Pancreatic cancer growth promoted by bone marrow mesenchymal stromal cell-derived IL-6 is reversed predominantly by IL-6 blockade

Role of Interleukins in Pancreatic Cancer: A Literature Review

PURPOSE

This review article summarizes the pathophysiological aspects of interleukins (ILs) including IL-1, IL-2, IL-3, IL-4, IL-5, IL-6, IL-7, IL-8, IL-9, and IL-10 in pancreatic cancer (PC).

METHODS

Science Direct, PubMed, and Google Scholar were used for the literature review. The search was conducted until August 12, 2024, and particular keywords such as "Pancreatic Cancer," "Interleukins," "Pathophysiological Aspects," "Immunosuppression," "Invasiveness," and "Metastasis" were used. Focusing on interleukins related to pancreatic cancer, 61 original studies were included: 32 studies for human patients, 16 studies for animal models, and 13 studies for both animal models and human patients. All types of PC were considered. The timeframe of 1991 to 2024 was chosen for clinical studies.

RESULTS

In epithelial pancreatic tumors, IL-1 is a major inflammation factor. Serum concentrations of soluble interleukin-2-receptor were considerably greater in patients with PC and chronic pancreatitis than in healthy individuals. In comparison to controls, pancreatic cancer patients had considerably greater levels of macrophage colony-stimulating factor and significantly lower levels of stem cell factor and IL-3. The tissues and cells of pancreatic cancer have higher concentrations of IL-4 receptors. IL-5 has a role in the accumulation of pancreatic fibrosis. For individuals with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC), a high serum level of IL-6 may be a separate risk factor for the development of widespread liver metastases. PDAC patients' peripheral blood mononuclear cells exhibit a substantial upregulation of IL-7 receptor. The role of IL-8 in the growth and spread of PC in humans. The miR-200a/β-catenin axis may be the mechanism by which IL-9 stimulates the proliferation and metastasis of PC cells. Blocking IL-10 in the local microenvironment appears to result in a significant reversal of tumor-induced immunosuppression.

CONCLUSION

The article concludes that interleukins 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 10 played significant roles in the pathogenesis of PC.

The cross-talk between the macro and micro-environment in precursor lesions of pancreatic cancer leads to new and promising circulating biomarkers

Pancreatic cancer (PC) is a clinically challenging tumor to combat due to its advanced stage at diagnosis as well as its resistance to currently available therapies. The absence of early symptoms and known detectable biomarkers renders this disease incredibly difficult to detect/manage. Recent advances in the understanding of PC biology have highlighted the importance of cancer-immune cell interactions, not only in the tumor micro-environment but also in distant systemic sites, like the bone marrow, spleen and circulating immune cells, the so-called macro-environment. The response of the macro-environment is emerging as a determining factor in tumor development by contributing to the formation of an increasingly immunogenic micro-environment promoting tumor homeostasis and progression. We will summarize the key events associated with the feedback loop between the tumor immune micro-environment (TIME) and the tumor immune macroenvironment (TIMaE) in pancreatic precancerous lesions along with how it regulates disease development and progression. In addition, liquid biopsy biomarkers capable of diagnosing PC at an early stage of onset will also be discussed. A clearer understanding of the early crosstalk between micro-environment and macro-environment could contribute to identifying new molecular therapeutic targets and biomarkers, consequently improving early PC diagnosis and treatment.

Small protein blockers of human IL-6 receptor alpha inhibit proliferation and migration of cancer cells

BACKGROUND

Interleukin-6 (IL-6) is a multifunctional cytokine that controls the immune response, and its role has been described in the development of autoimmune diseases. Signaling via its cognate IL-6 receptor (IL-6R) complex is critical in tumor progression and, therefore, IL-6R represents an important therapeutic target.

METHODS

An albumin-binding domain-derived highly complex combinatorial library was used to select IL-6R alpha (IL-6Rα)-targeted small protein binders using ribosome display. Large-scale screening of bacterial lysates of individual clones was performed using ELISA, and their IL-6Rα blocking potential was verified by competition ELISA. The binding of proteins to cells was monitored by flow cytometry and confocal microscopy on HEK293T-transfected cells, and inhibition of signaling function was examined using HEK-Blue IL-6 reporter cells. Protein binding kinetics to living cells was measured by LigandTracer, cell proliferation and toxicity by iCELLigence and Incucyte, cell migration by the scratch wound healing assay, and prediction of binding poses using molecular modeling by docking.

RESULTS

We demonstrated a collection of protein variants called NEF ligands, selected from an albumin-binding domain scaffold-derived combinatorial library, and showed their binding specificity to human IL-6Rα and antagonistic effect in HEK-Blue IL-6 reporter cells. The three most promising NEF108, NEF163, and NEF172 variants inhibited cell proliferation of malignant melanoma (G361 and A2058) and pancreatic (PaTu and MiaPaCa) cancer cells, and suppressed migration of malignant melanoma (A2058), pancreatic carcinoma (PaTu), and glioblastoma (GAMG) cells in vitro. The NEF binders also recognized maturation-induced IL-6Rα expression and interfered with IL-6-induced differentiation in primary human B cells.

CONCLUSION

We report on the generation of small protein blockers of human IL-6Rα using directed evolution. NEF proteins represent a promising class of non-toxic anti-tumor agents with migrastatic potential.

