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Saavedra-Avila NA, Pigni NB, Caldwell DR, Chena-Becerra F, Intano J, Ng TW, Chennamadhavuni D, Porcelli SA, Gascón JA, Howell AR. A Humanized Mouse Model Coupled with Computational Analysis Identifies Potent Glycolipid Agonist of Invariant NKT Cells. ACS Chem Biol 2024; 19:926-937. [PMID: 38477945 PMCID: PMC11075374 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.3c00736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/14/2024]
Abstract
Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells play an important role in many innate and adaptive immune responses, with potential applications in cancer immunotherapy. The glycolipid KRN7000, an α-galactosylceramide, potently activates iNKT cells but has shown limited anticancer effects in human clinical trials conducted so far. In spite of almost three decades of structure-activity relationship studies, no alternative glycolipid has yet emerged as a superior clinical candidate. One reason for the slow progress in this area is that standard mouse models do not accurately reflect the specific ligand recognition by human iNKT cells and their requirements for activation. Here we evaluated a series of KRN7000 analogues using a recently developed humanized mouse model that expresses a human αTCR chain sequence and human CD1d. In this process, a more stimulatory, previously reported but largely overlooked glycolipid was identified, and its activity was probed and rationalized via molecular simulations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noemi A. Saavedra-Avila
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY USA 10461
| | - Natalia B. Pigni
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs CT USA 06269
- Instituto de Ciencia y Tecnología de Alimentos Córdoba (ICYTAC CONICET-UNC), Ciudad Universitaria, Córdoba X5000HUA, Argentina
| | | | - Florencia Chena-Becerra
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY USA 10461
| | - Jose Intano
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs CT USA 06269
| | - Tony W. Ng
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY USA 10461
| | | | - Steven A. Porcelli
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY USA 10461
| | - José A. Gascón
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs CT USA 06269
| | - Amy R. Howell
- Department of Chemistry, University of Connecticut, Storrs CT USA 06269
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2
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Shivatare SS, Shivatare VS, Wong CH. Glycoconjugates: Synthesis, Functional Studies, and Therapeutic Developments. Chem Rev 2022; 122:15603-15671. [PMID: 36174107 PMCID: PMC9674437 DOI: 10.1021/acs.chemrev.1c01032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Glycoconjugates are major constituents of mammalian cells that are formed via covalent conjugation of carbohydrates to other biomolecules like proteins and lipids and often expressed on the cell surfaces. Among the three major classes of glycoconjugates, proteoglycans and glycoproteins contain glycans linked to the protein backbone via amino acid residues such as Asn for N-linked glycans and Ser/Thr for O-linked glycans. In glycolipids, glycans are linked to a lipid component such as glycerol, polyisoprenyl pyrophosphate, fatty acid ester, or sphingolipid. Recently, glycoconjugates have become better structurally defined and biosynthetically understood, especially those associated with human diseases, and are accessible to new drug, diagnostic, and therapeutic developments. This review describes the status and new advances in the biological study and therapeutic applications of natural and synthetic glycoconjugates, including proteoglycans, glycoproteins, and glycolipids. The scope, limitations, and novel methodologies in the synthesis and clinical development of glycoconjugates including vaccines, glyco-remodeled antibodies, glycan-based adjuvants, glycan-specific receptor-mediated drug delivery platforms, etc., and their future prospectus are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sachin S Shivatare
- Department of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, United States
| | - Vidya S Shivatare
- Department of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, United States
| | - Chi-Huey Wong
- Department of Chemistry, The Scripps Research Institute, 10550 North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037, United States
- Genomics Research Center, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
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3
