Immunotherapy in prostate cancer: current state and future perspectives

Metastatic castrate resistant prostate cancer (PCa) remains an incurable entity. In the era of immunotherapy, the complex PCa microenvironment poses a unique challenge to the successful application of this class of agents. However, in the last decade, a tremendous effort has been made to explore this field of therapeutics. In this review, the physiology of the cancer immunity cycle is highlighted in the context of the prostate tumor microenvironment, and the current evidence for use of various classes of immunotherapy agents including vaccines (dendritic cell based, viral vector based and DNA/mRNA based), immune checkpoint inhibitors, Chimeric antigen receptor T cell therapy, antibody-mediated radioimmunotherapy, antibody drug conjugates, and bispecific antibodies, is consolidated. Finally, the future directions for combinatorial approaches to combat PCa are discussed.

Early detection of Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli. using zinc tetraphenylporphyrin

The sensory characteristics of food are considerably effected by the metabolic processes of various micro-organisms in the food stored in the field or at ambient temperature. Also, this microbial contamination can pose serious health hazards to public health. Chemical analysis of the complex mixture of volatiles produced during bacterial growth and investigation methods of these microorganisms presents a big challenge. There remains major unmet need to shorten and improve detection methods. Therefore, early detection of the microorganisms will open many frontiers for quality control in the foodstuffs industry. Accordingly, the aim of this study was to assess the feasibility and performance of chemoreceptive sensors for the rapid detection of bacterial pathogens, specifically Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Escherichia coli.

In Uv/vis study, zinc tetraphenyl porphyrin solutions (in DMF) was tested with various volatile compounds, such as propanal, hexanal and heptanal which are commonly found to be released during the growth of bacteria. These sensors were used to detect the bacterial odours of two pathogenic species (E.coli and P.aeruginosa) during their growth cycle at 4 °C and ambient temperature.

Hypochromic shifts in Uv/vis and hydrogen bonding in FT-IR studies confirmed the interaction between the volatiles and porphyrin. The porphyrin used detected the presence of microorganisms after 12 hrs incubation and showed more sensitivity for volatiles released during aerobic activity P. aeruginosa as compared to E. coli at 4 °C and ambient temperature.

Zinc tetraphenyl porphyrin based chemoreceptive membranes has been proved successful for the detection of P. aeruginosa. Hence, the present study proves wide scope of improvement over current laboratory techniques for the detection of pathogens in terms of speed, ease of use, and cost.

Key messages

The developed technique allows rapid detection of spoiled food. Chemoreceptive property of porphyrin has been exploited for the early detection of bacteria.

Molecular Pathogenesis and Classification of Colorectal Carcinoma

Purpose of review

Molecular pathways in colorectal carcinogenesis involve several complex genetic and epigenetic modulations that cause normal colonic mucosa to metamorphose into a benign polyp and subsequently into a malignant tumor. Our purpose is to recapitulate historical and recent genomic research in order to augment the understanding of colorectal cancer pathogenesis.

Recent Findings

In 2015, the molecular classification for colorectal cancers was unified into one system with four distinct groups, also called as consensus molecular subtypes. This led to an enhanced understanding of molecular and immune signatures which has implications on predicting the clinical behavior as well as response to different therapeutic agents.

Summary

In this review, we expound on the current literature as well as draw on our own experience to present the important molecular pathogenesis pathways, key genetic mutations, differences in pathogenesis of left versus right sided tumors as well as the molecular classification of colorectal cancers.

AB0013 HLA ASSOCIATION WITH SYSTEMIC SCLEROSIS (SSc) IN NORTH INDIAN POPULATION AND FAMILIAL INHERITANCE PATTERNS

Background:

It is widely believed that SSc develops in an individual with a permissive genetic makeup.Genetic influences have long been suspected to impact SSc. In families with a history of SSc, the incidence of disease can range from 1.5 to 1.7% (1). There are several reports of familial occurrence and certain alleles of the HLA system have been associated with the disease (2).No Indian data pertaining to genetic basis of systemic sclerosis is present. Understanding the genetic basis of the disease will help us in defining the biomarkers of the disease in the population that can help in early diagnosis and prognosis.

Objectives:

To study HLA association with Systemic sclerosis (SSc) in North Indian Population and its genetic susceptibility to familial systemic sclerosis.

Methods:

A total of 150 SSc patients diagnosed by following ACR and EULAR criteria and 150 control subjects, were genotyped for HLA-A, B, DRB1, DQB1 loci by Luminex® 200 Instrument (USA). The association of alleles with disease susceptibility was tested by Chi-square test and Fisher’s exact test.

