Combined nano cancer immunotherapy based on immune status in a tumor microenvironment

The impact of, and expectations for, lipid nanoparticle technology: From cellular targeting to organelle targeting

The success of mRNA vaccines against COVID-19 has enhanced the potential of lipid nanoparticles (LNPs) as a system for the delivery of mRNA. In this review, we describe our progress using a lipid library to engineer ionizable lipids and promote LNP technology from the viewpoints of safety, controlled biodistribution, and mRNA vaccines. These advancements in LNP technology are applied to cancer immunology, and a potential nano-DDS is constructed to evaluate immune status that is associated with a cancer-immunity cycle that includes the sub-cycles in tumor microenvironments. We also discuss the importance of the delivery of antigens and adjuvants in enhancing the cancer-immunity cycle. Recent progress in NK cell targeting in cancer immunotherapy is also introduced. Finally, the impact of next-generation DDS technology is explained using the MITO-Porter membrane fusion-based delivery system for the organelle targeting of the mitochondria. We introduce a successful example of the MITO-Porter used in a cell therapeutic strategy to treat cardiomyopathy.

Vaccination with a combination of STING agonist-loaded lipid nanoparticles and CpG-ODNs protects against lung metastasis via the induction of CD11bhighCD27low memory-like NK cells

BACKGROUND

Natural killer (NK) cells are effective in attacking tumor cells that escape T cell attack. Memory NK cells are believed to function as potent effector cells in cancer immunotherapy. However, knowledge of their induction, identification, and potential in vivo is limited. Herein, we report on the induction and identification of memory-like NK cells via the action of a combination of a stimulator of interferon genes (STING) agonist loaded into lipid nanoparticles (STING-LNPs) and cytosine-phosphorothioate-guanine oligodeoxynucleotides (CpG-ODNs), and the potential of the inducted memory-like NK cells to prevent melanoma lung metastasis.

METHODS

The antitumor effects of either the STING-LNPs, CpG-ODNs, or the combination therapy were evaluated using a B16-F10 lung metastasis model. The effect of the combined treatment was evaluated by measuring cytokine production. The induction of memory-like NK cells was demonstrated via flow cytometry and confirmed through their preventative effect.

RESULTS

The combination of STING-LNPs and CpG-ODNs tended to enhance the production of interleukin 12 (IL-12) and IL-18, and exerted a therapeutic effect against B16-F10 lung metastasis. The combination therapy increased the population of CD11bhighCD27low NK cells. Although monotherapies failed to show preventative effects, the combination therapy induced a surprisingly strong preventative effect, which indicates that CD11bhighCD27low cells could be a phenotype of memory-like NK cells.

CONCLUSION

As far as could be ascertained, this is the first report of the in vivo induction, identification, and confirmation of a phenotype of the memory-like NK cells through a prophylactic effect via the use of an immunotherapeutic drug. Our findings provide novel insights into the in vivo induction of CD11bhighCD27low memory-like NK cells thus paving the way for the development of efficient immunotherapies.

Advanced Generation Therapeutics: Biomimetic Nanodelivery System for Tumor Immunotherapy

Tumor immunotherapy is a safe and effective strategy for precision medicine. However, immunotherapy for most cancer cases still ends in failure, with the root causes of the immunosuppressive and extraordinary heterogeneity of the solid tumors microenvironment. The emerging biomimetic nanodelivery system provides a promising tactic to improve the immunotherapy effect while reducing the adverse reactions on nontarget cells. Herein, we summarize the relationship between tumor occurrence and tumor immune microenvironment, mechanism of tumor immune escape, immunotherapy classification (including adoptive cellular therapy, cytokines, cancer vaccines, and immune checkpoint inhibitors) and recommend target cells for immunotherapy first, and then emphatically introduce the recent advances and applications of the latest biomimetic nanodelivery systems (e.g., immune cells, erythrocytes, tumor cells, platelets, bacteria) in tumor immunotherapy. Meanwhile, we separately summarize the application of tumor vaccines. Finally, the predictable challenges and perspectives in a forward exploration of biomimetic nanodelivery systems for tumor immunotherapy are also discussed.

