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An S, Li W, Do H, Kwon HY, Kim B, Kim K, Kim Y, Cho MY. The Expression Patterns of Immune Checkpoint Molecules in Colorectal Cancer: An Analysis Based on Microsatellite Status. Biomedicines 2024; 12:752. [PMID: 38672108 PMCID: PMC11048643 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines12040752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/20/2024] [Revised: 03/25/2024] [Accepted: 03/27/2024] [Indexed: 04/28/2024] Open
Abstract
Recently, immunotherapy has arisen as a novel treatment approach for patients with colorectal cancer (CRC), but the effectiveness of immunotherapy varies in these patients. We hypothesized that immune checkpoint molecules (ICMs), which are the targets of immunotherapy, are often exhibited concomitantly. Our objective was to investigate the patterns of ICM expression in patients with CRC and the differences in ICM expression based on microsatellite instability status. The immunohistochemical expression of programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1), programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1), T cell immunoglobulin and mucin-domain containing-3 (TIM-3), and lymphocyte-activation gene 3 (LAG-3) in the tumor center and periphery was assessed in patients with non-metastatic colorectal cancer. We enrolled 83 patients with CRC: a total of 40 microsatellite-stable (MSS) and 43 microsatellite-instability-high (MSI-H) cancer patients. PD-L1 was more frequently expressed in the tumor center in the MSI-H patients with than that in the MSS patients (18 [41.9%] vs. 3 [7.5%], respectively; p < 0.001), and the same trend was observed for TIM-3 expression (30 [69.8%] vs. 19 [47.5%], respectively; p = 0.047). The concomitant expression of two or more ICMs was more frequently observed than no expression or the expression of a single molecule in both the MSS and MSI-H groups; a total of 34 (79.7%) patients with MSI-H cancer and 23 (57.5%) with MSS cancer showed ICM expression at the tumor center, whereas 34 (79.7%) patients with MSI-H cancer and 22 (55%) with MSS cancer showed expression at the tumor periphery. Patients with the genetic characteristics of MSI-H cancer showed higher expression levels of ICMs than those in patients with MSS cancer, and predominantly, two or more ICMs were concurrently expressed. Our findings highlight the potential efficacy of the dual-blockade approach in immunotherapy, particularly in patients with MSI-H CRC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sanghyun An
- Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea; (S.A.); (H.Y.K.); (K.K.)
| | - Wanlu Li
- Department of Pathology, Jiaxing University College of Medicine, Jiaxing 314001, China
| | - Hyejin Do
- Department of Anesthesiology, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea;
| | - Hye Youn Kwon
- Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea; (S.A.); (H.Y.K.); (K.K.)
- Wonju Surgical Research Collaboration, Wonju 26465, Republic of Korea
| | - Bora Kim
- Department of Internal Medicine, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea;
| | - Kwangmin Kim
- Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea; (S.A.); (H.Y.K.); (K.K.)
- Wonju Surgical Research Collaboration, Wonju 26465, Republic of Korea
- Trauma Center, Wonju Severance Christian Hospital, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea
| | - Youngwan Kim
- Department of Surgery, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea; (S.A.); (H.Y.K.); (K.K.)
