Claudin18.2 is a novel molecular biomarker for tumor-targeted immunotherapy

The claudin18.2 (CLDN18.2) protein, an isoform of claudin18, a member of the tight junction protein family, is a highly selective biomarker with limited expression in normal tissues and often abnormal expression during the occurrence and development of various primary malignant tumors, such as gastric cancer/gastroesophageal junction (GC/GEJ) cancer, breast cancer, colon cancer, liver cancer, head and neck cancer, bronchial cancer and non-small-cell lung cancer. CLDN18.2 participates in the proliferation, differentiation and migration of tumor cells. Recent studies have identified CLDN18.2 expression as a potential specific marker for the diagnosis and treatment of these tumors. With its specific expression pattern, CLDN18.2 has become a unique molecule for targeted therapy in different cancers, especially in GC; for example, agents such as zolbetuximab (claudiximab, IMAB362), a monoclonal antibody (mAb) against CLDN18.2, have been developed. In this review, we outline recent advances in the development of immunotherapy strategies targeting CLDN18.2, including monoclonal antibodies (mAbs), bispecific antibodies (BsAbs), chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cells redirected to target CLDN18.2, and antibody–drug conjugates (ADCs).

Generation and clinical potential of functional T lymphocytes from gene-edited pluripotent stem cells

Engineered T cells have been shown to be highly effective in cancer immunotherapy, although T cell exhaustion presents a challenge for their long-term function. Additional T-cell sources must be exploited to broaden the application of engineered T cells for immune defense and reconstitution. Unlimited sources of pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) have provided a potential opportunity to generate precise-engineered therapeutic induced T (iT) cells. Single-cell transcriptome analysis of PSC-derived induced hematopoietic stem and progenitor cells (iHSPC)/iT identified the developmental pathways and possibilities of generating functional T cell from PSCs. To date, the PSC-to-iT platforms encounter several problems, including low efficiency of conventional T subset specification, limited functional potential, and restrictions on large-scale application, because of the absence of a thymus-like organized microenvironment. The updated PSC-to-iT platforms, such as the three-dimensional (3D) artificial thymic organoid (ATO) co-culture system and Runx1/Hoxa9-enforced iT lymphopoiesis, provide fresh perspectives for coordinating culture conditions and transcription factors, which may greatly improve the efficiency of T-cell generation greatly. In addition, the improved PSC-to-iT platform coordinating gene editing technologies will provide various functional engineered unconventional or conventional T cells. Furthermore, the clinical applications of PSC-derived immune cells are accelerating from bench to bedside.

Clinical characteristics, treatment, and prognosis of 118 cases of myeloid sarcoma

Myeloid sarcoma is a rare manifestation of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and is associated with poor overall survival (OS). The optimal treatment remains unclear. The study retrospectively evaluated 118 patients with myeloid sarcoma who were treated at the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from January 2010 to July 2021. All cases were diagnosed by tissue biopsy. 41 patients underwent genetic mutation analysis. The most frequent genetic mutations were KIT (16.6%), followed by TET2 (14.6%), and NRAS (14.6%). The median survival time of 118 patients was 4 months (range, 1–51 months), while the median survival time of 11 patients who received allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) was 19 months (range, 8–51 months). 4 (36.4%) of the 11 patients experienced relapse within 1 year after transplantation. 1 patient died from a severe infection. Of the 6 surviving patients, 5 patients have received maintenance treatment with decitabine after transplantation, and all remained in a state of recurrence-free survival. Patients with myeloid sarcoma have a very unfavorable outcome. Allo-HSCT is an effective treatment option. Recurrence remains the main cause of transplant failure. Maintenance treatment with decitabine after transplantation can prolong the recurrence-free survival time, although these results must be verified in a study with expanded sample size.

