Guiding Gene Editing to Deliver Precision Based Immunotherapeutics

Gene editing is a powerful technique which opens the possibility of genetic therapies which can rectify mutations which normally lead to disease. The use of artificial intelligence (AI) is having an increasing impact in informing the scientific community in the development of therapies and drugs. Employing gene editing to modify the immune system has the potential to both modulate immune responses to alleviate unwanted immune responses as well as enhance or target immune responses. The application of AI can add to the arsenal of developing immunotherapies by potentially providing a more targeted and informed approach to certain immunotherapeutic developments. The collection will cover applications of gene editing in modulating immune responses and manipulating the immune system in health and disease and how AI can be potentially applied to immunotherapies but also guide such developments.

Gene editing and AI and their application and potential interplay can provide and guide precision to immunotherapies. Reversing unwanted immune responses or preventing their activation are key in driving therapies to alleviate autoimmunity. On the flip side, the goal of vaccinology and its application to cancer immunotherapies is to activate effective specific immune responses that can specifically eradicate tumour cells as well as establish immune memory. Though biologics have come a long way regarding therapeutic interventions, we still have not tackled the causes of autoimmunity and cancer vaccines remain limited. The central driver in understanding how to overcome these clinical manifestations is antigen processing and presentation. Gene editing and AI can potentially tackle these issues, allowing us to harness the immune system without the need for long term medication. Therefore, this issue will explore how these technologies can be employed to allow us to reach the holy grails with intervention strategies in each of these immune mediated treatments.

We welcome manuscripts focusing on, but not limited to, the following sub-topics:

• Targeting T cells in autoimmunity using gene editing

• Targeting the MHC – review – gene editing the MHC

• Personalized vaccines using gene editing and AI - review and research article

• Gene editing targeting autoimmunity – research article

• AI guided antibody therapies -review

• mRNA cancer vaccines – can they be guided by gene editing and AI -review

• Small molecule targeting of antigen processing and presentation machinery in precision immunology

• AI-based vaccine design and precision immunotherapy


Topic editor Anthony W Purcell is an advisor to Evaxion Biotech. All other Topic Editors declare no competing interests with regards to the Research Topic subject.