving HER2-CAR-T cell infusion were collected, and the lesions were observed by HE staining. Results The HER2-CAR-T cells were successfully prepared. These cells did not exhibit soft agar colony formation ability in vitro, and the HER2-CAR-T cell preparation did not cause hemolysis in New Zealand rabbit red blood cells. After the infusion of HER2-CAR-T cells into the ear vein of New Zealand rabbits, no obvious vascular stimulation response was found, and no specific amplification of VSV-G was detected. No obvious lesions were found in the heart, liver, lung and kidney tissues of the treatment group. Conclusion The prepared HER2-CAR-T cells have reliable safety.