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Romanò C, Clausen MH. Chemical Biology of αGalCer: a Chemist’s Toolbox for the Stimulation of Invariant Natural Killer T (iNKT) Cells. European J Org Chem 2022. [DOI: 10.1002/ejoc.202200246] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Cecilia Romanò
- Technical University of Denmark: Danmarks Tekniske Universitet Department of Chemisty Kemitorvet 207 2800 Kgs. Lyngby DENMARK
| | - Mads Hartvig Clausen
- Technical University of Denmark Department of Chemistry Kemitorvet, Building 201 2800 Kgs. Lyngby DENMARK
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4
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Saavedra-Avila NA, Keshipeddy S, Guberman-Pfeffer MJ, Pérez-Gallegos A, Saini NK, Schäfer C, Carreño LJ, Gascón JA, Porcelli SA, Howell AR. Amide-Linked C4″-Saccharide Modification of KRN7000 Provides Potent Stimulation of Human Invariant NKT Cells and Anti-Tumor Immunity in a Humanized Mouse Model. ACS Chem Biol 2020; 15:3176-3186. [PMID: 33296161 DOI: 10.1021/acschembio.0c00707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Activation of invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells by α-galactosylceramides (α-GalCers) stimulates strong immune responses and potent anti-tumor immunity. Numerous modifications of the glycolipid structure have been assessed to derive activating ligands for these T cells with altered and potentially advantageous properties in the induction of immune responses. Here, we synthesized variants of the prototypical α-GalCer, KRN7000, with amide-linked phenyl alkane substitutions on the C4″-position of the galactose ring. We show that these variants have weak iNKT cell stimulating activity in mouse models but substantially greater activity for human iNKT cells. The most active of the C4″-amides in our study showed strong anti-tumor effects in a partially humanized mouse model for iNKT cell responses. In silico analysis suggested that the tether length and degree of flexibility of the amide substituent affected the recognition by iNKT cell antigen receptors of the C4″-amide substituted glycolipids in complex with their antigen presenting molecule CD1d. Our findings establish the use of stable C4″-amide linked additions to the sugar moiety for further exploration of the immunological effects of structural modifications of iNKT cell activating glycolipids and highlight the critical need for more accurate animal models to assess these compounds for immunotherapeutic potential in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Santosh Keshipeddy
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269-3060, United States
| | | | | | | | - Carolina Schäfer
- Millennium Institute on Immunology and Immunotherapy, Programa de Inmunología, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8380453, Chile
| | - Leandro J. Carreño
- Millennium Institute on Immunology and Immunotherapy, Programa de Inmunología, Instituto de Ciencias Biomédicas, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Chile, Santiago 8380453, Chile
| | - José A Gascón
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269-3060, United States
| | | | - Amy R. Howell
- Department of Chemistry, The University of Connecticut, Storrs, Connecticut 06269-3060, United States
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5
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Chimeric hemagglutinin vaccine elicits broadly protective CD4 and CD8 T cell responses against multiple influenza strains and subtypes. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:17757-17763. [PMID: 32669430 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2004783117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Vaccination has been used to control the spread of seasonal flu; however, the virus continues to evolve and escape from host immune response through mutation and increasing glycosylation. Efforts have been directed toward development of a universal vaccine with broadly protective activity against multiple influenza strains and subtypes. Here we report the design and evaluation of various chimeric vaccines based on the most common avian influenza H5 and human influenza H1 sequences. Of these constructs, the chimeric HA (cHA) vaccine with consensus H5 as globular head and consensus H1 as stem was shown to elicit broadly protective CD4+ and CD8+ T cell responses. Interestingly, the monoglycosylated cHA (cHAmg) vaccine with GlcNAc on each glycosite induced more stem-specific antibodies, with higher antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC), and better neutralizing and stronger cross-protection activities against H1, H3, H5, and H7 strains and subtypes. Moreover, the cHAmg vaccine combined with a glycolipid adjuvant designed for class switch further enhanced the vaccine efficacy with more IFN-γ, IL-4, and CD8+ memory T cells produced.