- Wonju Surgical Research Collaboration, Wonju 26465, Republic of Korea
| | - Mee-Yon Cho
- Department of Pathology, Yonsei University Wonju College of Medicine, Wonju 26426, Republic of Korea
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Baş Y, Yılmaz B, Güney G, Şahin HHK, Özçerezci T, Rençber E, Koçak Ö, Helvacı K, Şahiner İT. Clinicopathological and prognostic significance of PD-L1 expression in colon adenocarcinoma tumor budding. Ann Diagn Pathol 2023; 67:152202. [PMID: 37689039 DOI: 10.1016/j.anndiagpath.2023.152202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2023] [Revised: 08/13/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/11/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE In this study, we investigated the relationship between programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) and programmed cell death protein 1 (PD-1) expression in colon adenocarcinoma tumor budding. METHODS This study included 122 patients with colon adenocarcinomas. The largest sample of formaldehyde-fixed paraffin-embedded tumor tissues was selected for analysis. Expression of membranous PD-L1 (clone 22C3) and the Combined Positive Score (CPS) in tumor tissues was calculated and graded according to the percentages of peritumoral and intratumoral tumor cells (0 %, 1 %, 1-5 %, >5 %). The effects of these factors on the prognosis were analyzed. RESULTS Tumor budding was associated with adverse clinicopathological features and poor overall survival. PD-L1 (CPS%) peritumoral tumor budding (1 %/<1 %) was statistically significant in the univariate model (p = 0.004). Age, organ metastases (liver, lung, liver, lung, and peritoneum), and metastases were statistically significant in the multivariate model (p = 0.001, p = 0.004, p = 0.001, p = 0.002, p = 0.004, and p = 0.032, respectively). PD-L1 positive staining was mostly observed around the tumor and during tumor budding. PD-L1 peritumoral tumor budding rates and patients' survival rates differed significantly (log-rank = 12.07, p = 0.007). CONCLUSION We found that patients with PD-L1 (CPS%) > 1 % in tumor budding had a shortened life expectancy and demonstrated the importance of including tumor budding areas in the samples used for biomarker evaluation. We previously reported that PD-L1 expression in tumor budding is associated with more aggressive cancer biology and poor survival, although overall survival is of limited statistical significance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yılmaz Baş
- Department of Pathology, Hitit University Faculty of Medicine, Çorum, Turkey.
| | - Bayram Yılmaz
- Department of Pathology, Hitit University Erol Olçok Education and Research Hospital, Çorum, Turkey
| | - Güven Güney
- Department of Pathology, Hitit University Faculty of Medicine, Çorum, Turkey
| | | | - Tuğba Özçerezci
- Department of Pathology, Hitit University Erol Olçok Education and Research Hospital, Çorum, Turkey
| | - Emin Rençber
- Department of Public Health, Head of Community Health, Provincial Health Directorate, Çorum, Turkey
| | - Özgür Koçak
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Hitit University Faculty of Medicine, Çorum, Turkey
| | - Kaan Helvacı
- Department of Oncology, Hitit University Faculty of Medicine, Çorum, Turkey
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Novel Molecular classification of colorectal cancer and correlation with survival. Saudi J Biol Sci 2022; 29:3929-3936. [PMID: 35844384 PMCID: PMC9280238 DOI: 10.1016/j.sjbs.2022.03.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Revised: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Introduction Colorectal cancer (CRC) is one of the most common cancers worldwide. This study was designed to evaluate biological patterns, explore molecular classification and correlate with survival outcome in treatment naïve CRC patients. Methods Over 11 years consecutive series of 435 CRC patients were operated on as primary surgical therapy. A total of 201 CRC patients were included, whose complete set of clinical information was available, and their good quality tumour blocks were retrieved. Immunohistochemistry was used for tumour analysis, and partitional clustering was performed using R software for cluster analysis. Results The median age was 43 (range 10–85) years; adenocarcinoma was the most commonly seen histological type. The great majority had positive CK20, CEA, E-Cadherin, Ki67, CDX2, and p53 expression. There were four distinct molecular classes found, whereas Ki67, CDX2, and p53 play the main role in partitioning. Younger age negatively impacted survival; overall and disease-specific survival was 26 months only with 50 months’ longest survival. Conclusion Colorectal cancer is a biologically heterogeneous disease with at least four distinct molecular patterns, where cell proliferation and gene repair mechanisms appear to play the key role.
