Docetaxel suppresses immunotherapy efficacy of natural killer cells toward castration-resistant prostate cancer cells via altering androgen receptor-lectin-like transcript 1 signals

Sex hormone signaling and regulation of immune function

Immune responses to antigens, including innocuous, self, tumor, microbial, and vaccine antigens, differ between males and females. The quest to uncover the mechanisms for biological sex differences in the immune system has intensified, with considerable literature pointing toward sex hormonal influences on immune cell function. Sex steroids, including estrogens, androgens, and progestins, have profound effects on immune function. As such, drastic changes in sex steroid concentrations that occur with aging (e.g., after puberty or during the menopause transition) or pregnancy impact immune responses and the pathogenesis of immune-related diseases. The effect of sex steroids on immunity involves both the concentration of the ligand and the density and distribution of genomic and nongenomic receptors that serve as transcriptional regulators of immune cellular responses to affect autoimmunity, allergy, infectious diseases, cancers, and responses to vaccines. The next frontier will be harnessing these effects of sex steroids to improve therapeutic outcomes.

Natural killer cell activity in metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer patients treated with enzalutamide

Metastatic castration resistant prostate cancer (mCRPC) is still the lethal stage for the whole spectrum of prostate cancer disease. Even though different treatment options have been introduced in the last decade with a significant survival improvement for this population, a lack of more reliable prognostic and predictive markers is still one of the main clinical challenges in management of mCRPC. The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between Natural Killer cell activity (NKA) and both treatment effect and outcomes in patients with mCRPC treated with enzalutamide. A total of 87 patients with mCRPC treated with enzalutamide as the first line treatment were enrolled. NKA was estimated at baseline and prior to each treatment cycle. Endpoints included both treatment effect with biochemical response (BR), biochemical progression (BP) and radiological progression (RP), as well as outcome data with overall survival (OS), radiologic progression free survival (rPFS), and time to next treatment (TTT). At the time of BR, interferon-gamma (IFNγ) decreased significantly compared to levels detected at baseline (z-score = 2.33, p = 0.019). Regarding outcome data, the whole cohort was divided into four groups according to the change of IFNγ level during the first 3 cycles of enzalutamide treatment. In group 1 (n = 42) the IFNγ level remained within a normal range (≥ 250 pg/mL),while in group 2 (n = 7) it increased from an abnormal (< 250 pg/mL) to a normal level. In group 3 (n = 13) it dropped to an abnormal level, and it remained at an abnormal level during treatment in group 4 (n = 17). Patients in group 2 showed the worst prognosis with shorter both rPFS and TTT (HR 4.30, p = 0.037; and HR 6.82, p = 0.011, respectively). In this study inverse correlations between NKA and both treatment response and outcomes was observed in mCRPC patients receiving enzalutamide, suggesting an unfavourable role of NK cells in the late stage of PCa.

The interactions of docetaxel with tumor microenvironment

There are several interactions within the tumor microenvironment (TME) that affect the response of cancer cells to therapy. There are also a large number of cells and secretions in TME that increase resistance to therapy. Following the release of immunosuppressive, pro-angiogenic, and metastatic molecules by certain cells such as tumor-associated macrophages (TAMs), cancer-associated fibroblasts (CAFs), and cancer cells, immune evasion, angiogenesis, and metastasis may be induced. However, natural killer (NK) cells and cytotoxic CD8 + T lymphocytes (CTLs) can responsively release anticancer molecules. In addition, anticancer drugs can modulate these cells and their interactions in favor of either cancer resistance or therapy. Docetaxel belongs to taxanes, a class of anti-tumor drugs, which acts through the polymerization of tubulin and the induction of cell cycle arrest. Also, it has been revealed that taxanes including docetaxel affect cancer cells and the other cells within TME through some other mechanisms such as modulation of immune system responses, angiogenesis, and metastasis. In this paper, we explain the basic mechanisms of docetaxel interactions with malignant cells. Besides, we review the diverse effects of docetaxel on TME and cancer cells in consequence. Lastly, the modulatory effects of docetaxel alone or in conjunction with other anticancer agents on anti-tumor immunity, cancer cell resistance, angiogenesis, and metastasis will be discussed.

Natural killer cell-related gene signature predicts malignancy of glioma and the survival of patients

Background

Natural killer (NK) cells-based therapies are one of the most promising strategies against cancer. The aim of this study is to investigate the natural killer cell related genes and its prognostic value in glioma.

Methods

The Chinese Glioma Genome Atlas (CGGA) was used to develop the natural killer cell-related signature. Risk score was built by multivariate Cox proportional hazards model. A cohort of 326 glioma samples with whole transcriptome expression data from the CGGA database was included for discovery. The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) datasets was used for validation. GO and KEGG were used to reveal the biological process and function associated with the natural killer cell-related signature. We also collected the clinical pathological features of patients with gliomas to analyze the association with tumor malignancy and patients’ survival.

Results

We screened for NK-related genes to build a prognostic signature, and identified the risk score based on the signature. We found that NK-related risk score was independent of various clinical factors. Nature-killer cell gene expression is correlated with clinicopathological features of gliomas. Innovatively, we demonstrated the tight relation between the risk score and immune checkpoints, and found NK-related risk score combined with PD1/PDL1 patients could predict the patient outcome.

Conclusion

Natural killer cell-related gene signature can predict malignancy of glioma and the survival of patients, these results might provide new view for the research of glioma malignancy and individual immunotherapy.

Supplementary Information

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-022-09230-y.