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Chen PG, Hu HG, Sun ZY, Li QQ, Zhang BD, Wu JJ, Li WH, Zhao YF, Chen YX, Li YM. Fully Synthetic Invariant NKT Cell-Dependent Self-Adjuvanting Antitumor Vaccines Eliciting Potent Immune Response in Mice. Mol Pharm 2019; 17:417-425. [DOI: 10.1021/acs.molpharmaceut.9b00720] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Pu-Guang Chen
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Hong-Guo Hu
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Zhan-Yi Sun
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Qian-Qian Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Bo-Dou Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Jun-Jun Wu
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Wen-Hao Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Yu-Fen Zhao
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Yong-Xiang Chen
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
| | - Yan-Mei Li
- Key Laboratory of Bioorganic Phosphorus Chemistry and Chemical Biology (the Ministry of Education), Department of Chemistry, Tsinghua University, 100084 Beijing, China
- Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, 100069 Beijing, China
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7
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Janssens J, Bitra A, Wang J, Decruy T, Venken K, van der Eycken J, Elewaut D, Zajonc DM, van Calenbergh S. 4"-O-Alkylated α-Galactosylceramide Analogues as iNKT-Cell Antigens: Synthetic, Biological, and Structural Studies. ChemMedChem 2018; 14:147-168. [PMID: 30556652 DOI: 10.1002/cmdc.201800649] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2018] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Invariant natural killer T-cells (iNKT) are a glycolipid-responsive subset of T-lymphocytes that fulfill a pivotal role in the immune system. The archetypical synthetic glycolipid, α-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer), whose molecular framework is inspired by a group of amphiphilic natural products, remains the most studied antigen for iNKT-cells. Nonetheless, the potential of α-GalCer as an immunostimulating agent is compromised by the fact that this glycolipid elicits simultaneous secretion of Th1- and Th2-cytokines. This has incited medicinal chemistry efforts to identify analogues that are able to perturb the Th1/Th2 balance. In this work, we present the synthesis of an extensive set of 4"-O-alkylated α-GalCer analogues, which were evaluated in vivo for their cytokine induction. We have found that conversion of the 4"-OH group to ether moieties decreases the immunogenic potential in mice relative to α-GalCer. Yet, the benzyl-modified glycolipids are able to produce a distinct pro-inflammatory immune response. The crystal structures suggest an extra hydrophobic interaction between the benzyl moiety and the α2-helix of CD1d.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas Janssens
- Laboratory for Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutics (FFW), Ghent University, Ottergemsesteenweg 460, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.,Laboratory for Organic and Bioorganic Synthesis, Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 (S4), 9000, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Aruna Bitra
- Division of Immune Regulation, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology (LJI), 9420 Athena Circle, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Jing Wang
- Division of Immune Regulation, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology (LJI), 9420 Athena Circle, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA
| | - Tine Decruy
- Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.,VIB Inflammation Research Center, UGent-VIB Research Building FSVM, Technologiepark 927, 9052, Zwijnaarde (Ghent), Belgium
| | - Koen Venken
- Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.,VIB Inflammation Research Center, UGent-VIB Research Building FSVM, Technologiepark 927, 9052, Zwijnaarde (Ghent), Belgium
| | - Johan van der Eycken
- Laboratory for Organic and Bioorganic Synthesis, Department of Organic and Macromolecular Chemistry, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 (S4), 9000, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Dirk Elewaut
- Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium.,VIB Inflammation Research Center, UGent-VIB Research Building FSVM, Technologiepark 927, 9052, Zwijnaarde (Ghent), Belgium
| | - Dirk M Zajonc
- Division of Immune Regulation, La Jolla Institute for Allergy and Immunology (LJI), 9420 Athena Circle, La Jolla, CA, 92037, USA.,Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ghent University, De Pintelaan 185, 9000, Ghent, Belgium
| | - Serge van Calenbergh
- Laboratory for Medicinal Chemistry, Department of Pharmaceutics (FFW), Ghent University, Ottergemsesteenweg 460, 9000, Ghent, Belgium
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8
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Altiti AS, Ma X, Zhang L, Ban Y, Franck RW, Mootoo DR. Synthesis and biological activities of C-glycosides of KRN 7000 with novel ceramide residues. Carbohydr Res 2017; 443-444:73-77. [PMID: 28365448 PMCID: PMC5499692 DOI: 10.1016/j.carres.2017.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2017] [Accepted: 03/03/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The identification of immunoactive agents for clinical and mechanistic applications is a very active area of research. In this vein, analogues of the potent immunostimulant KRN 7000 with diverse cytokine profiles have attracted considerable attention. These compounds have been shown to activate iNKT cells via presentation by CD1d. Herein, we report on the synthesis and activity for four new C-glycosides of KRN 7000, 11-phenylundecanoyl and 11-p-fluorophenylundecanoyl derivatives of C-KRN 7000, 2,3-bis-epi-C-KRN 7000 and the reverse amide of C-KRN 7000. In mice, compared to C-KRN 7000, 2,3-bis-epi-C-KRN 7000 stimulated higher release of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-4 and lower release of the inflammatory cytokines IFN-γ and IL-12. The phenyl terminated alkanoyl and reverse amide analogues were inactive. These data suggest that structure activity effects for KRN 7000 are not necessarily additive and their use in the design of new analogues will require an improved understanding of how subtle structural changes impact on cytokine activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmad S Altiti
- Department of Chemistry, Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA; The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - Xiaojing Ma
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, 1300 York Ave, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Lixing Zhang
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, 1300 York Ave, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Yi Ban
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Weill Cornell Medicine, 1300 York Ave, New York, NY, 10065, USA
| | - Richard W Franck
- Department of Chemistry, Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA; The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - David R Mootoo
- Department of Chemistry, Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY, 10065, USA; The Graduate Center, CUNY, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY, 10016, USA.