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Möller K, Blessin NC, Höflmayer D, Büscheck F, Luebke AM, Kluth M, Hube-Magg C, Zalewski K, Hinsch A, Neipp M, Mofid H, Lárusson H, Daniels T, Isbert C, Coerper S, Ditterich D, Rupprecht H, Goetz A, Bernreuther C, Sauter G, Uhlig R, Wilczak W, Simon R, Steurer S, Minner S, Burandt E, Krech T, Perez D, Izbicki JR, Clauditz TS, Marx AH. High density of cytotoxic T-lymphocytes is linked to tumoral PD-L1 expression regardless of the mismatch repair status in colorectal cancer. Acta Oncol 2021; 60:1210-1217. [PMID: 34092167 DOI: 10.1080/0284186x.2021.1933585] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Immune checkpoint-inhibitors targeting the PD-1/PD-L1 system are FDA approved in microsatellite instable (MSI) or mismatch repair deficient (dMMR) colorectal cancer (CRC). PD-L1 expression is tightly linked to features connected to immune checkpoint inhibitor response, but studies on large subsets of cancers analyzing the correlation between different status of MSI/dMMR, tumor infiltrating lymphocytes and PD-L1 expression are still lacking. METHODS More than 1800 CRC were analyzed for PD-L1 by immunohistochemistry in a tissue microarray format. Data were compared to MMR, the number of intratumoral CD8+ cytotoxic T-cells, and adverse clinico-pathological parameters. Different cutoff levels for defining PD-L1 positivity in tumor cells (1%, 5%, 10%, and 50%) yielded comparable results. RESULTS At a cutoff level of 5%, PD-L1 positivity was seen in 5.1% of tumors. PD-L1 was more often positive in dMMR (18.6%) than in MMR proficient (pMMR) cancers (4.1%; p < 0.0001). The number of intratumoral CD8+ lymphocytes was strikingly higher in PD-L1 positive (939.5 ± 118.2) than in PD-L1 negative cancers (310.5 ± 24.8). A higher number of intratumoral CD8+ lymphocytes was found in dMMR CRC (PD-L1 positive: 1999.7 ± 322.0; PD-L1 negative: 398.6 ± 128.0; p < 0.0001) compared to pMMR CRC (PD-L1 positive: 793.2 ± 124.8; PD-L1 negative: 297.2 ± 24.2; p < 0.0001). In dMMR and pMMR CRC, PD-L1 expression in tumor cells was unrelated to tumor stage, lymph node status or lymphatic/venous invasion. PD-L1 positivity in tumor associated immune cells was seen in 47.5% of cases and was significantly linked to high numbers of tumor infiltrating CD8+, low tumor stage, and absence of lymph node metastasis and lymphatic/venous invasion (p < 0.0001 each). CONCLUSION The data support the previously suggested fact that PD-L1 expression in tumor cells is driven by extensive cytotoxic T-cell infiltration in highly immunogenic dMMR and pMMR CRC. Frequent and intense PD-L1 expression in tumor cells of dMMR CRC may contribute to the high response rates of dMMR CRC to immune checkpoint-inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Möller
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Niclas C. Blessin
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Doris Höflmayer
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Franziska Büscheck
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Andreas M. Luebke
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Martina Kluth
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Claudia Hube-Magg
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Katarzyna Zalewski
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Andrea Hinsch
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Michael Neipp
- General, Vascular and Visceral Surgery Clinic, Itzehoe Medical Center, Itzehoe, Germany
| | - Hamid Mofid
- General, Visceral Thoracic and Vascular Surgery Clinic, Regio Clinic Pinneberg, Pinneberg, Germany
| | - Hannes Lárusson
- General, Visceral Thoracic and Vascular Surgery Clinic, Regio Clinic Pinneberg, Pinneberg, Germany
| | - Thies Daniels
- General, Visceral and Tumor Surgery Clinic, Albertinen Hospital, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Christoph Isbert
- Department of General, Gastrointestinal and Colorectal Surgery, Amalie Sieveking Hospital, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Stephan Coerper
- Department of Surgery, General Hospital Martha-Maria Hospital Nuernberg, Nuernberg, Germany
| | - Daniel Ditterich
- Departement of Surgery, General Hospital Neustadt/Aisch, Neustadt an der Aisch, Germany
| | - Holger Rupprecht
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Academic Hospital Neumarkt, Neumarkt/Oberpfalz, Germany
| | - Albert Goetz
- Department of Surgery, General Hospital Roth, Roth, Germany
| | - Christian Bernreuther
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Guido Sauter
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ria Uhlig
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Waldemar Wilczak
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Ronald Simon
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Stefan Steurer
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Sarah Minner
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Eike Burandt
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Till Krech
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Institute of Pathology, Clinical Center Osnabrueck, Osnabrueck, Germany
| | - Daniel Perez
- General, Visceral and Thoracic Surgery Department and Clinic, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Jakob R. Izbicki
- General, Visceral and Thoracic Surgery Department and Clinic, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Till S. Clauditz
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Andreas H. Marx
- Institute of Pathology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
- Department of Pathology, Academic Hospital Fuerth, Fuerth, Germany