Cancer Immunotherapy with Lipid Nanoparticles Loaded with a Stimulator of Interferon Genes Agonist against Renal Tumor Lung Metastasis

Metastatic renal cell carcinoma (RCC) has a poor prognosis, and the major organ of metastasis is the lung. Immunotherapy with immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) is the first-line therapy, but the response rates are low. Thus, the development of a more effective immunotherapy against metastatic RCC would be highly desirable. We previously demonstrated how a stimulator of an interferon gene (STING) agonist-loaded lipid nanoparticles (STING-LNPs) significantly activates natural killer (NK) cells and induces an antitumor effect against cases of melanoma lung metastasis that have shown ICI resistance. In this study, we evaluated the potential of using STING-LNPs in the treatment of lung metastatic RCC (Renca). An intravenous injection of STING-LNPs drastically decreased the amount of Renca tumor colonies. In contrast, monotherapies using ICIs showed no antitumor effect, and even a combination of ICI and STING-LNP therapies failed to enhance the antitumor effects. The main effector cells would be NK cells, and the activation of NK cells by the STING-LNPs may avoid the increased expression of immune checkpoint molecules. These findings provide useful insights into the development of an effective immunotherapy against metastatic RCC.

CD3ζ as a novel predictive biomarker of PD-1 inhibitor resistance in melanoma

Malignant melanoma is the most lethal form of skin cancer, and its incidence rates are increasing in Europe, America, and Oceania countries. Despite immune checkpoint inhibitors, such as PD-1 inhibitors, have been shown to have significant therapeutic effects on malignant melanoma, many patients are unresponsive to these treatments, even emerged resistance. There is an urgent need to discover novel biomarkers that might distinguish resistant patients from responders. In this study, we used a series of bioinformatics analyses and experimental validation. The GSE65041 was used for differential expression analysis. Kaplan-Meier was used to assess the prognostic value. ESTIMATE, ssGSEA, EPIC, TIMER, quanTiseq and MCPcounter for estimation of immune infiltration in the tumor microenvironment. We eventually identified that CD3ζ was significantly down-regulated in IHC PD-L1(-) melanoma patients. Low level of CD3ζ expression possessed a poor prognosis. CD3ζ low expression population is significantly associated with lower immune infiltration. In vivo experiment, CD3ζ expression was significantly down-regulated in mice melanoma after intradermally injected with B16-F10R cells. Compared to their wildtype counterparts, melanoma resistant mice treated with nivolumab showed significant reductions in tumor volume and weight when adding CD3ζ. In vitro experiment, the addition of CD3ζ increased nivolumab effection on inhibiting B16-F10R cell viability. Our findings indicated that CD3ζ could be a novel predictive biomarker of PD-1 inhibitor resistance in melanoma.

Immune-Modulating Lipid Nanomaterials for the Delivery of Biopharmaceuticals

In recent years, with the approval of preventative vaccines for pandemics, lipid nanoparticles have become a prominent RNA delivery vehicle. The lack of long-lasting effects of non-viral vectors is an advantage for infectious disease vaccines. With the introduction of microfluidic processes that facilitate the encapsulation of nucleic acid cargo, lipid nanoparticles are being studied as delivery vehicles for various RNA-based biopharmaceuticals. In particular, using microfluidic chip-based fabrication processes, nucleic acids such as RNA and proteins can be effectively incorporated into lipid nanoparticles and utilized as delivery vehicles for various biopharmaceuticals. Due to the successful development of mRNA therapies, lipid nanoparticles have emerged as a promising approach for the delivery of biopharmaceuticals. Biopharmaceuticals of various types (DNA, mRNA, short RNA, proteins) possess expression mechanisms that are suitable for manufacturing personalized cancer vaccines, while also requiring formulation with lipid nanoparticles. In this review, we describe the basic design of lipid nanoparticles, the types of biopharmaceuticals used as carriers, and the microfluidic processes involved. We then present research cases focusing on lipid-nanoparticle-based immune modulation and discuss the current status of commercially available lipid nanoparticles, as well as future prospects for the development of lipid nanoparticles for immune regulation purposes.