CLEC12A plays an important role in immunomodulatory function and prognostic significance of patients with acute myeloid leukemia

The physiological function and prognostic significance of C-type lectin domain family 12 member A (CLEC12A) in acute myeloid leukemia (AML) patients are unclear. CLEC12A transcriptional expression in a variety of tumors from several public databases was collected and compared. We found that CLEC12A was highly expressed in AML cell lines and in tissues from AML patients and a higher CLEC12A expression in leukemia stem cells. CLEC12A low expression was associated with poor prognosis in the chemotherapy-only group and high CLEC12A expression may benefit from autologous or allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). CLEC12A expression was positively correlated with infiltrating levels of type 2 macrophages and monocytes and negatively associated with NK cells and regulatory T cells in AML. CLEC12A high was positively associated with immune checkpoint genes as well as macrophage associated genes. CLEC12A is an ideal chimeric antigen receptor T-cell (CAR-T) therapy target for AML and its expression level was closely linked to treatment response and patients' survival outcome. CLEC12A plays an important immunomodulatory role in AML.

[Construction of a risk assessment indicator system for re-establishment of imported malaria]

OBJECTIVE

To create a risk assessment indicator system for re-establishment of imported malaria.

METHODS

The risk assessment indicator system for re-establishment of imported malaria was preliminarily constructed through literature review and thematic discussions. A total of 26 malaria control experts were selected to carry out a two-round Delphi consultation of the indicator system. The active coefficient, authority coefficient and coordination coefficient of the experts and the coefficient of variation on each indicator were calculated for indicator screening and the weight of each indicator was calculated. The reliability of the indicator system was evaluated using Cronbach's coefficient α, and the content validity of the indicator system was evaluated using the authority coefficient of the expert, while the structural validity of the indicator system was evaluated using Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin (KMO) test and factor analysis.

RESULTS

Two rounds of Delphi expert consultations were completed by 23 malaria control experts, and a risk assessment indicator system for re-establishment of imported malaria was constructed, including 3 primary indicators, 7 secondary indicators, and 21 tertiary indicators. The active coefficient (100.00% vs. 88.46%; P < 0.01) and coordination coefficient of the expert (0.372 vs. 0.286; P < 0.01) were significantly greater in the second round of the Delphi expert consultation than in the first round. After the second round of the Delphi expert consultation, the authority coefficient of the experts ranged from 0.757 to 0.930 on each indicator, and the coefficients of variation were 0.098 to 0.136, 0.112 to 0.276 and 0.139 to 0.335 for the primary, secondary and tertiary indicators, respectively. The overall Cronbach's coefficient α of the indicator system was 0.941, and there were significant differences in the KMO values for primary (KMO value = 0.523; χ² = 18.192, P < 0.05), secondary (KMO value = 0.694, χ² = 51.499, P < 0.01) and tertiary indicators (KMO value = 0.519; χ² = 477.638, P < 0.01), while the cumulative contribution rate of six principal components in the tertiary indicators was 84.23%. The normalized weights of three primary indicators of the source of infection, transmission condition and control capability were 0.337, 0.333 and 0.329, and the three secondary indicators with the greatest normalized weights included the number of imported cases and malaria parasite species (0.160), introduction of imported cases in China and medical care seeking (0.152), vector species and density (0.152), while the five tertiary indicators with the greatest normalized weights included the malaria parasite species of imported cases (0.065), vector populations (0.064), and the time interval from onset to medical care seeking (0.059), number of imported cases (0.056), and the time interval from medical care seeking to definitive diagnosis (0.055).

CONCLUSIONS

A risk assessment indicator system for re-establishment of imported malaria is successfully created, which provides insights into the assessment of the risk of re-establishment of imported malaria and management of key high-risk factors in malaria-eliminated areas.