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9
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Hung JT, Huang JR, Yu AL. Tailored design of NKT-stimulatory glycolipids for polarization of immune responses. J Biomed Sci 2017; 24:22. [PMID: 28335781 PMCID: PMC5364570 DOI: 10.1186/s12929-017-0325-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Accepted: 02/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural killer T (NKT) cell is a distinct population of T lymphocytes that can rapidly release massive amount of Th1 and Th2 cytokines upon the engagement of their T cell receptor with glycolipids presented by CD1d. The secreted cytokines can promote cell-mediated immunity to kill tumor cells and intracellular pathogens, or suppress autoreactive immune cells in autoimmune diseases. Thus, NKT cell is an attractive target for developing new therapeutics to manipulate immune system. The best-known glycolipid to activate NKT cells is α-galactosylceramide (α-GalCer), which has been used as a prototype for designing new NKT stimulatory glycolipids. Many analogues have been generated by modification of the galactosyl moiety, the acyl chain or the phytosphingosine chain of α-GalCer. Some of the analogues showed greater abilities than α-GalCer in polarizing immune responses toward Th1 or Th2 dominance. Among them, several analogues containing phenyl groups in the lipid tails were more potent in inducing Th1-skewed cytokines and exhibited greater anticancer efficacy than α-GalCer. Analyses of the correlation between structure and activity of various α-GalCer analogues on the activation of iNKT cell revealed that CD1d–glycolipid complexes interacted with the same population of iNKT cell expressing similar T-cell receptor Vβ as α-GalCer. On the other hand, those phenyl glycolipids with propensity for Th1 dominant responses showed greater binding avidity and stability than α-GalCer for iNKT T-cell receptor when complexed with CD1d. Thus, it is the avidity and stability of the ternary complexes of CD1d-glycolipid-iNKT TCR that dictate the polarity and potency of immune responses. These findings provide a key to the rationale design of immune modulating glycolipids with desirable Th1/Th2 polarity for clinical application. In addition, elucidation of α-GalCer-induced anergy, liver damage and accumulation of myeloid derived suppressor cells has offered explanation for its lacklustre anti-cancer activities in clinical trials. On other hand, the lack of such drawbacks in glycolipid analogues containing phenyl groups in the lipid tails of α-GalCer coupled with the greater binding avidity and stability of CD1d-glycolipid complex for iNKT T-cell receptor, account for their superior anti-cancer efficacy in tumor bearing mice. Further clinical development of these phenyl glycolipids is warranted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jung-Tung Hung
- Institute of Stem Cell & Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou and Chang Gung University, No. 5, Fu-Shin St., Kuei Shang, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan
| | - Jing-Rong Huang
- Institute of Stem Cell & Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou and Chang Gung University, No. 5, Fu-Shin St., Kuei Shang, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan
| | - Alice L Yu
- Institute of Stem Cell & Translational Cancer Research, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou and Chang Gung University, No. 5, Fu-Shin St., Kuei Shang, Taoyuan, 333, Taiwan. .,Department of Pediatrics, University of California in San Diego, San Diego, CA, USA.
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