Redox Imbalance Triggered Intratumoral Cascade Reaction for Tumor "turn on" Imaging and Synergistic Therapy

The redox homeostasis in tumors enhances their antioxidant defense ability, limiting reactive oxygen species mediated tumor therapy efficacy. The development of strategies for specific and continuous disruption of the redox homeostasis in tumor cells facilitates the improvement of the cancer therapeutic effect by promoting the apoptosis of tumor cells. Herein, a responsively biodegradable targeting multifunctional integrated nanosphere (HDMn-QDs/PEG-FA) is designed to enhance the anti-tumor efficacy by triggering intratumoral cascade reactions to effectively disrupt intracellular redox homeostasis. Once HDMn-QDs/PEG-FA enters tumor cells, manganese dioxide (MnO₂ ) shell on the surface of nanosphere consumes glutathione (GSH) to produce Mn²⁺ , enabling enhanced chemodynamic therapy (CDT) via a Fenton-like reaction and T₁ -weighted magnetic resonance imaging. Meanwhile, the degradation of MnO₂ can also cause the fluorescence recovery of quantum dots conjugated on the surface of the shell, realizing "turn-on" fluorescence imaging. In addition, the doxorubicin is released because of the cleavage of the embedded SS bond in the hybrid core framework by GSH. A superior synergistic therapeutic efficiency combined CDT and chemotherapy is shown by HDMn-QDs/PEG-FA in vivo. The tumor-inhibition rate reaches to 94.8% and does not cause normal tissue damage due to the good targeting and tumor microenvironment-specific response.

Delivering mRNA to a human NK cell line, NK-92 cells, by lipid nanoparticles

In cancer immunotherapy, therapeutic methods targeting NK are highly expected. NK cell-based therapy using NK-92, a human NK cell line, has been clinically evaluated. Delivering mRNA into NK-92 cells is a potent strategy for enhancing its functions. However, the use of lipid nanoparticles (LNP) for this purpose has not yet been evaluated. We previously developed a LNP that was composed of CL1H6 (CL1H6-LNP) for the efficient delivery of siRNA to NK-92 cells, and the use of this material for delivering mRNA to NK-92 cells is reported in this study. Compared with a DLin-MC3-DMA based LNP, used as a benchmark, the CL1H6-LNP caused a high mRNA expression intensity and a cell transfection efficiency of 100%. The efficient mRNA delivery by this CL1H6-LNP is attributed to the high affinity for NK-92 cells and the intense, rapid fusion with the endosomal membrane. It therefore appears that the CL1H6-LNP could be a useful non-viral vector for modifying the NK-92 functions by mRNA. Our findings also provide some insights into the design and development of LNPs for delivering mRNA to NK-92 and NK cells.

Nanotechnology for next-generation cancer immunotherapy: State of the art and future perspectives

Over the past decade, immunotherapy aiming to activate an effective antitumor immune response has ushered in a new era of cancer treatment. However, the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy is limited by low response rates and high systemic toxicity. Nanotechnology is an encouraging platform for the development of next-generation cancer immunotherapy to effectively treat advanced cancer. Nanotechnology-enabled immunotherapy has remarkable advantages, ranging from the increased bioavailability and stability of immunotherapeutic agents to the enhanced activation of immune cells and favorable safety profiles. Nanotechnology-enabled immunotherapy can target solid tumors through reprogramming or stimulating immune cells (i.e., nanovaccines); modulating the immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment; or targeting tumor cells and altering their responses to immune cells to generate effective antitumor immunity. In this Oration, I introduce the advanced strategies currently being pursued by our laboratory and other groups to improve the therapeutic efficacy of cancer immunotherapy and discuss the potential challenges and future directions.

Emerging Trends in Nano-Driven Immunotherapy for Treatment of Cancer

Despite advancements in the development of anticancer medications and therapies, cancer still has the greatest fatality rate due to a dismal prognosis. Traditional cancer therapies include chemotherapy, radiotherapy, and targeted therapy. The conventional treatments have a number of shortcomings, such as a lack of selectivity, non-specific cytotoxicity, suboptimal drug delivery to tumour locations, and multi-drug resistance, which results in a less potent/ineffective therapeutic outcome. Cancer immunotherapy is an emerging and promising strategy to elicit a pronounced immune response against cancer. Immunotherapy stimulates the immune system with cancer-specific antigens or immune checkpoint inhibitors to overcome the immune suppressive tumour microenvironment and kill the cancer cells. However, delivery of the antigen or immune checkpoint inhibitors and activation of the immune response need to circumvent the issues pertaining to short lifetimes and effect times, as well as adverse effects associated with off-targeting, suboptimal, or hyperactivation of the immune system. Additional challenges posed by the tumour suppressive microenvironment are less tumour immunogenicity and the inhibition of effector T cells. The evolution of nanotechnology in recent years has paved the way for improving treatment efficacy by facilitating site-specific and sustained delivery of the therapeutic moiety to elicit a robust immune response. The amenability of nanoparticles towards surface functionalization and tuneable physicochemical properties, size, shape, and surfaces charge have been successfully harnessed for immunotherapy, as well as combination therapy, against cancer. In this review, we have summarized the recent advancements made in choosing different nanomaterial combinations and their modifications made to enable their interaction with different molecular and cellular targets for efficient immunotherapy. This review also highlights recent trends in immunotherapy strategies to be used independently, as well as in combination, for the destruction of cancer cells, as well as prevent metastasis and recurrence.

