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Murphy RM, Tasoulas J, Porrello A, Carper MB, Tsai YH, Coffey AR, Kumar S, Zeng PYF, Schrank TP, Midkiff BR, Cohen S, Salazar AH, Hayward MC, Hayes DN, Olshan A, Gupta GP, Nichols AC, Yarbrough WG, Pecot CV, Amelio AL. Tumor Cell Extrinsic Synaptogyrin 3 Expression as a Diagnostic and Prognostic Biomarker in Head and Neck Cancer. CANCER RESEARCH COMMUNICATIONS 2022; 2:987-1004. [PMID: 36148399 PMCID: PMC9491693 DOI: 10.1158/2767-9764.crc-21-0135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/15/2021] [Revised: 04/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/11/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Over 70% of oropharyngeal head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) cases in the United States are positive for human papillomavirus (HPV) yet biomarkers for stratifying oropharyngeal head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSC) patient risk are limited. We used immunogenomics to identify differentially expressed genes in immune cells of HPV(+) and HPV(-) squamous carcinomas. Candidate genes were tested in clinical specimens using both quantitative RT-PCR and IHC and validated by IHC using the Carolina Head and Neck Cancer Study (CHANCE) tissue microarray of HNSC cases. We performed multiplex immunofluorescent staining to confirm expression within the immune cells of HPV(+) tumors, receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve analyses, and assessed survival outcomes. The neuronal gene Synaptogyrin-3 (SYNGR3) is robustly expressed in immune cells of HPV(+) squamous cancers. Multiplex immunostaining and single cell RNA-seq analyses confirmed SYNGR3 expression in T cells, but also unexpectedly in B cells of HPV(+) tumors. ROC curve analyses revealed that combining SYNGR3 and p16 provides more sensitivity and specificity for HPV detection compared to p16 IHC alone. SYNGR3-high HNSC patients have significantly better prognosis with five-year OS and DSS rates of 60% and 71%, respectively. Moreover, combining p16 localization and SYNGR3 expression can further risk stratify HPV(+) patients such that high cytoplasmic, low nuclear p16 do significantly worse (Hazard Ratio, 8.6; P = 0.032) compared to patients with high cytoplasmic, high nuclear p16. SYNGR3 expression in T and B cells is associated with HPV status and enhanced survival outcomes of HNSC patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan M. Murphy
- Graduate Curriculum in Pharmacology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Division of Oral and Craniofacial Health Sciences, Adams School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Jason Tasoulas
- Division of Oral and Craniofacial Health Sciences, Adams School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Alessandro Porrello
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Miranda B. Carper
- Division of Oral and Craniofacial Health Sciences, Adams School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Yi-Hsuan Tsai
- Bioinformatics Core, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, UNC School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Alisha R. Coffey
- Bioinformatics Core, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, UNC School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Sunil Kumar
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Technology Development, Naveris Inc., Natick, Massachusetts
| | - Peter YF. Zeng
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Travis P. Schrank
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Bentley R. Midkiff
- Pathology Services Core, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, UNC School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Stephanie Cohen
- Pathology Services Core, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, UNC School of Medicine, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Ashley H. Salazar
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Michele C. Hayward
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - D. Neil Hayes
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Center for Cancer Research, University of Tennessee Health Sciences, Memphis, Tennessee
| | - Andrew Olshan
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Epidemiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Gaorav P. Gupta
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Radiation Oncology, UNC School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Anthony C. Nichols
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
- Department of Oncology, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada
| | - Wendell G. Yarbrough
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Pathology and Lab Medicine, University of North Carolina School of Medicine, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Chad V. Pecot
- Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Antonio L. Amelio
- Division of Oral and Craniofacial Health Sciences, Adams School of Dentistry, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
- Cancer Cell Biology Program, Lineberger Comprehensive Cancer Center, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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