Engineering B cells to treat and study human disease

Modern cell therapies are designed to harness natural biology to treat a range of complex diseases. The field of immunology has shown that B cells exhibit multiple unique features, including a natural propensity to interact with and regulate other immune cells, a high capacity to produce proteins, and a long cellular lifespan, which are being creatively applied in engineered B cell (eB cell) therapies. In recent years, advances in genome editing technologies and animal modeling have facilitated rapid progress in our ability to study eB cells and execute proof-of-concept studies, thus enabling the first clinical trials of eB cell therapies. In this review, we provide an overview of recent developments in eB cell therapies, including early clinical studies. We discuss challenges to clinical implementation, and promising directions for leveraging B cell biology in future applications for cancer and chronic disease.