CAR-NK Cell: A New Paradigm in Tumor Immunotherapy

The tumor microenvironment (TME) is greatly multifaceted and immune escape is an imperative attribute of tumors fostering tumor progression and metastasis. Based on reports, the restricted achievement attained by T cell immunotherapy reflects the prominence of emerging other innovative immunotherapeutics, in particular, natural killer (NK) cells-based treatments. Human NK cells act as the foremost innate immune effector cells against tumors and are vastly heterogeneous in the TME. Currently, there exists a rapidly evolving interest in the progress of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-engineered NK cells for tumor immunotherapy. CAR-NK cells superiorities over CAR-T cells in terms of better safety (e.g., absence or minimal cytokine release syndrome (CRS) and graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), engaging various mechanisms for stimulating cytotoxic function, and high feasibility for ‘off-the-shelf’ manufacturing. These effector cells could be modified to target various antigens, improve proliferation and persistence in vivo, upturn infiltration into tumors, and defeat resistant TME, which in turn, result in a desired anti-tumor response. More importantly, CAR-NK cells represent antigen receptors against tumor-associated antigens (TAAs), thereby redirecting the effector NK cells and supporting tumor-related immunosurveillance. In the current review, we focus on recent progress in the therapeutic competence of CAR-NK cells in solid tumors and offer a concise summary of the present hurdles affecting therapeutic outcomes of CAR-NK cell-based tumor immunotherapies.

Kompetencje terapeutyczne nauczyciela w zmieniającej się przestrzeni edukacyjnej

The subject of the article are the therapeutic competence of the teacher. The subject of the article is the therapeutic competence of the teacher. It is based on the therapeutic orientation in humanistic psychology. These competences allow the teacher to see in time the difficulties and abilities of a child, recognize their individual psychophysical possibilities as well as development and educational needs. The concept of therapeutic approach in teaching is aimed at taking actions favouring the development of students’ potential in order to increase the effectiveness of learning and improve their functioning. The article emphasizes the teacher’s skills particularly valuable in the area of assistance and support for student development.

Concordance between clinician, supervisor and observer ratings of therapeutic competence in CBT and treatment as usual: does clinician competence or supervisor session observation improve agreement?

Background:Lowering the cost of assessing clinicians’ competence could promote the scalability of evidence-based treatments such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT).Aims:This study examined the concordance between clinicians’, supervisors’ and independent observers’ session-specific ratings of clinician competence in school-based CBT and treatment as usual (TAU). It also investigated the association between clinician competence and supervisory session observation and rater agreement.Method:Fifty-nine school-based clinicians (90% female, 73% Caucasian) were randomly assigned to implement TAU or modular CBT for youth anxiety. Clinicians rated their confidence after each therapy session (n = 1898), and supervisors rated clinicians’ competence after each supervision session (n = 613). Independent observers rated clinicians’ competence from audio recordings (n = 395).Results:Patterns of rater discrepancies differed between the TAU and CBT groups. Correlations with independent raters were low across groups. Clinician competence and session observation were associated with higher agreement among TAU, but not CBT, supervisors and clinicians.Conclusions:These results support the gold standard practice of obtaining independent ratings of adherence and competence in implementation contexts. Further development of measures and/or rater training methods for clinicians and supervisors is needed.

ЕСТЕТИЧНА СУТНІСТЬ ТА СПЕЦИФІКА КОРЕКЦІЙНО-ПЕДАГОГІЧНОЇ ПРАЦІ ДЕФЕКТОЛОГА

In the article the problem of increase of efficiency of professional preparation of a special education teacher is analysed, the meaning of the concept “Correction-pedagogical work” is defined, the essence of work of a special education teacher is grounded, the functions of its aesthetic and therapeutic competence are exposed, and also the aesthetic aspect of correction-pedagogical technology of communication of a special education teacher with children with special educational needs.

Specifics of arts therapies in educational institutions comparing the institutions of health care setting

18 arts therapists from educational and healthcare institutions in Czech Republic were interviewed to determine the specifics of therapeutic practice in educational institutions. The results relate to the presence of different professions in the team, their qualification and level of therapeutic competence, understanding the roles and work of arts therapists, the impact of arts on institutions, the depth of therapeutic change, formulation of therapeutic contract, therapeutic goals, organisation of therapy, the therapy room and privacy and assessments/evaluation.