Core B: Immunologic Monitoring and Cellular Products Laboratory/Tissue Microarray Core (IMCPL/TMA)This laboratory is a specialized facility at the University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute (UPCI), which isdedicated to the state-of-the-art evaluation of immune responses prior to, during and after therapeuticinterventions in patients with cancer. In addition to generating cellular products for human therapy, it alsoprovides specialized morphology services. In its role as Core B for the SKIN SPORE, the IMCPL will assumeresponsibility for supporting the biotherapy-based clinical trials proposed by the projects. Core B, functioningas a GMP facility, will culture and characterize dendritic cells (DC) for patient therapy and prepare vaccinesby pulsing these DC with peptides or proteins or infecting DC with AdV, as specified in the clinical protocolsassociated with the SPORE grant. Core B will be responsible for quality and sterility of the DC-basedvaccines. It will also procure and process all body fluids and tissues harvested in the course of the clinicaltrials. Tissue specimens will be used for microarray preparation and immunohistochemistry. Core B, servingas a GLP facility, will monitor immunologic responses to the administered vaccines by performing ELISPOTassays, tetramer analyses or cytokine flow cytometry (CFC). Cytokines in supernatants or body fluids will bemonitored by the immunobead-based multiplex method established in the IMCPL. Core B will also beprepared to assist the SPORE investigators in implementing assays necessary for evaluation of immunologicresponses to vaccines, including phenotypic and functional assays for regulatory T cells (Treg). The Corewill ensure that all cellular products it generates and samples it collects are accompanied by appropriatedocumentation that will permit linking laboratory analyses with clinical results. Core B will also provideassistsance in preparation of IND submissions. The Core laboratory has a long history of collaboration withall of the SPORE investigators, and in the context of the proposed clinical and pre-clinical studies will beentirely dedicated to the support of therapies being developed for patients with melanoma or cutaneous Tcelllymphoma (CTCL).
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