Chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) are versatile synthetic receptors that provide T cells with engineered specificity. Clinical success in treating B-cell malignancies has demonstrated the therapeutic potential of CAR-T cells against cancer, and efforts are underway to expand the use of engineered T cells to the treatment of diverse medical conditions, including infections and autoimmune diseases. Here, we review current understanding of the molecular properties of CARs, how this knowledge informs the rational design and characterization of novel receptors, the successes and shortcomings of CAR-T cells in the clinic, and emerging solutions for the continued improvement of CAR-T cell therapy.

嵌合抗原受体 (CAR) 是多功能合成受体，可为 T 细胞提供工程特异性。治疗 B 细胞恶性肿瘤的临床成功证明了 CAR-T 细胞抗癌的治疗潜力，并且正在努力将工程化 T 细胞的用途扩大到治疗各种疾病，包括感染和自身免疫性疾病。在这里，我们回顾了当前对 CAR 分子特性的理解，这些知识如何为新型受体的合理设计和表征提供信息，CAR-T 细胞在临床上的成功和缺点，以及持续改进 CAR-T 的新兴解决方案细胞疗法。