Umbilical cord mesenchymal stromal cells in serum-free defined medium display an improved safety profile

BACKGROUND

Safety evaluations in preclinical studies are needed to confirm before translating a cell-based product into clinical application. We previously developed a serum-free, xeno-free, and chemically defined media (S&XFM-CD) for the derivation of clinical-grade umbilical cord-derived MSCs (UCMSCs), and demonstrated that intraperitoneal administration of UCMSCs in S&XFM-CD (UCMSCS&XFM-CD) exhibited better therapeutic effects than UCMSCs in serum-containing media (SCM, UCMSCSCM). However, a comprehensive investigation of the safety of intraperitoneal UCMSCS&XFM-CD treatment should be performed before clinical applications.

METHODS

In this study, the toxicity, immunogenicity and biodistribution of intraperitoneally transplanted UCMSCS&XFM-CD were compared with UCMSCSCM in rats via general vital signs, blood routine, blood biochemistry, subsets of T cells, serum cytokines, pathology of vital organs, antibody production and the expression of human-specific gene. The tumorigenicity and tumor-promoting effect of UCMSCS&XFM-CD were compared with UCMSCSCM in nude mice.

RESULTS

We confirmed that intraperitoneally transplanted UCMSCS&XFM-CD or UCMSCSCM did not cause significant changes in body weight, temperature, systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, blood routine, T lymphocyte subsets, and serum cytokines, and had no obvious histopathology change on experimental rats. UCMSCS&XFM-CD did not produce antibodies, while UCMSCSCM had very high chance of antibody production to bovine serum albumin (80%) and apolipoprotein B-100 (60%). Furthermore, intraperitoneally injected UCMSCS&XFM-CD were less likely to be blocked by the lungs and migrated more easily to the kidneys and colon tissue than UCMSCSCM. In addition, UCMSCS&XFM-CD or UCMSCSCM showed no obvious tumorigenic activity. Finally, UCMSCS&XFM-CD extended the time of tumor formation of KM12SM cells, and decreased tumor incidence than that of UCMSCSCM.

CONCLUSIONS

Taken together, our data indicate that UCMSCS&XFM-CD display an improved safety performance and are encouraged to use in future clinical trials.

Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells- a principal element for tumour microenvironment heterogeneity

The heterogeneity of the tumor microenvironment (TME) is a major obstacle in cancer treatment, making most therapeutic interventions palliative rather than curative. Previous studies have suggested that the reason for the low efficacy of immunotherapy and the relapse of the original responders over time may be due to the complex network of mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSCs), a population of multipotent progenitor cells existing in a variety of tissues. Cancer-associated MSCs (CA-MSCs) have already been isolated from various types of tumors and are characterized by their vigorous pro-tumorigenic functions. Although the roles of CA-MSCs from different sources vary widely, their origins are still poorly understood. Current evidence suggests that when local resident or distally recruited MSCs interact with tumor cells and other components in the TME, "naïve" MSCs undergo genetic and functional changes to form CA-MSCs. In this review, we mainly focus on the multiple roles of CA-MSCs derived from different sources, which may help in elucidating the formation and function of the entire TME, as well as discover innovative targets for anti-cancer therapies.

CXCL10 is a prognostic marker for pancreatic adenocarcinoma and tumor microenvironment remodeling

BACKGROUND

The tumor microenvironment (TME) plays a crucial role in the progression of pancreatic adenocarcinoma (PAAD). However, challenges remain regarding the role played by TME associated genes in the prognosis of PAAD.

METHODS

The scores of tumor infiltrating immune cells (TICs), the immune and stroma scores of 182 PAAD patients in the Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database were determined using CIBERSORT and ESTIMATE calculations. The final genes were identified by protein-protein interaction (PPI) networks and univariate Cox regression of differentially expressed genes. Finally, the correlation between gene expression and TCGA and clinical characteristics of patients in local hospital database was discussed. Gene set enrichment analysis (GSEA), the association between CXCL10 expression and TICs components were conducted.

RESULTS

In TCGA database and local hospital data, CXCL10 expression was correlated with the survival rate and TNM classification of patients with PAAD. Immune-related activities were enriched in the CXCL10 high expression group, while metabolic pathways were enriched in the CXCL10 low expression group. The expression of CXCL10 correlated with the proportion of TICs. CXCL10 expression was correlated with the proportion of TICs.

CONCLUSION

CXCL10 is a potential prognostic marker for PAAD and provide additional insights into the treatment of PAAD based on TME transformation. However, more independent experimentation with the CXCL10 is need.

MSCs can be a double-edged sword in tumorigenesis

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) have been used to treat various diseases including Alzheimer's disease and cancer. In particular, the immunomodulatory function of MSCs plays a major role in cancer therapy using stem cells. However, MSCs exert promotive and inhibitory effects on cancer. The immunomodulatory effects of MSCs in the tumor microenvironment (TME) are ambiguous, which is the primary reason for the different outcomes of MSCs therapies for tumors. This review discusses the use of MSCs in cancer immunotherapy and their immunomodulatory mechanisms in cancers.

STAT3 Inhibitors: A Novel Insight for Anticancer Therapy of Pancreatic Cancer

The signal transducer and activator of transcription (STAT) is a family of intracellular cytoplasmic transcription factors involved in many biological functions in mammalian signal transduction. Among them, STAT3 is involved in cell proliferation, differentiation, apoptosis, and inflammatory responses. Despite the advances in the treatment of pancreatic cancer in the past decade, the prognosis for patients with pancreatic cancer remains poor. STAT3 has been shown to play a pro-cancer role in a variety of cancers, and inhibitors of STAT3 are used in pre-clinical and clinical studies. We reviewed the relationship between STAT3 and pancreatic cancer and the latest results on the use of STAT3 inhibitors in pancreatic cancer, with the aim of providing insights and ideas around STAT3 inhibitors for a new generation of chemotherapeutic modalities for pancreatic cancer.