Macrophage and monocyte subsets as new therapeutic targets in cancer immunotherapy

Inflammatory status predicts prognosis in patients with gastric cancer with early pyloric stenosis who underwent radical resection: A propensity score‑matching analysis

The inflammatory status of patients is closely related to their nutritional status, and the impact of inflammatory status on patients with pyloric stenosis remains unclear. The present study aimed to investigate the impact of inflammatory status on the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer with early pyloric stenosis who underwent radical resection. A retrospective analysis included 242 patients with gastric cancer who underwent radical resection at the Affiliated Hospital of Southwest Medical University between July 2016 and December 2020. All patients were diagnosed with early pyloric stenosis. Correlation analysis was used to assess variations among different factors, and survival analysis was conducted to evaluate differences in overall survival (OS). To identify independent prognostic indicators, both univariate and multivariate Cox regression analyses were performed, addressing potential multicollinearity using Lasso analysis. Propensity score matching (PSM) was employed to eliminate potential confounding factors. Additionally, a prognostic risk model and nomogram based on inflammatory indicators were developed to comprehensively explore their impact on prognosis. Initial survival analysis revealed significant associations between neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR; χ2=10.522, P<0.001), systemic immune-inflammation index (SII; χ2=6.733, P=0.025), systemic inflammation response index (SIRI; χ2=15.490, P<0.001) and OS of the patients, while there was no significant survival difference among patients with different platelet-to-lymphocyte ratio (PLR; χ2=2.561, P=0.050). SIRI not only had the highest area under the curve but was also found to be an independent prognostic indicator (hazard ratio=1.851, P=0.046) in the present study. Following PSM on SIRI, a total of 174 patients were included in the subsequent analysis. Time-receiver operating characteristic and survival curves for SIRI after PSM consistently demonstrated its robust prognostic predictive capability. Furthermore, the prognostic risk model based on SIRI and the nomogram incorporating SIRI both exhibited high prognostic value. Inflammatory status was significantly associated with the prognosis of patients with gastric cancer with early pyloric stenosis who underwent radical resection. The NLR, SII and SIRI could all predict patient outcomes. Moreover, SIRI exhibited the highest prognostic value among the inflammatory indices and has been identified as an independent prognostic factor in the present study.

Discrepant Phenotyping of Monocytes Based on CX3CR1 and CCR2 Using Fluorescent Reporters and Antibodies

Monocytes, as well as downstream macrophages and dendritic cells, are essential players in the immune system, fulfilling key roles in homeostasis as well as in inflammatory conditions. Conventionally, driven by studies on reporter models, mouse monocytes are categorized into a classical and a non-classical subset based on their inversely correlated surface expression of Ly6C/CCR2 and CX3CR1. Here, we aimed to challenge this concept by antibody staining and reporter mouse models. Therefore, we took advantage of Cx3cr1GFP and Ccr2RFP reporter mice, in which the respective gene was replaced by a fluorescent reporter protein gene. We analyzed the expression of CX3CR1 and CCR2 by flow cytometry using several validated fluorochrome-coupled antibodies and compared them with the reporter gene signal in these reporter mouse strains. Although we were able to validate the specificity of the fluorochrome-coupled flow cytometry antibodies, mouse Ly6Chigh classical and Ly6Clow non-classical monocytes showed no differences in CX3CR1 expression levels in the peripheral blood and spleen when stained with these antibodies. On the contrary, in Cx3cr1GFP reporter mice, we were able to reproduce the inverse correlation of the CX3CR1 reporter gene signal and Ly6C surface expression. Furthermore, differential CCR2 surface expression correlating with the expression of Ly6C was observed by antibody staining, but not in Ccr2RFP reporter mice. In conclusion, our data suggest that phenotyping strategies for mouse monocyte subsets should be carefully selected. In accordance with the literature, the suitability of CX3CR1 antibody staining is limited, whereas for CCR2, caution should be applied when using reporter mice.

