Scientists have identified the genes in cancer cells that are required in order for cancer immunotherapies to work. If clinical studies validate the findings, it could eventually help to tailor more effective treatments for patients based on the genetic profiles of cancer tumors.
What they did: Researchers used CRISPR gene editing to knock out the function of each of a human melanoma cell's 19,000 genes — and then tested whether the modified cancer cells could be destroyed by immune cells. They found about 100 genes in the cancer cells that, when their function was lost, made cells resistant to immunotherapies. Some were previously implicated but others were unknown to have had a role.