Fig. 4.

Alginate biomaterial implant placed on established pancreatic tumors as a delivery platform for CAR-programmed T cells and STING agonist cdGMP. (A) Bright-field microscopy image showing silica microparticles incorporated into the alginate polymer scaffold, followed by a schematic of the stimulatory particle design loaded internally with cdGMP. Scale bar = 70 μm. (B) Image series showing surgical methodology: (i) alginate polymer scaffold; (ii) seeding of tumor-reactive T cells into the implant; (iii) incision; (iv) orthotopic pancreatic tumor; (v-vi) implantation of a T cell-loaded device; (vii-viii) wound closure; (ix) extended release of STING agonist and tumor-reactive T cells. Adapted with permission from Smith et al. (2017) [100].