Interferon-β gene transfer inhibits melanoma cells adhesion and migration

Type I interferon and cancer

Type I interferon (IFN) is a class of proinflammatory cytokines with a dual role on malignant transformation, tumor progression, and response to therapy. On the one hand, robust, acute, and resolving type I IFN responses have been shown to mediate prominent anticancer effects, reflecting not only their direct cytostatic/cytotoxic activity on (at least some) malignant cells, but also their pronounced immunostimulatory functions. In line with this notion, type I IFN signaling has been implicated in the antineoplastic effects of various immunogenic therapeutics, including (but not limited to) immunogenic cell death (ICD)-inducing agents and immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). On the other hand, weak, indolent, and non-resolving type I IFN responses have been demonstrated to support tumor progression and resistance to therapy, reflecting the ability of suboptimal type I IFN signaling to mediate cytoprotective activity, promote stemness, favor tolerance to chromosomal instability, and facilitate the establishment of an immunologically exhausted tumor microenvironment. Here, we review fundamental aspects of type I IFN signaling and their context-dependent impact on malignant transformation, tumor progression, and response to therapy.

NFIC1 suppresses migration and invasion of breast cancer cells through interferon-mediated Jak-STAT pathway

NFIC1, the longest isoform of NFIC, is essential for the regulation on spatiotemporal expression of drug-metabolizing genes in liver. However, the role of NFIC1 in breast cancer is not clear. Here we showed that increased expression of NFIC1 suppressed the migration and invasion of MCF-7 cells. NFIC1 overexpression increased the expression of IFNB1, IFNL1, IFNL2 and IFNL3, and the activation of interferon-mediated Jak-STAT pathway was enhanced by NFIC1 overexpression. Treatment with Jak-STAT pathway inhibitors, Filgotinib or Ruxolitinib, reversed the suppressive effects of NFIC1 overexpression on migration and invasion of MCF-7 cells. In addition, we found that MX1 and MX2, two target genes of Jak-STAT pathway, mediated the migration and invasion of MCF-7 cells. These results demonstrated that NFIC1 inhibited the migration and invasion in MCF-7 cells through interferon-mediated activation of Jak-STAT pathway, indicating that Jak-STAT pathway might be a potential therapeutic target for preventing breast cancer metastasis.

A Dual Role of Type I Interferons in Antitumor Immunity

Type I interferons (IFN-Is) are a family of cytokines that exert direct antiviral effects and regulate innate and adaptive immune responses through direct and indirect mechanisms. It is generally believed that IFN-Is repress tumor development via restricting tumor proliferation and inducing antitumor immune responses. However, recent emerging evidence suggests that IFN-Is play a dual role in antitumor immunity. That is, in the early stage of tumorigenesis, IFN-Is promote the antitumor immune response by enhancing antigen presentation in antigen-presenting cells and activating CD8⁺ T cells. However, in the late stage of tumor progression, persistent expression of IFN-Is induces the expression of immunosuppressive factors (PD-L1, IDO, and IL-10) on the surface of dendritic cells and other bone marrow cells and inhibits their antitumor immunity. This review outlines these dual functions of IFN-Is in antitumor immunity and elucidates the involved mechanisms, as well as their applications in tumor therapy.

Association of an IRF3 putative functional uORF variant with resistance to Brucella infection: A candidate gene based analysis of InDel polymorphisms in goats

Brucellosis is an important zoonotic disease caused by infection with Brucella spp. It generates major economic losses in livestock production worldwide. Goats are the principal hosts of B. melitensis, the main infection agent of caprine and human brucellosis. The selection of resistance-related genes is considered one of the best long-term means to improve control to bacterial infection in domestic ruminants. We performed a candidate gene association study to test if six short insertion/deletion polymorphisms (InDels) at bacterial-infection related genes influence the resistance to Brucella infection in female creole goats. InDels (IRF3-540: rs660531540, FKBP5-294: rs448529294, TIRAP-561: rs657494561, PTPRT-588: rs667380588, KALRN-989: rs667660989 and RAB5a-016: rs661537016) were resolved by PCR-capillary electrophoresis in samples from 64 cases and 64 controls for brucellosis. Allelic frequencies were significantly different between cases and controls at IRF3-540 and KALRN-989 (p = 0.001 and 0.005). Indeed, the minor alleles (a and k) at InDels IRF3-540 and KALRN-989 were more frequent among controls than cases, providing evidence that these alleles confer protection against Brucella infection. Moreover, IRF3-540 a-containing genotypes (Aa and aa) were associated with absence of Brucella-specific antibodies in goats (p = 0.003; OR = 3.52; 95% CI = 1.55-7.96), and more specifically, a-allele was associated with resistance to Brucella infection in a dose-dependent manner. Also, we observed that the IRF3-540 deletion (a-allele) extends a conserved upstream ORF by 75 nucleotides to the main ORF, and thus it may decrease gene expression by reducing translation efficiency from the main ORF. These results suggest a potential functional role of IRF3-540 deletion in genetic resistance to Brucella infection in goats.