[Analysis of HIV-1 genetic subtype and pretreatment drug resistance among men who have sex with men infected with HIV-1 from 19 cities of 6 provinces in China]

Objective: To investigate the distribution of HIV-1 genetic subtypes and pretreatment drug resistance (PDR) among men who have sex with men (MSM) from 19 cities of 6 provinces in China. Methods: From April to November 2019, 574 plasma samples of ART-naive HIV-1 infected MSM were collected from 19 cities in Hebei, Shandong, Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Fujian, and Guangdong provinces, total ribonucleic acid (RNA) was extracted and amplified the HIV-1 pol gene region by nested polymerase chain reaction (PCR) after reverse transcription. Then sequences were used to construct a phylogenetic tree to determine genetic subtypes and submitted to the Stanford drug resistance database for drug resistance analysis. Results: A total of 479 samples were successfully amplified by PCR. The HIV-1 genetic subtypes included CRF01_AE, CRF07_BC, B, CRF55_01B, CRF59_01B, CRF65_cpx, CRF103_01B, CRF67_01B, CRF68_01B and unrecognized subtype, which accounted for 43.4%, 36.3%, 6.3%, 5.9%, 0.8%, 0.8%, 0.4%, 0.4%, 0.2% and 5.5%, respectively. The distribution of genetic subtypes among provinces is statistically different (χ²=44.141, P<0.001). The overall PDR rate was 4.6% (22/479), the drug resistance rate of non-nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, nucleoside reverse transcriptase inhibitors, and protease inhibitors were 3.5% (17/479), 0.8% (4/479) and 0.2% (1/479), respectively. The PDR rate of recent infections was significantly higher than that of long-term infections (χ²=4.634, P=0.031). Conclusions: The HIV-1 genetic subtypes among MSM infected with HIV-1 from 19 cities of 6 provinces in China are diverse, and the distribution of subtypes is different among provinces. The overall PDR rate is low, while the PDR rate of recent infections was significantly higher than that of long-term infections, suggesting the surveillance of PDR in recent infections should be strengthened.

Intestinal microbiota score could predict survival following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation

Intestinal microbiota is an important prognostic factor for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT), but its role in predicting survival has not been determined. Here, stool samples at day 15 ± 1 posttransplant were obtained from 209 patients at two centers. Microbiota was examined using 16S rRNA sequencing. The microbiota diversity and abundance of specific bacteria (including Lachnospiraceae, Ruminococcaceae, Erysipelotrichaceae, and Enterobacteriaceae) were assigned a value of 0 or 1 depending on whether they were positive or negative associated with survival, respectively. An accumulated intestinal microbiota (AIM) score was generated, and patients were divided into low- and high-score groups. A low score was associated with a better 3-year cumulative overall survival (OS) as well as lower mortality than a high score (88.5 vs. 43.9% and 7.1 vs. 35.8%, respectively; both P < 0.001). In multivariate analysis, a high score was found to be an independent risk factor for OS and transplant-related mortality (hazard ratio = 5.68 and 3.92, respectively; P < 0.001 and 0.003, respectively). Furthermore, the AIM score could serve as a predictor for survival (area under receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.836, P < 0.001). Therefore, the intestinal microbiota score at neutrophil recovery could predict survival following allo-HSCT.

Study of the Void Structure of PAN Fiber by Small Angle x-ray Scattering and Spline Function

The voids in fibers, especially in wet spun fibers are a major factor of fiber structure which greatly affects the fiber properties. A lot of research has shown that the inner voids and surface imperfections were the main causes of strength decreases. Therefore it is very important to determine the void morphology development in fiber processing in order to obtain high quality as-spun fiber.

In this paper we introduce a new method for the determination of void morphology using small angle x-ray scattering with a spline function method in which the average void size, size distribution and the related scattering power as well is obtained.

Dose tapering to withdrawal stage and long-term efficacy and safety of hetrombopag for the treatment of immune thrombocytopenia: Results from an open-label extension study

BACKGROUND

The efficacy of hetrombopag in Chinese patients with immune thrombocytopenia (ITP) has been demonstrated in a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, multicenter, phase III trial (NCT03222843).

