TME-Guards
Addressing the Root Cause of Failure
Why Cell Therapies Stall in Solid Tumors
Solid tumors overwhelm immune cells with suppressive signals. Even when CAR-T starts strong, the tumor microenvironment quickly shuts them down.
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In GBM: initial tumor shrinkage is almost always followed by relapse.
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Across solid tumors: Multiple suppressive pathways act together, overwhelming single-target blockade approaches
Day -1
Pre-treatment
Day +1
Tumor Shrinkage
Day +33
Tumor Re-growth
Exhausted
CAR-T
Suppressive Tumor
CAR-T Failure
CAR-T Treatment
Without protection from suppression, CAR-T impact is short-lived.
The Root Cause:
Tumor Microenvironment Suppression
The TME bombards CAR-T cells with overlapping suppressive inputs
Suppressive Inputs
Noisy Tumor
CAR-T Cell
Blocking just one pathway isn’t enough.
Durability demands multi-pathway protection.
Our Solution: TME-Guards
Muting the Noise Before Suppression Even Starts
Instead of pushing CAR-T cells to work harder, we design them to ignore the TME’s suppressive signals comprehensively
Noisy Tumor
(Noise = Suppressive Signals)
TME-Mute
Mechanism: Knock out suppression-sensing receptors
Precision: Target the root cause — Blocks suppression
Risk: Avoids over activation; Preserves innate activity
Supercharging
Mechanism: Add activators/receptors or remove brakes
Precision: Treats symptoms — Boosts activity
Risk: Overactivation & Neurotoxicity; Increased on target, off tumor activity
Why It Matters
By targeting the root cause of CAR-T failure in solid tumors, TME-Guards enable:
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Longer-lasting function in hostile environments (reducing the need for repeat dosing).
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Safer treatments that avoid dangerous over-activation.
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Off-the-shelf availability at a fraction of autologous cost.