Recent Developments in Glioblastoma Therapy: Oncolytic Viruses and Emerging Future Strategies

Glioblastoma is the most aggressive form of malignant brain tumor. Standard treatment protocols and traditional immunotherapy are poorly effective as they do not significantly increase the long-term survival of glioblastoma patients. Oncolytic viruses (OVs) may be an effective alternative approach. Combining OVs with some modern treatment options may also provide significant benefits for glioblastoma patients. Here we review virotherapy for glioblastomas and describe several OVs and their combination with other therapies. The personalized use of OVs and their combination with other treatment options would become a significant area of research aiming to develop the most effective treatment regimens for glioblastomas.

Nanomedicines targeting activation of STING to reshape tumor immune microenvironment and enhance immunotherapeutic efficacy

Immunotherapy has greatly enhanced the effectiveness of cancer treatments, but the efficacy of many current immunotherapies is still limited by the tumor-suppressive immune microenvironment. Multiple studies have shown that activating the stimulation of IFN genes (STING) pathway and inducing innate immunity can significantly impact the tumor immune microenvironment and improve antitumor therapy. While natural or synthetic STING agonists have been identified or developed for preclinical and clinical use, small molecule agonists have limited utility due to degradation and lack of targeting. As such, the delivery and release of STING agonists into tumor tissue is a major challenge that must be addressed in order to further advance the use of STING agonists. To address this challenge, various nanomedicines have been developed. In this paper, we concisely review the antitumor immunotherapeutic mechanisms of STING agonists, highlighting the latest developments in STING agonists and the current progress of nanomedicines for activating STING. We classify the different nanomedicines according to the STING agonists they utilize in order to facilitate understanding of recent advances in this field. Finally, we also discuss the prospects and challenges of this field.

Immunology Meets Bioengineering: Improving the Effectiveness of Glioblastoma Immunotherapy

Glioblastoma (GBM) therapy has seen little change over the past two decades. Surgical excision followed by radiation and chemotherapy is the current gold standard treatment. Immunotherapy techniques have recently transformed many cancer treatments, and GBM is now at the forefront of immunotherapy research. GBM immunotherapy prospects are reviewed here, with an emphasis on immune checkpoint inhibitors and oncolytic viruses. Various forms of nanomaterials to enhance immunotherapy effectiveness are also discussed. For GBM treatment and immunotherapy, we outline the specific properties of nanomaterials. In addition, we provide a short overview of several 3D (bio)printing techniques and their applications in stimulating the GBM microenvironment. Lastly, the susceptibility of GBM cancer cells to the various immunotherapy methods will be addressed.

Interval- and cycle-dependent combined effect of STING agonist loaded lipid nanoparticles and a PD-1 antibody

Programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) blockade combination to other drugs have attracted the interest of scientists for treating tumors resistant to PD-1 blockade. In this study, the impact of the interval, order of administration, and number of cycles of immunotherapeutic combination of stimulator of interferon genes (STING) pathway agonist loaded lipid nanoparticle (STING-LNP) and PD-1 antibody for inducing the optimal combined antitumor activity against a melanoma lung metastasis is reported. One cycle had no effect, but two and three cycles resulted in a combinedantitumor effect. The interval between the administration was found to influence the induction of the combined effect. The second and third doses increased the gene expression of the NK cell activation marker, interferon γ (IFN-γ), PD-1 and a ligand of PD-1 (PD-L1), whereas the first dose failed. NK cells in the lung showed an increase in the expression of the activation markers and PD-1 after the second dose. The combined antitumor effect of this combination therapy against melanoma lung metastasis model could be dependent on the interval as well as the number of doses of STING-LNP.These findings suggest the importance of the protocol setting when combining a nano system loaded with an immune adjuvant and PD-1 antibody.