HLA Typing for HLA class I (A, B, C) and II(DR,DQ,DP) for familial study of systemic sclerosis in 2 families was performed by Next Generation Sequencing(NGS) with illumina MiniSeq using MIA FORA NGS Kits from IMMUCOR. Antinuclear patterns (ANA) and specific antibodies were detected by indirect Immunofluorescence and Immunoblot (Euroline, Germany).

Results:

Strong disease associations were observed for haplotypes A*24(OR=1.7;< 0.02), A*32(OR=2.8;< 0.02), B*35(OR=1.7;< 0.03), DRB1*11(OR=2.1;< 0.007). The reduced frequencies of haplotypes A*68(P< 0.05), DRB1*10(P< 0.05), DRB1*12 (P<0.00) among patients suggested a protective association. There was no statistical association found with HLA DQB*1.

Through NGS we observed that in the 1stfamily haplotypes HLA –A*11, 32, 24; B* 51, 55, 35; C*-14, 04; DRB1*15, 04; DQB1*05, 03; DPB1*04, 26 appears in affected family members with serological abnormalities.In the 2ndfamily both mother and daughter had same set of haplotypes except DQB1 with serological abnormalities. The haplotypes DPB1*04 was present in all the diseased individuals of both the families (Fig. 1 and table 1).

Table 1.

NGS HLA typing report

ABCDRB1DQB1DPB1F111 2435 1504 0415 1505 0502 26F211 3251 5514 0415 0405 0304 04F311 2435 5504 0415 1505 0526 04F432 1151 1514 0415 0405 0302 04F524 3335 4404 0715 0705 0226 14F611 2435 5504 0415 1505 0504 26F711 2435 5504 0415 1505 0504 26F824 3251 3514 0404 1503 0526 04F911 3251 5514 0415 0405 0304 04F1011 3344 5207 1211 0702 0304 13F1111 3344 5207 1211 0703 0304 13

Fig. 1

Conclusion:

The risk alleles A*24, 32; B*35; DRB1*11 were found to be associated with North Indian cohort of SSc, while the protecting alleles were A*68; DRB1*10, 12.These risk alleles were present in the SSc affected family members and the protective alleles were absent in the same. Surprisingly, even healthy members carried the same risk alleles but did not manifest the disease or have serological evidence of the same. We have not excluded occurrence of disease at a later age, as presently the healthy siblings are young. Thus our study indicates that though HLA association are found with SSc but many other factors like HLA (HLA *C, DPB1*) or non HLA genes as wells as epigenetic factors might also play a role in disease manifestation and severity.

References:

[1]Luo Y, Wang Y, Wang Q,et al. Systemic sclerosis: genetics and epigenetics. J Autoimmun.2013; 41:161–67.

[2]de Juan MD1, Belzunegui J, Belmonte I, Barado J, Figueroa M, Cancio J, Vidal S, Cuadrado E. An immunogenetic study of familial scleroderma. Ann Rheum Dis. 1994 Sep; 53(9):614-7.

Acknowledgments:

The technical help of Mr.Manoj Kumar and Mr.Vinkesh are hereby gratefully acknowledged Indian Council of Medical Research(Funding of Fellowship)

Disclosure of Interests:

None declared

Paediatric morphoea: a holistic review. Part 1: epidemiology, aetiopathogenesis and clinical classification

Morphoea, also known as localized scleroderma, is a debilitating fibrosing disorder of uncertain aetiology, affecting the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Paediatric-onset disease is not uncommon and is associated with frequent relapses. The disease has complex pathogenetic mechanisms and multiple clinical subtypes, and affects children of all ages. Recent research has focused on elucidating the disease pathophysiology and identifying measures of disease activity. We performed a literature search on PubMed, MEDLINE and Google Scholar, using keywords such as 'pediatric morphea', 'juvenile localised scleroderma' and 'juvenile systemic sclerosis'. Relevant studies, including randomized trials, reviews of standard current guidelines and original research articles, were selected, and results were analysed before being summarized. In the first of this two-part review, we provide a bird's-eye view of the current literature concerning the epidemiology, aetiopathogenesis and clinical classification of paediatric morphoea; in Part 2, we review the diagnosis, markers of disease activity, management and natural history.