How unique is interferon-β within the type I interferon family?

All type I interferons share structural homology and bind to a common heterodimeric receptor consisting of the IFNAR1 and IFNAR2 subunits, which are expressed on most cell types. Although binding to the same receptor pair, they evoke a broad range of activities within the cell affecting the expression of numerous genes and resulting in profound cellular changes. Differential activation results from multiple levels of cellular and molecular events including binding affinity, receptor density, cell type-specific variations, and post-translational modification of signaling molecules downstream. Within the type I interferon family the Asn-Gly-Arg (NGR) sequence motif is unique to interferon-β and, together with its deamidated variants Asp-Gly-Arg (DGR) and iso-Asp-Gly-Arg (iso-DGR), imparts additional binding specificities that go beyond that of the canonical IFNAR1/IFNAR2. These warrant further investigations and functional studies and may eventually shed new light on differential effects observed for this molecule in oncology and autoimmune diseases.

Immunomodulatory and antitumor effects of type I interferons and their application in cancer therapy

During the last decades, the pleiotropic antitumor functions exerted by type I interferons (IFNs) have become universally acknowledged, especially their role in mediating interactions between the tumor and the immune system. Indeed, type I IFNs are now appreciated as a critical component of dendritic cell (DC) driven T cell responses to cancer. Here we focus on IFN-α and IFN-β, and their antitumor effects, impact on immune responses and their use as therapeutic agents. IFN-α/β share many properties, including activation of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway and induction of a variety of cellular phenotypes. For example, type I IFNs drive not only the high maturation status of DCs, but also have a direct impact in cytotoxic T lymphocytes, NK cell activation, induction of tumor cell death and inhibition of angiogenesis. A variety of stimuli, including some standard cancer treatments, promote the expression of endogenous IFN-α/β, which then participates as a fundamental component of immunogenic cell death. Systemic treatment with recombinant protein has been used for the treatment of melanoma. The induction of endogenous IFN-α/β has been tested, including stimulation through pattern recognition receptors. Gene therapies involving IFN-α/β have also been described. Thus, harnessing type I IFNs as an effective tool for cancer therapy continues to be studied.

Impairment of human neural crest cell migration by prolonged exposure to interferon-beta

Human cell-based toxicological assays have been used successfully to detect known toxicants, and to distinguish them from negative controls. However, there is at present little experience on how to deal with hits from screens of compounds with yet unknown hazard. As a case study to this issue, we characterized human interferon-beta (IFNβ) as potential developmental toxicant affecting neural crest cells (NCC). The protein was identified as a hit during a screen of clinically used drugs in the ‘migration inhibition of neural crest’ (MINC) assay. Concentration–response studies in the MINC combined with immunocytochemistry and mRNA quantification of cellular markers showed that IFNβ inhibited NCC migration at concentrations as low as 20 pM. The effective concentrations found here correspond to levels found in human plasma, and they were neither cytostatic nor cytotoxic nor did they did they affect the differentiation state and overall phenotype of NCC. Data from two other migration assays confirmed that picomolar concentration of IFNβ reduced the motility of NCC, while other interferons were less potent. The activation of JAK kinase by IFNβ, as suggested by bioinformatics analysis of the transcriptome changes, was confirmed by biochemical methods. The degree and duration of pathway activation correlated with the extent of migration inhibition, and pharmacological block of this signaling pathway before, or up to 6 h after exposure to the cytokine prevented the effects of IFNβ on migration. Thus, the reduction of vital functions of human NCC is a hitherto unknown potential hazard of endogenous or pharmacologically applied interferons.