Comprehensive analysis of human monocyte subsets using full-spectrum flow cytometry and hierarchical marker clustering

Introduction

Exploring monocytes' roles within the tumor microenvironment is crucial for crafting targeted cancer treatments.

Methods

This study unveils a novel methodology utilizing four 20-color flow cytometry panels for comprehensive peripheral immune system phenotyping, specifically targeting classical, intermediate, and non-classical monocyte subsets.

Results

By applying advanced dimensionality reduction techniques like t-distributed stochastic neighbor embedding (tSNE) and FlowSom analysis, we performed an extensive profiling of monocytes, assessing 50 unique cell surface markers related to a wide range of immunological functions, including activation, differentiation, and immune checkpoint regulation.

Discussion

This in-depth approach significantly refines the identification of monocyte subsets, directly supporting the development of personalized immunotherapies and enhancing diagnostic precision. Our pioneering panel for monocyte phenotyping marks a substantial leap in understanding monocyte biology, with profound implications for the accuracy of disease diagnostics and the success of checkpoint-inhibitor therapies. Key findings include revealing distinct marker expression patterns linked to tumor progression and providing new avenues for targeted therapeutic interventions.

Overexpression of SerpinB9 in non-seminomatous germ cell tumors

Serpinb9 is an inhibitor of granzyme B and is potentially involved in the immune escape of tumor cells. In the present study, bioinformatics analysis using open databases suggested that SerpinB9 is overexpressed in testicular embryonal carcinoma. Immunohistological analysis was performed on 28 cases of testicular germ cell tumors to investigate the relationship between SerpinB9 expression in testicular germ cell tumors and the tumor immune environment. SerpinB9 was significantly upregulated in the non-seminoma group and inversely correlated with the number of tumor-infiltrating CD8-positive cells. In addition, yolk sac tumors were characterized by the loss of human leukocyte antigen-class I expression. These findings suggest that SerpinB9 contributes to the immune escape of testicular germ cell tumors. Targeting therapy for SerpinB9 might therefore be useful in immunotherapy for testicular germ cell tumors resistant to immune checkpoint inhibitors.

Update on current and new potential immunotherapies in breast cancer, from bench to bedside

Impressive advances have been seen in cancer immunotherapy during the last years. Although breast cancer (BC) has been long considered as non-immunogenic, immunotherapy for the treatment of BC is now emerging as a new promising therapeutic approach with considerable potential. This is supported by a plethora of completed and ongoing preclinical and clinical studies in various types of immunotherapies. However, a significant gap between clinical oncology and basic cancer research impairs the understanding of cancer immunology and immunotherapy, hampering cancer therapy research and development. To exploit the accumulating available data in an optimal way, both fundamental mechanisms at play in BC immunotherapy and its clinical pitfalls must be integrated. Then, clinical trials must be critically designed with appropriate combinations of conventional and immunotherapeutic strategies. While there is room for major improvement, this updated review details the immunotherapeutic tools available to date, from bench to bedside, in the hope that this will lead to rethinking and optimizing standards of care for BC patients.

Prognostic role of macrophages and mast cells in the microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma after resection

BACKGROUND

The prognostic significance of mast cells and different phenotypes of macrophages in the microenvironment of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) following resection is unclear. We aimed in this study to assess the local distribution of infiltrating macrophages and mast cells of specific phenotypes in tissues of HCC and to evaluate their prognostic values for survival of post-surgical patients.

METHODS

The clinicopathological and follow-up data of 70 patients with HCC, who underwent curative resection of tumor from 1997 to 2019, were collected. The infiltration of CD68+ and CD163+ macrophages and CD117+ mast cells was assessed immunohistochemically in representative resected specimens of HCC and adjacent tissues. The area fraction (AF) of positively stained cells was estimated automatically using QuPath image analysis software in several regions, such as tumor center (TC), inner margin (IM), outer margin (OM), and peritumor (PT) area. The prognostic significance of immune cells, individually and in associations, for time to recurrence (TTR), disease-free survival (DFS), and overall survival (OS) was evaluated using Kaplan-Meier and Cox regression analyses.

