“Switchable chimeric antigen receptor T cells: a novel universal chimeric antigen receptor platform for a safe control of T-cell activation”

In a recent issue of PNAS, Rodgers et al. present an elegant study describing the development of a bifunctional antibody switch able to control retargeting and activation of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)—engineered T cells, offering a potential additional safety tool compared to standard CAR platforms (1). Indeed, despite the recent striking responses obtained by adoptive transfer of CAR-T cells in relapsed and refractory patients affected by CD19+ malignancies, difficulties have emerged in the ability of controlling both CAR T-cell pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic properties (2-6).