Anna Davis
BME PhD Proposal Presentation

Date: 2026-11-17
Time: 2:00 pm
Location / Meeting Link: HSRB II N600 / https://emory.zoom.us/j/91709575151?pwd=eWnqSspQMTgYgTi1RNjn4c02frMCTE.1

Committee Members:
Khalid Salaita, PhD ; Sunil Raikar, PhD ; Yonggang Ke, PhD ; Gabe Kwong, PhD ; Julia Babensee, PhD 


Title: Amplification of T Cell Mechanical Signals for High-Throughput Screening

Abstract:
T cells generate mechanical forces during antigen recognition that contribute to their activation and function. However, the relatively low magnitude of these forces makes them difficult to detect and quantify across large cell populations, limiting their use in high- throughput functional screening. To address this challenge, I developed ImmunoCATS, a DNA-based platform that couples force-sensitive probes with Cas12a enzymatic amplification to enable sensitive, quantitative detection of T cell mechanical activity using a standard plate reader. Preliminary studies demonstrate that ImmunoCATS can detect T cell forces, distinguish antigen-specific responses, and amplify mechanical signals that are difficult to measure using conventional approaches. This work will further optimize and validate ImmunoCATS as a tool for detecting T cell forces (Aim 1), apply the platform to investigate how chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) design influences mechanical activity (Aim 2), and evaluate its potential for screening and assessment of CAR T cell therapeutic responses (Aim 3). Collectively, this research will establish a sensitive and scalable approach for quantifying T cell mechanical activity and demonstrate its potential to provide new insight into T cell function and improve the evaluation of cell-based immunotherapies.