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to report comprehensive data on a ≤6-week dose tapering to withdrawal (Stage 3) and an additional 24-week long-term extension period (Stage 4) in this phase III trial.

PATIENTS/METHODS

Patients who fulfilled the screening criteria were eligible to enter Stage 3 or 4. During Stage 3, hetrombopag was gradually tapered to withdrawal. During Stage 4, hetrombopag treatment was initiated at 2.5, 3.75, 5, or 7.5 mg once daily. The efficacy endpoints during Stage 3 or 4 and the safety profile during the entire treatment period were reported.

RESULTS

Among 194 patients who entered Stage 3, 171 (88.1%) relapsed. The median time to the first relapse since the start of Stage 3 was 15.0 days (95% CI, 14.0-16.0). In Stage 4, 144 (42.5%) patients responded at ≥75% of their assessments and 254 (74.9%) patients achieved platelet count ≥30 × 109 /L at least once, which was at least twice their baseline platelet count in the hetrombopag group (n = 339). The most common adverse events were upper respiratory tract infection (53.1%), thrombocytopenia (27.1%), and urinary tract infection (21.2%) in the hetrombopag group.

CONCLUSION

The majority of patients who experienced dose tapering to withdrawal experienced a relapse. Long-term treatment with hetrombopag was effective in increasing and maintaining platelet count within the desired range in Chinese adults with ITP. Hetrombopag was well tolerated.

Single-Cell Analysis of Target Antigens of CAR-T Reveals a Potential Landscape of "On-Target, Off-Tumor Toxicity"

Cellular immunotherapy represented by CD19-directed chimeric antigen receptor T (CAR-T) cells has achieved great success in recent years. An increasing number of CAR-T therapies are being developed for cancer treatment, but the frequent and varied adverse events, such as “on-target, off-tumor toxicity”, limit CAR-T application. Here, we identify the target antigen expression patterns of CAR therapies in 18 tissues and organs (peripheral blood mononuclear cells, bone marrow, lymph nodes, spleen, heart, ascending aortic tissue, trachea, lung, skin, kidney, bladder, esophagus, stomach, small intestine, rectum, liver, common bile duct, and pancreas) from healthy human samples. The atlas determines target antigens expressed on some normal cell types, which facilitates elucidating the cause of “on-target, off-tumor toxicity” in special tissues and organs by targeting some antigens, but not others. Moreover, we describe the target antigen expression patterns of B-lineage-derived malignant cells, acute myeloid leukemia (AML), and solid tumors. Overall, the present study indicates the pathogenesis of “on-target, off-tumor toxicity” during CAR therapies and provides guidance on taking preventive measures during CAR treatment.

[Current research status on pelvic autonomic nerve monitoring in rectal cancer surgery]

Rectal cancer is a common malignant tumor of the digestive tract, and surgery is the main treatment strategy. Disorders of bowel, anorectal and urogenital function remain common problems after total mesorectal resection (TME), which seriously decreases the quality of life of patients. Surgical nerve damage is one of the main causes of the complications, while TME with pelvic autonomic nerve preservation is an effective way to reduce the occurrence of adverse outcomes. Intraoperative nerve monitoring (IONM) is a promising method to assist the surgeon to identify and protect the pelvic autonomic nerves. Nevertheless, the monitoring methods and technical standards vary, and the clinical use of IONM is still limited. This review aims to summarize the researches on IONM in rectal and pelvic surgery. The electrical nerve stimulation technique and different methods of IONM in rectal cancer surgery are introduced. Also, the authors discuss the limitations of current researches, including methodological disunity and lack of equipment, then prospect the future direction in this field.