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Xi X, Hu R, Wang Q, Xu K, Yang H, Cui Z, Zhang Y, Teng M, Xia L, Chen J, Liu Y. Interleukin-22 promotes PD-L1 expression via STAT3 in colon cancer cells. Oncol Lett 2021; 22:716. [PMID: 34429756 DOI: 10.3892/ol.2021.12977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Accepted: 04/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Blocking the expression of programmed cell death ligand 1 (PD-L1) is a promising approach for the treatment of colon cancer. The binding of PD-L1 to its receptor programmed cell death 1 (PD-1) on immune cells leads to the apoptosis of activated T cells and causes immune escape. However, there is a limited number of patients with colon cancer that can benefit from the inhibition of PD-L1, and the regulation of PD-L1 expression is poorly understood in colon cancer. The present study demonstrated that interleukin-22 (IL-22) and PD-L1 were upregulated in colon cancer tissues and there was a positive correlation between IL-22 expression and PD-L1 expression. In the present study, exogenous IL-22 was found to upregulate PD-L1 expression via the signal transducer and activator of transcription 3 signaling pathway in human colon cancer cells (DLD-1 and primary colon cancer cells). The results of the present study revealed a novel regulatory mechanism of PD-L1 expression in colon cancer, which provides a theoretical basis for decreasing the immune tolerance of colon cancer via IL-22 overexpression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiangpeng Xi
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Rui Hu
- Center for Reproductive Medicine, Central Hospital Affiliated to Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250013, P.R. China
| | - Qi Wang
- Department of Pharmacy, The Fifth People's Hospital of Jinan, Jinan, Shandong 250022, P.R. China
| | - Kang Xu
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Hui Yang
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Zhonghui Cui
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Yongbo Zhang
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Mujian Teng
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Lijian Xia
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Jingbo Chen
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
| | - Yulin Liu
- Department of General Surgery, The First Affiliated Hospital of Shandong First Medical University, Jinan, Shandong 250014, P.R. China
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Gao H, Liang J, Duan J, Chen L, Li H, Zhen T, Zhang F, Dong Y, Shi H, Han A. A Prognosis Marker SLC2A3 Correlates With EMT and Immune Signature in Colorectal Cancer. Front Oncol 2021; 11:638099. [PMID: 34211835 PMCID: PMC8240412 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2021.638099] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2020] [Accepted: 05/27/2021] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
Abstract
SLC2A3 is a membrane transporter that belongs to the solute carrier family, whose function includes transmembrane transport and glucose transmembrane transport activity. To clarify the expression and role of SLC2A3 in colorectal cancer (CRC), we analyzed the TCGA and GEO databases and found that SLC2A3 mRNA levels were significantly higher in CRC tissues than that in adjacent non-tumor tissues. Furthermore, high expression of SLC2A3 predicted poor overall survival and disease free survival for CRC patients. For validation, we collected 174 CRC samples and found that SLC2A3 expression was higher in CRC tissues than that in adjacent non-tumor colorectal mucosa tissues by immunohistochemistry staining. Further study showed that high expression of SLC2A3 was enriched in epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) classical pathway, interferon-γ pathway by GSEA analysis enrichment, indicating that SLC2A3 may play a key role in the progression of CRC through EMT and immune response, which also has been validated by the global gene expression profiling of human CRC cell lines. The expression of SLC2A3 was positively correlated with CD4 and CD8+T cells by using TIMER and EPIC algorithm, respectively. SLC2A3 knockdown suppressed migration and inhibited the expression of Vimentin and MMP9 in CRC cell line SW480 and RKO. Meanwhile, PD-L1 expression was also significantly attenuated in SW480 and RKO cells transfected with SLC2A3 siRNA. The result suggests that SLC2A3 may be involved in the immune response of CRC by regulating PD-L1 immune checkpoint. In our series, SLC2A3 and PD-L1 positive expression was 74% (128/174) and 22% (39/174) of CRC, respectively. SLC2A3 expression was significantly associated with perineural invasion in CRC patients. In conclusion, SLC2A3 may play an important role in progression of CRC by regulating EMT and PD-L1 mediated immune responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Huabin Gao
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jiangtao Liang
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jing Duan
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lin Chen
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Hui Li
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Tiantian Zhen
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Fenfen Zhang
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yu Dong
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Huijuan Shi
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Anjia Han
- Department of Pathology, The First Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, China
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