Paediatric morphoea: a holistic review. Part 2: diagnosis, measures of disease activity, management and natural history

Paediatric morphoea is a debilitating fibrosing disorder of uncertain aetiology, affecting the skin and subcutaneous tissues. Defining optimum management strategies in paediatric morphoea remains an ongoing challenge, owing to the varied presentations and a relative paucity of paediatric-specific studies. We performed a literature search on PubMed, MEDLINE and Google Scholar, using keywords such as 'pediatric morphea', 'juvenile localised scleroderma' and 'juvenile systemic sclerosis'. Relevant studies, including randomized trials, reviews of standard current guidelines and original research articles, were selected and results analysed before summarizing them. In Part 1 of this review, we described the epidemiology, aetiopathogenesis and clinical classification; in this part, we discuss the diagnosis, markers of disease activity, management and natural history in paediatric morphoea.

In-hospital outcomes of splanchnic vein thrombosis including Budd Chiari syndrome associated with GI malignancies

e16503

Background: Patients with gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies are at increased risk of developing splanchnic vein thrombosis (SVT). However, there is a dearth of information about the epidemiology of splanchnic vein thrombosis associated with specific GI malignancies. We sought to compare the differences in hospitalizations and mortality related to SVT among various GI malignancies. Methods: We included the top three discharge diagnoses to identify cases of splanchnic vein thrombosis (portal/mesenteric/hepatic and splenic vein thrombosis) along with a secondary diagnosis of a GI malignancy, namely esophagus, gastric, hepatic, colorectal, pancreatic and cholangiocarcinoma within the 2010-2014 Nationwide Inpatient Sample (NIS). Outcomes including mortality, hospitalization charges and length of stay were compared for different types of GI malignancies for SVT hospitalizations using the chi-square test. Complications related to SVT were also identified. Data was analyzed using STATA 15. Results: There were 320,804 total weighted admissions for SVT, of which 33,556 or 11.6% occurred in patients with GI malignancies. Hepatic cancer was the most common GI malignancy associated with SVT, responsible for 5.1% of all cases, followed by pancreatic cancer (2.76% cases). Hepatic vein thrombosis was the commonest type of SVT occurring in patients with GI malignancy. Hospitalizations for SVT in GI malignancies increased from 5743 in 2010 to 8415 in 2014, representing an increase of 46% over 5 years. On univariate analysis, patients with esophageal cancer and SVT had higher rates of cardiac arrest (3.5% vs 0.7% average for other cancers, p = 0.03), but there were no significant differences in rates of other complications studied including intracranial hemorrhage, requirement for blood transfusion, mechanical ventilation or variceal bleeding. Inpatient mortality rate for admission with SVT was the highest for esophageal cancer (21.1%), followed by gastric cancer (17%) against an average of 9.3% for all GI malignancies (p < 0.05).The median cost of an admission for a patient with SVT were highest for esophageal cancer $102,452, followed by colorectal cancer ($97,491) and the least for hepatic cancer ($67,007). Conclusions: We found that hospitalizations for splanchnic vein thrombosis in patients with GI related malignancies has been steadily increasing and represent a significant burden. Hospitalizations for SVT in esophageal, gastric and colorectal cancer patients bear poorer outcomes as compared to hepatic cancer.

Epidemiology, treatment, and outcomes in locally advanced spindle cell lung cancer

e21048

Background: Spindle cell lung cancer (SpCC) is a rare type of NSCLC which portends a poor prognosis. Due to the rarity of diagnosis, there is a dearth of information about the epidemiology and overall survival for these patients. Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis using the SEER database from 1975-2016 to study the demographics, treatment modalities and outcomes for patients with locally advanced SpCC. Data regarding age, sex, race, pathological grade, staging, treatment, overall and disease specific survival was extracted. Hazards ratios were calculated to identify any difference in mortality between patients who received surgery alone versus those who received adjuvant chemotherapy or radiation. Results: A total of 936 cases of SpCC were identified, out of which 367 (39%) patients had locally advanced disease. 84% cases were diagnosed after the age of 60, with peak incidence occurring in the 70-74 age group. 87% were Caucasians, and 56% were males. 68% of the tumors were poorly differentiated. In terms of the treatment modalities for locally advanced SpCC, surgical resection was performed only in 58.5% cases. 27% patients received systemic chemotherapy, out of which 50% was in the adjuvant setting after surgery. 32 % patients received radiation therapy, only 38.5% of which was in the adjuvant setting. No statistically significant difference in mortality was seen in patients who received surgery alone vs adjuvant RT vs adjuvant chemotherapy. However, pts who did not receive surgery had a higher odds of mortality (OR = 4.2, p value 0.0001). Similarly, pts who only received chemotherapy alone had a higher odds of mortality vs those who received chemotherapy along with surgery (OR = 3.4, p-0.045), Overall survival was 25% for patients with localized disease, 9.5% for regional and only 2.6% for distant metastatic disease. For locally advanced SpCC, the observed cumulative 1-year survival was 54.8 % and declined to 29.2% after 5 years. Conclusions: Majority of the spindle cell carcinoma cases are poorly differentiated and present at an advanced stage at the time of diagnosis. For locally advanced SpCC, surgical resection can improve survival. Randomized trials are needed to test efficacy of adjuvant therapies.