Research progress on dendritic cell vaccines in cancer immunotherapy

Dendritic cell (DC) vaccines induce specific immune responses that can selectively eliminate target cells. In recent years, many studies have been conducted to explore DC vaccination in the treatment of hematological malignancies, including acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes, as well as other nonleukemia malignancies. There are at least two different strategies that use DCs to promote antitumor immunity: in situ vaccination and canonical vaccination. Monocyte-derived DCs (mo-DCs) and leukemia-derived DCs (DCleu) are the main types of DCs used in vaccines for AML and MDS thus far. Different cancer-related molecules such as peptides, recombinant proteins, apoptotic leukemic cells, whole tumor cells or lysates and DCs/DCleu containing a vaster antigenic repertoire with RNA electroporation, have been used as antigen sources to load DCs. To enhance DC vaccine efficacy, new strategies, such as combination with conventional chemotherapy, monospecific/bispecific antibodies and immune checkpoint-targeting therapies, have been explored. After a decade of trials and tribulations, much progress has been made and much promise has emerged in the field. In this review we summarize the recent advances in DC vaccine immunotherapy for AML/MDS as well as other nonleukemia malignancies.

[Application of limiting antigen avidity enzyme immunoassay for estimating HIV-1 incidence in men who have sex with men]

Objective: To estimate the incidence of HIV-1 infection in men who have sex with men (MSM) in key areas of China through HIV-1 limiting antigen avidity enzyme immunoassay (LAg-Avidity EIA), analyze the deviation from the actual results and identify influencing factors, and provided reference for improving the accuracy of estimation results. Methods: Based on the principle of the cohort randomized study design, 20 cities were selected in China based on population size and the number of HIV-positive MSM. The sample size was estimated to be 700 according to the HIV-1 infection rate in MSM. MSM mobile phone app. was used to establish a detection appointment and questionnaire system, and the baseline cross-sectional survey was conducted from April to November 2019. LAg-Avidity EIA was used to identify the recent infected samples. The incidence of HIV-1 infection was calculated and then adjusted based on the estimation formula designed by WHO. The influencing factors were identified by analyzing the sample collection and detection processes. Results: Among the 10 650 blood samples from the participants, 799 were HIV-positive in initial screening, in which 198 samples (24.78%) missed during confirmation test. Only 621 samples were received by the laboratory. After excluding misreported samples, 520 samples were qualified for testing. A total of 155 samples were eventually determined as recent infection through LAg-Avidity EIA; Based on the estimation formula , the incidence of HIV-1 infection in MSM in 20 cities was 4.06% (95%CI:3.27%-4.85%), it increased to 5.53% (95%CI: 4.45%-6.60%)after the adjusting for sample missing rate. When the sample missing rate and misreporting rate were both adjusted, the incidence of HIV-1 infection in the MSM increased to 5.66% (95%CI:4.67%-6.65%). The actual incidence of HIV-1 infection in MSM in the 20 cities might be between 4.06% and 5.66%. Conclusions: Sample missing and misreporting might cause the deviation of the estimation of HIV-1 infection incidence. It is important to ensure the sample source and the quality of sample collection and detection to reduce the deviation in the estimation of HIV-1 infection incidence.

GM-CSF impairs erythropoiesis by disrupting erythroblastic island formation via macrophages

Anemia is a significant complication of chronic inflammation and may be related to dysregulated activities among erythroblastic island (EBI) macrophages. GM-CSF was reported to be upregulated and attracted as a therapeutic target in many inflammatory diseases. Among EBIs, we found that the GM-CSF receptor is preferentially and highly expressed among EBI macrophages but not among erythroblasts. GM-CSF treatment significantly decreases human EBI formation in vitro by decreasing the adhesion molecule expression of CD163. RNA-sequence analysis suggests that GM-CSF treatment impairs the supporting function of human EBI macrophages during erythropoiesis. GM-CSF treatment also polarizes human EBI macrophages from M2-like type to M1-like type. In addition, GM-CSF decreases mouse bone marrow (BM) erythroblasts as well as EBI macrophages, leading to a reduction in EBI numbers. In defining the molecular mechanism at work, we found that GM-CSF treatment significantly decreases the adhesion molecule expression of CD163 and Vcam1 in vivo. Importantly, GM-CSF treatment also decreases the phagocytosis rate of EBI macrophages in mouse BM as well as decreases the expression of the engulfment-related molecules Mertk, Axl, and Timd4. In addition, GM-CSF treatment polarizes mouse BM EBI macrophages from M2-like type to M1-like type. Thus, we document that GM-CSF impairs EBI formation in mice and humans. Our findings support that targeting GM-CSF or reprogramming EBI macrophages might be a novel strategy to treat anemia resulting from inflammatory diseases.

