Analysis of the association between Fc receptor family gene polymorphisms and ocular Behçet's disease in Han Chinese

Alterations in immune cell phenotype and cytotoxic capacity in HER2+ breast cancer patients receiving HER2-targeted neo-adjuvant therapy

BACKGROUND

The phase II neo-adjuvant clinical trial ICORG10-05 (NCT01485926) compared chemotherapy in combination with trastuzumab, lapatinib or both in patients with HER2+ breast cancer. We studied circulating immune cells looking for alterations in phenotype, genotype and cytotoxic capacity (direct and antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC)) in the context of treatment response.

METHODS

Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were isolated from pre- (n = 41) and post- (n = 25) neo-adjuvant treatment blood samples. Direct/trastuzumab-ADCC cytotoxicity of patient-derived PBMCs against K562/SKBR3 cell lines was determined ex vivo. Pembrolizumab was interrogated in 21 pre-treatment PBMC ADCC assays. Thirty-nine pre-treatment and 21 post-treatment PBMC samples were immunophenotyped. Fc receptor genotype, tumour infiltrating lymphocyte (TIL) levels and oestrogen receptor (ER) status were quantified.

RESULTS

Treatment attenuated the cytotoxicity/ADCC of PBMCs. CD3+/CD4+/CD8+ T cells increased following therapy, while CD56+ NK cells/CD14+ monocytes/CD19+ B cells decreased with significant post-treatment immune cell changes confined to patients with residual disease. Pembrolizumab-augmented ex vivo PBMC ADCC activity was associated with residual disease, but not pathological complete response. Pembrolizumab-responsive PBMCs were associated with lower baseline TIL levels and ER+ tumours.

CONCLUSIONS

PBMCs display altered phenotype and function following completion of neo-adjuvant treatment. Anti-PD-1-responsive PBMCs in ex vivo ADCC assays may be a biomarker of treatment response.

The proportion of C1q-high and ISG15-high monocytes in the skin of patients with Behçet disease

Behçet disease (BD) is a chronic systemic vasculitis that is clinically characterized by recurrent oral ulcers, genital ulcers, uveitis, and skin lesions. Here, we conducted bulk RNA-seq of skin samples from 4 BD patients and 4 normal controls (NCs). A total of 260 differentially expressed genes (DEGs), including 99 upregulated and 161 downregulated genes, were detected in the skin lesions of BD patients compared to NCs. These DEGs were mainly enriched in the following biological processes: the activation and migration of immune cells, the release of proinflammatory factors, and the IFN-γ signaling pathway. The top upregulated DEGs were CXCL10, CXCL9, FCGR3A, GBP5, GBP4, LILRB2, ADIPOQ, PLIN1, SLC43A2, and MYO1G. Using the deconvolution method CIBERSORT, we analyzed the immune cells subtypes in the skin of BD by integrating the single cell RNA-seq data from PBMC (GSE198616) and bulk RNA-seq data of skin. There was a higher proportion of C1q+ and ISG15 + monocyte subtypes in skin of BD. IHC staining of CD14 and CD16 showed that the monocyte number increased in the skin of BD. IF staining confirmed there was a higher proportion of the C1Q + Mono and ISG15 + Mono subsets in the skin of BD patients. Moreover, we analyzed the average expression level of the top upregulated genes in immune cell types found in PBMC from BD patients and NCs. Almost all the top upregulated genes expressed in monocytes. CXCL10 was specifically expressed in ISG15 + monocyte, and GBP5, GBP4 and IFI44L were expressed more strongly in ISG15 + monocytes. LILRB2 was expressed more strongly in CD16⁺ monocytes and C1Q + monocytes. In conclusion, our study identified that the IFN-γ pathway was activated in skin of BD and the proportion of C1q+ and ISG15 + monocyte subtype increased in the skin of BD.

Genetics in Behcet's Disease: An Update Review

Behcet's disease (BD) is one of the most vision-threatening clinical entities of uveitis. Although the etiopathogenesis of BD remains obscure, accumulating evidence has demonstrated that both genetic and environmental factors may contribute to the development of BD. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and candidate association studies have identified several genetic variants strongly associated with BD, including variants in human leukocyte antigen (HLA) -A02, -A03, -A24, -A26, -A31, -B15, -B27, -B35, -B49, -B51, -B57, -B58, -C0704, CIITA, ERAP1, MICA, IL1A-IL1B, IL10, IL12, IL23R, IL-23R/IL-12RB2, IL1RL1-IL18R1, STAT4, TFCP2L1, TRAF5, TNFAIP3, CCR1/CCR3, RIPK2, ADO-ZNF365-EGR2, KLRC4, LACC1, MEFV, IRF8, FUT2, CEBPB-PTPN1, ZMIZ1, RPS6KA4, IL10RA, SIPA1-FIBP-FOSL1, VAMP1, JRKL/CTCN5, IFNGR1 and miRNA-146a. Epigenetic modifications are also reported to play essential roles in the development of BD, including DNA methylation and histone modification. We review here the recent advances in the genetic and epigenetic factors associated with the BD pathogenesis.

Identification of novel genes in Behcet's disease using integrated bioinformatic analysis

Behcet’s disease (BD) is a chronic vascular inflammatory disease. However, the etiology and molecular mechanisms underlying BD development have not been thoroughly understood. Gene expression data for BD were obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus database. We used robust rank aggregation (RRA) to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) between patients with BD and healthy controls. Gene ontology functional enrichment was used to investigate the potential functions of the DEGs. Protein–protein interaction (PPI) network analysis was performed to identify the hub genes. Receiver operating characteristic analyses were performed to investigate the value of hub genes in the diagnosis of BD. GSE17114 and GSE61399 datasets were included, comprising 32 patients with BD and 26 controls. The RRA integrated analysis identified 44 significant DEGs among the GSE17114 and GSE61399 CD4 + T lymphocytes. Functional enrichment analysis revealed that protein tyrosine/threonine phosphatase activity and immunoglobulin binding were enriched in BD. PPI analysis identified FCGR3B as a hub gene in the CD4 + T lymphocytes of BD patients. Our bioinformatic analysis identified new genetic features, which will enable further understanding of the pathogenesis of BD.