Comparison of baseline patient characteristics in immunotherapy versus targeted therapy trials for advanced melanoma

e22012

Background: Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) or BRAF/MEK targeted therapy are both FDA approved first line options for BRAF mutant advanced melanoma. However, the optimal sequencing of these approaches and the profile of patients who benefit the most from one treatment over the other is suboptimally defined. Methods: We compared the baseline characteristics of the participants enrolled in the immunotherapy (IT) and targeted therapy (TT) trials quoted in the NCCN guidelines as the guidelines are used by many oncologists who do not subspecialize in melanoma to formulate treatment plans. Data was gathered about age, sex, race, ECOG score, LDH levels, stage, BRAF mutation status, PD-L1 expression and prior lines of therapy. Results: Median age range was younger in the TT population (48-57 y) as compared to the IT population (56-65 y); > 50% were males. 54-82% patients in the IT trials had an ECOG score of 0. Relatively more patients (pts) with ECOG score of 1 were included in Dabrafenib/ Trametinib and Vemurafenib/Cobimetinib trials (62-65%). Most pts had stage IV M1c disease. LDH levels were similar in IT and TT trials. V600E mutation was uniformly more common in the TT trials as expected. PD-L1 expression varied widely; from 23% to 81% patients with a high PD-L1 expression. Trials evaluating pembrolizumab included patients (7-26%) who were previously treated with BRAF/MEK inhibitor, however TT trials did not include as many pts exposed to ICI. Conclusions: Age range and sex ratio of the pts included in the trials were representative of the epidemiology of melanoma, but race was underreported. TT studies trended towards a younger median age range than patients treated in the IT studies. However optimal biomarkers for initial treatment choice cannot be determined by the patient demographics and characteristics presented in the studies discussed in the NCCN guidelines. Studies randomizing treatment sequence and identification of biomarkers prognostic of patient specific treatment efficacy are needed. Comparison of the IT and TT studies support the choice of either approach as initial treatment in pts with BRAF mutant melanoma lacking contraindications.

Noradrenaline for reverting hepatorenal syndrome: a prospective, observational, single-center study

Objective

To evaluate the effectiveness of noradrenaline for the treatment of hepatorenal syndrome (HRS).

Background

HRS represents the development of renal failure in cirrhotic patients. The standard treatment for HRS is terlipressin, which, as opposed to noradrenaline, is more expensive and less accessible in most tertiary care centers.

Patients and methods

Thirty consecutive patients with HRS type 1 received noradrenaline (1–4.0 mg/hour) and albumin for 14 days. The parameters recorded were: serum creatinine levels, creatinine clearance, mean arterial pressure (MAP), urine output, and serum sodium levels evaluated at baseline and on treatment days 1, 3, 7, and 14.

Results

Most patients achieved serum creatinine levels <1.5 mg/dL and were considered responders (22/30, 73%), whereas eight patients (27%) were nonresponders. At baseline, responders and nonresponders differed only regarding initial bilirubin levels and international normalized ratio values. Treatment duration was 7.5±3.2 days. Responders experienced a significant (p<0.05) decrease in serum creatinine levels (from 3.26±0.48 to 1.28±0.14 mg/dL), as well as a significant increase (p<0.05) in creatinine clearance (from 21±4.1 to 67.7±12.1 mL/min), urine output (from 583±41.1 to 1163±105 mL/day), MAP (from 79.2±2.94 to 93.9±2.34 mmHg), and serum sodium levels (from 125±2.01 to 132.3±1.39 mEq/L). In nonresponders, the MAP increased, but serum creatinine levels also increased, reflecting a decrease in creatinine clearance and urine output, with no significant change in serum sodium levels over the duration of the treatment.

Conclusion

In most patients, noradrenaline treatment induced systemic vasoconstriction resulting in HRS reversal, with acceptable safety, in agreement with previously reported outcomes of terlipressin treatment.