A Hierarchical Bayesian Latent Class Model for the Diagnostic Performance of Mini-Mental State Examination and Montreal Cognitive Assessment in Screening Mild Cognitive Impairment Due to Alzheimer's Disease

BACKGROUND

The Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) and Montreal Cognitive Assessment (MoCA) are low costing and noninvasive neuropsychological tests in screening Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer's disease (AD). There is no consensus on which test performs better in detecting MCI due to AD based on the different imperfect reference standards. Therefore, we conducted a meta-analysis to assess the diagnostic performance of MMSE and MoCA for screening MCI due to AD in the absence of a gold standard.

METHODS

Six electronic databases were searched for relevant studies until April, 2022. A hierarchical Bayesian latent class model was used to estimate the pooled sensitivity and specificity of MoCA and MMSE in the absence of a gold standard.

RESULTS

90 eligible studies covering 21273 individuals for MMSE, 26631 individuals for MoCA were included in this meta-analysis. The pooled sensitivity was 0.71(95%CI: 0.67-0.74) for MMSE and 0.85(95%CI: 0.83-0.88) for MoCA, while the pooled specificity was 0.71(95%CI: 0.68-0.74) for MMSE and 0.79(95%CI: 0.76-0.81) for MoCA. MoCA was useful to "rule in" and "rule out" the diagnosis of MCI due to AD with higher positive likelihood ratio (4.07; 95%CI: 3.60-4.62) and lower negative likelihood ratio (0.18; 95%CI: 0.16-0.22). Moreover, the diagnostic odds ratio of MoCA was 22.08(95%CI: 17.24-28.29), which showed significantly favorable diagnostic performance.

CONCLUSIONS

It suggests that MoCA has greater diagnostic performance than MMSE for differentiating MCI due to AD when the gold standard is absent. However, these results should be taken with caution given the heterogeneity observed.

Acute arrest of hemopoiesis presenting as severe aplastic anemia: a retrospective analysis

OBJECTIVE

The clinical manifestations of acute arrest of hemopoiesis (AAH) are very similar with severe aplastic anemia (SAA). Currently there are no clear diagnostic criteria to distinguish AAH from SAA. Differentiation of AAH from SAA is challenging in the routine clinical practice. This study aimed to analyze the clinical and laboratory features between AAH and SAA patients.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

We performed a retrospective study with cohort of 425 suspected patients who were hospitalized to the First Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou University from 1 January 2019 to 31 December 2020. We identified 11 AAH patients and 49 SAA patients to investigate the differentiation diagnostic features.

RESULTS

Clinical and laboratory examinations of 11 patients with AAH met the diagnostic criteria of SAA, and hematopoietic recovery occurred within a median time of 12 (4-21) days. The median time for neutrophils to recover above 1 × 10⁹/L and platelet to recover above 50 × 10⁹/L in all patients with AAH was 5 (3-8) days and 8 (1-13) days, respectively. Compared with the control group SAA, the 11 AAH patients were older, with a median age of 53 (21-69) years old, and their first symptom is usually fever.

CONCLUSIONS

The spontaneous remission of AAH was rapid in most patients, and relapses were rarely observed. With supportive treatment, the AAH patients would show significant improvement on blood routine about a week, otherwise the patients should be treated as early as possible with the SAA regimen.

Realizing topologically ordered states on a quantum processor

[Figure: see text].