NANOLOGIC x Cell-Scale: Engineering Precision CAR-T for Solid Tumors
Marseille, April 14 2026 –Interview with Rémi Lasserre, Inserm researcher at the Cancer Research Centre of Marseille (CRCM).
At the Cancer Research Centre of Marseille (CRCM), Inserm researcher Rémi Lasserre focuses on lymphocytes and how they can be engineered into powerful therapeutic tools. He is currently collaborating with the Cell-Scale platform, within Marseille Immunology Biocluster (MIB), to develop next-generation CAR-T cells designed to better target solid tumours.
To begin with, could you briefly introduce yourself and your research focus at CRCM?
My name is Rémi Lasserre. I am an Inserm researcher at the Cancer Research Centre of Marseille, in the team led by Dr Cham. My field of expertise is the immune system, and more specifically T lymphocytes and their use in therapeutic approaches. The overarching goal is to understand how these cells can be modified and reprogrammed to become effective tools against cancer.
What is the main objective of the CAR-T cell project you are currently developing with Cell-Scale?
We are developing a CAR-T cell project in collaboration with the Cell-Scale platform. The central objective is to improve the ability of CAR-T cells to recognise and eliminate tumour cells, especially in the context of solid tumours. We aim to design multispecific receptors that can either target several tumour markers or only activate when specific combinations of receptors are present on the tumour cell surface. This allows for a broader and more precise attack while limiting off-target effects.
Why is it so challenging to treat solid tumours with CAR-T cells today?
CAR-T cells are already highly effective in certain haematological malignancies, such as leukaemias. In contrast, results in solid tumours have been much more modest. The tumour microenvironment is more complex, and the risk of irreversibly damaging healthy tissues is higher. One of the major challenges today is to design CAR-T cells that are both sufficiently potent and highly specific for solid tumour cells.
For decades, immunology remained largely descriptive: researchers identified immune pathways, characterised immune cells and mapped disease mechanisms, but translating this knowledge into treatments was a slow process. This is now beginning to change.
What does the Cell-Scale platform bring to your project in terms of capacity and expertise?
In an academic laboratory, our capacity is limited in terms of production volumes and the number of CAR-T variants we can test. The Cell-Scale platform has specialised engineers, all the necessary equipment and a complete workflow for developing cell-based immunotherapies. Its team has expertise in the entire process of generating modified cells.
In practice, this makes it possible to perform larger-scale screening, increase production capacity and test far more CAR-T designs than we could on our own. For us, it is a major advantage that significantly expands our ability to explore different approaches.
How does MIB change the way you approach translational research, especially with platforms like Cell-Scale?
MIB was designed to strengthen the immunology and immuno-oncology ecosystem. It brings together fundamental research teams, technology platforms such as Cell-Scale, startups, biotech companies and hospital partners.
For a researcher with a background in fundamental research, this creates a framework for connecting basic questions about how the immune system works with the development of innovative therapies. Thanks to this structure and dedicated funding schemes, the transition from laboratory research to translational projects becomes much more tangible.
In that case, targeting becomes much more specific. This logic-based activation allows us to fine-tune CAR-T cell behaviour so that they attack the right cells under the right conditions.
You are working on multispecific receptors and logic-based activation mechanisms using nanobodies. How would you explain this in simple terms?
A useful analogy comes from computer science and logic. We can design receptors that activate a cell if a tumour cell expresses receptor “A” or receptor “B”, which broadens the range of recognition. But we can also design systems where the cells only activate if both “A” and “B” are present at the same time.
In that case, targeting becomes much more specific. This logic-based activation allows us to fine-tune CAR-T cell behaviour so that they attack the right cells under the right conditions.
Why did you choose to work with nanobodies derived from llama antibodies?
We use nanobodies, which are small domains derived from llama antibodies. They are compact, stable and relatively easy to engineer. We can concatenate them, assembling them one after another to build tailor-made multispecific receptors.
Once introduced into lymphocytes, these receptors allow the cells to recognise human tumour cells expressing the selected targets and destroy them. This modularity gives us considerable flexibility to adjust affinity, spacing between domains and receptor flexibility.
Where does the project stand today, and what are the next key milestones?
The project is already well under way. We have recruited a PhD student who is working on it and leading the design and initial validation of the receptors.
We have now reached a pivotal stage where we are going to strengthen our collaboration with the Cell-Scale platform to test a CAR-T cell production method that will allow us to evaluate multiple receptors in parallel.
The collaboration is therefore entering a very practical phase, with larger-scale production and more comprehensive testing.
What is your main objective with Nanologic?
In the longer term, our main target is glioblastoma, a highly aggressive brain tumour for which effective treatment options remain limited.
We are collaborating with clinician Emeline Tabouret, who treats these patients and also conducts research on this cancer.
Our strategy is to first work on well-characterised targets such as EpCAM and EGFR, which are highly expressed in certain tumours, to understand how to design effective multispecific receptors.
Once we have developed this expertise, we plan to adapt the technology to markers that are more specific to glioblastoma. Close collaboration with clinicians is essential to ensure that our developments address real clinical needs.
Even approximately, how long will it take before the technology can reach clinical application?
Moving into clinical development is a long and tightly regulated process. It requires extremely robust protocols, well-supported preclinical studies and substantial financial resources.
This is not something an academic laboratory can achieve alone. That is precisely why structures such as the biocluster, technology platforms and partnerships with industry or pharmaceutical companies are essential: they make this transition possible, even if the timeframe remains medium to long term.
What message would you like to share with academic teams that are still hesitant to undertake cell therapy projects through these platforms?
For many immunology teams, developing cell therapies can seem complex or far removed from their day-to-day research activities.
Platforms like Cell-Scale are precisely there to help overcome these barriers. They provide expertise, infrastructure and support to help turn ideas emerging from fundamental research into more translational projects.
For us, this is an extremely valuable resource and a real catalyst: it broadens the range of possibilities and opens the way to innovative therapies that we would not have been able to develop on our own.
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