Identification of a Prognosis-Related Risk Signature for Bladder Cancer to Predict Survival and Immune Landscapes

Background

Bladder cancer is the tenth most common cancer worldwide. Valuable biomarkers in the field of diagnostic bladder cancer are urgently required.

Method

Here, the gene expression matrix and clinical data were obtained from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA), GSE13507, GSE32894, and Mariathasan et al. Five prognostic genes were identified by the univariate, robust, and multivariate Cox's regression and were used to develop a prognosis-related model. The Kaplan-Meier survival curves and receiver operating characteristics were used to evaluate the model's effectiveness. The potential biological functions of the selected genes were analyzed using CIBERSORT and ESTIMATE algorithms. Cancer Therapeutics Response Portal (CTRP) and PRISM datasets were used to identify drugs with high sensitivity. Subsequently, using the bladder cancer (BLCA) cell lines, the role of TNFRSF14 was determined by Western blotting, cell proliferation assay, and 5-ethynyl-20-deoxyuridine assay.

Results

GSDMB, CLEC2D, APOL2, TNFRSF14, and GBP2 were selected as prognostic genes in bladder cancer patients. The model's irreplaceable reliability was validated by the training and validation cohorts. CD8+ T cells were highly infiltrated in the high-TNFRSF14-expression group, and M2 macrophages were the opposite. Higher expression of TNFRSF14 was associated with higher expression levels of LCK, interferon, MHC-I, and MHC-II, while risk score was the opposite. Many compounds with higher sensitivity for treating bladder cancer patients in the low-TNFRSF14-expression group were identified, with obatoclax being a potential drug most likely to treat patients in the low-TNFRSF14-expression group. Finally, the proliferation of BLCA cell lines was increased in the TNFRSF14-reduced group, and the differential expression was identified. TNFRSF14 plays a role in bladder cancer progression through the Wnt/β-catenin-dependent pathway. TNFRSF14 is a potential protective biomarker involved in cell proliferation in BLCA.

Conclusion

We conducted a study to establish a 5-gene score model, providing reliable prediction for the outcome of bladder cancer patients and therapeutic drugs to individualize therapy. Our findings provide a signature that might help determine the optimal treatment for individual patients with bladder cancer.

The Role of Androgen Receptor in Cross Talk Between Stromal Cells and Prostate Cancer Epithelial Cells

Prostate cancer (PCa) lists as the second most lethal cancer for men in western countries, and androgen receptor (AR) plays a central role in its initiation and progression, which prompts the development of androgen deprivation therapy (ADT) as the standard treatment. Prostate tumor microenvironment, consisting of stromal cells and extracellular matrix (ECM), has dynamic interactions with PCa epithelial cells and affects their growth and invasiveness. Studies have shown that both genomic and non-genomic AR signaling pathways are involved in the biological regulation of PCa epithelial cells. In addition, AR signaling in prostate stroma is also involved in PCa carcinogenesis and progression. Loss of AR in PCa stroma is clinically observed as PCa progresses to advanced stage. Especially, downregulation of AR in stromal fibroblasts dysregulates the expression levels of ECM proteins, thus creating a suitable environment for PCa cells to metastasize. Importantly, ADT treatment enhances this reciprocal interaction and predisposes stromal cells to promote cell invasion of PCa cells. During this process, AR in PCa epithelium actively responds to various stimuli derived from the surrounding stromal cells and undergoes enhanced degradation while elevating the expression of certain genes such as MMP9 responsible for cell invasion. AR reduction in epithelial cells also accelerates these cells to differentiate into cancer stem-like cells and neuroendocrine cells, which are AR-negative PCa cells and inherently resistant to ADT treatments. Overall, understanding of the cross talk between tumor microenvironment and PCa at the molecular level may assist the development of novel therapeutic strategies against this disease. This review will provide a snapshot of AR's action when the interaction of stromal cells and PCa cells occurs.

The immune microenvironment and relation to outcome in patients with advanced breast cancer treated with docetaxel with or without gemcitabine

Preclinical studies suggest that some effects of conventional chemotherapy, and in particular, gemcitabine, are mediated through enhanced antitumor immune responses. The objective of this study was to use material from a randomized clinical trial to evaluate whether patients with preexisting immune infiltrates responded better to treatment with gemcitabine + docetaxel (GD) compared to docetaxel alone. Formalin fixed, paraffin-embedded breast cancer tissues from SBG0102 phase 3 trial patients randomly assigned to treatment with GD or docetaxel were used. Immunohistochemical staining for CD8, FOXP3, LAG3, PD-1, PD-L1 and CD163 was performed. Tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) and tumor associated macrophages were evaluated. Prespecified statistical analyses were performed in a formal prospective-retrospective design. Time to progression was primary endpoint and overall survival secondary endpoint. Correlations between biomarker status and endpoints were evaluated using the Kaplan–Meier method and Cox proportional hazards models. Biomarker data was obtained for 237 patients. There was no difference in treatment effect according to biomarker status for the whole cohort. In planned subgroup analysis by PAM50 subtype, in non-luminal (basal-like and HER2E) breast cancers FOXP3 was a significant predictor of treatment effect with GD compared to docetaxel, with a HR of 0.22 (0.09–0.52) for tumors with low FOXP3 compared to HR 0.92 (0.47–1.80) for high FOXP3 TILs (P_interaction = 0.01). Immune biomarkers were not predictive of added benefit of gemcitabine in a cohort of mixed breast cancer subtypes. However, in non-luminal breast cancers, patients with low FOXP3+ TILs may have significant benefit from added gemcitabine.