RESULTS

High AF of CD68+ macrophages in TC and IM and high AF of mast cells in IM and PT area were associated with a longer DFS. High AF of CD163+ macrophages in PT area correlated with a shorter DFS. Patients from CD163TChigh & CD68TClow group had a shorter DFS compared to all the rest of the groups, and cases with CD163IMlow & CD68IMhigh demonstrated significantly longer DFS compared to low AF of both markers. Patients from CD68IMhigh & CD163PTlow group, CD117IMhigh & CD163PTlow group, and CD117PThigh & CD163PTlow group had a significantly longer DFS compared to all other combinations of respective cells.

CONCLUSIONS

The individual prognostic impact of CD68+ and CD163+ macrophages and mast cells in the microenvironment of HCC after resection depends on their abundance and location, whereas the cumulative impact is built upon combination of different cell phenotypes within and between regions.

EBV Impact in Peripheral Macrophages' Polarization Cytokines in Pediatric Patients

Macrophages are exceptionally flexible cells. The presence of inflammatory cytokines such as IFN-γ and TNF-α results in an M1 (CD68) activation, while cytokines such as IL-10 or TGF-β induce the M2 (CD163) activation. Our aim was to study the behavior of peripheral cytokines involved in macrophage polarization and relate them with tissue findings to further comprehend the role of macrophages in EBV pediatric infection. We studied cytokine expression in tonsils and peripheral blood samples of children in different stages of infection. Peripheral cytokines were compared with macrophage polarization markers and viral protein expression in tonsils. Only IL-10 showed a negative correlation between compartments, exclusively in patients undergoing viral reactivation (R). Higher expressions of peripheral IL-1β, IL-23, and IL-12p40 in R children were observed. Lower expressions of local and peripheral TNF-α in patients with broader expressions of latent and lytic viral proteins were demonstrated. In healthy carrier (HC) patients, IL-23 positively correlated with CD163, and IP-10 positively correlated with CD68. Our results indicated that EBV might modulate antigen expression in the presence of TNF-α and influence peripheral cytokine expression differently in each stage of infection. Moreover, peripheral cytokines might have a particular role in macrophage polarization in HC.

Dendrobium officinale polysaccharide Converts M2 into M1 Subtype Macrophage Polarization via the STAT6/PPAR-r and JAGGED1/NOTCH1 Signaling Pathways to Inhibit Gastric Cancer

Dendrobium officinale polysaccharide (DOP) has shown various biological activities. However, the ability of DOP to participate in immune regulation during anti-gastric cancer treatment has remained unclear. In this study, the in vitro results showed that DOP has the potential to polarize THP-1 macrophages from the M2 to the M1 phenotype, downregulate the STAT6/PPAR-r signaling pathway and the protein expression of their down-targeted ARG1 and TGM2, and further decrease the main protein and mRNA expression in the JAGGED1/NOTCH1 signaling pathway. DOP suppressed the migration of gastric cancer cells by decreasing the protein expression of N-cadherin and Vimentin and increasing E-cadherin. In addition, CM-DOP promoted the apoptosis of gastric cancer cells by upregulating Caspase-3 and increasing the ratio of Bax/Bcl-2. In vivo, DOP effectively inhibited the growth of tumors and the expression of Ki-67. In summary, these findings demonstrated that DOP converted the polarization of M2 subtype macrophages into M1 subtypes via the STAT6/PPAR-r and JAGGED1/NOTCH1 signaling pathways in order to reduce apoptosis and prevent migration, thus indicating the potential of DOP as an adjuvant tumor therapy in preclinical and clinical trials.

Novel IL4I1 Inhibitors for Treating Cancer

Provided herein are novel IL4I1 inhibitors, their pharmaceutical compositions, the use of such compounds in treating cancer, and processes for preparing such compounds.