The type 1 receptor (CD120a) is the high-affinity receptor for soluble tumor necrosis factor

Peripherally administered TNF inhibitor is not protective against α-synuclein-induced dopaminergic neuronal death in rats

The underlying cause of neuronal loss in Parkinson's disease (PD) remains unknown, but evidence implicates neuroinflammation in PD pathobiology. The pro-inflammatory cytokine soluble tumor necrosis factor (TNF) seems to play an important role and thus has been proposed as a therapeutic target for modulation of the neuroinflammatory processes in PD. In this regard, dominant-negative TNF (DN-TNF) agents are promising antagonists that selectively inhibit soluble TNF signaling, while preserving the beneficial effects of transmembrane TNF. Previous studies have tested the protective potential of DN-TNF-based therapy in toxin-based PD models. Here we test for the first time the protective potential of a DN-TNF therapeutic against α-synuclein-driven neurodegeneration in the viral vector-based PD female rat model. To do so, we administered the DN-TNF agent XPro1595 subcutaneously for a period of 12 weeks. In contrast to previous studies using different PD models, neuroprotection was not achieved by systemic XPro1595 treatment. α-Synuclein-induced loss of nigrostriatal neurons, accumulation of pathological inclusions and microgliosis was detected in both XPro1595- and saline-treated animals. XPro1595 treatment increased the percentage of the hypertrophic/ameboid Iba1+ cells in SN and reduced the striatal MHCII+ expression in the α-synuclein-overexpressing animals. However, the treatment did not prevent the MHCII upregulation seen in the SN of the model, nor the increase of CD68+ phagocytic cells. Therefore, despite an apparently immunomodulatory effect, this did not suffice to protect against viral vector-derived α-synuclein-induced neurotoxicity. Further studies are warranted to better elucidate the therapeutic potential of soluble TNF inhibitors in PD.

TNFR2 signaling in oligodendrocyte precursor cells suppresses their immune-inflammatory function and detrimental microglia activation in CNS demyelinating disease

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic degenerative disease of the central nervous system (CNS) characterized by inflammation, demyelination, and progressive neurodegeneration. These processes, combined with the failure of reparative remyelination initiated by oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs), lead to irreversible neurological impairment. The cytokine tumor necrosis factor (TNF) has been implicated in CNS repair via activation of its cognate receptor TNFR2 in glia. Here, we demonstrate the important role of TNFR2 in regulating OPC function in vivo during demyelinating disease, and that TNFR2 expressed in OPCs modulates OPC-microglia interactions. In PdgfrαCreERT:Tnfrsf1bfl/fl:Eyfp mice with selective TNFR2 ablation in OPCs, we observed an earlier onset and disease peak in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE). This was associated with accelerated immune cell infiltration and increased microglia activation in the spinal cord. Similarly, PdgfrαCreERT:Tnfrsf1bfl/fl:Eyfp mice showed rapid and increased microglia reactivity compared to control mice in the corpus callosum after cuprizone-induced demyelination, followed by chronic reduction in the number of mature myelinating oligodendrocytes (OLs). With EAE and cuprizone models combined, we uncovered that TNFR2 does not have a cell autonomous role in OPC differentiation, but may be important for survival of newly formed mature OLs. Finally, using an in vitro approach, we demonstrated that factors released by Tnfrsf1b ablated OPCs drove microglia to develop an exacerbated "foamy" phenotype when incubated with myelin-rich spinal cord homogenate, aberrantly increasing lysosomal lipid accumulation. Together, our data indicate that TNFR2 signaling in OPCs is protective by dampening their immune-inflammatory activation and by suppressing neurotoxic microglia reactivity. This suggests that boosting TNFR2 activation or its downstream cascades could be an effective strategy to restore OPC reparative capacity in neuroimmune and demyelinating disease.

Target-conditioned diffusion generates potent TNFR superfamily antagonists and agonists

Despite progress in designing protein-binding proteins, the shape matching of designs to targets is lower than in many native protein complexes, and design efforts have failed for the tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNFR1) and other protein targets with relatively flat and polar surfaces. We hypothesized that free diffusion from random noise could generate shape-matched binders for challenging targets and tested this approach on TNFR1. We obtain designs with low picomolar affinity whose specificity can be completely switched to other family members using partial diffusion. Designs function as antagonists or as superagonists when presented at higher valency for OX40 and 4-1BB. The ability to design high-affinity and high-specificity antagonists and agonists for pharmacologically important targets in silico presages a coming era in protein design in which binders are made by computation rather than immunization or random screening approaches.

Mechanotransduction governs CD40 function and underlies X-linked hyper-IgM syndrome

B cell maturation depends on cognate interactions between the T and B cells. Upon interaction with CD40 ligand (CD40L) on T cells, CD40 delivers costimulatory signals alongside B cell antigen receptor (BCR) signaling to regulate affinity maturation and antibody class switch. Mutations affecting CD40-CD40L interactions cause abnormal antibody responses in immunodeficiencies known as X-linked hyper-IgM syndrome (X-HIgM). Here, we study the CD40-mediated mechanotransduction in B cells, which likely occurs during their physical contacts with T cells. We found that CD40 forms catch bond with CD40L that lasts longer at larger forces, both B and T cells exert tension on CD40-CD40L bonds, and force enhances CD40 signaling and antibody class switch. X-HIgM CD40L mutations impair catch bond formation, suppress endogenous tension, and reduce force-enhanced CD40 signaling, leading to deficiencies in antibody class switch. Our findings highlight the role of mechanotransduction in CD40 function and provide insights into the mechanisms underlying X-HIgM syndrome.

Chronic stress intensify PTZ-induced seizures by triggering neuroinflammation and oxidative stress

BACKGROUND

Epilepsy is a paroxysmal abnormal hypersynchronous electrical discharge characterized by recurrent seizures. It affects more than 50 million people worldwide. Stress is the leading cause of neurodegeneration and can produce seizures that may lead to or aggravate epilepsy. Inflammation plays a vital role in epilepsy by modulating oxidative stress, and levels of neuroinflammatory cytokines including NF-κB, TNF-α, and IL-1β.

METHODS

Stress-induced changes in behavior were evaluated in mice by employing behavioral assessment tests such as an elevated plus maze, light-dark box, open field test, tail suspension test, Y-maze, novel object recognition test, and Morris water maze in pentylenetetrazole (PTZ) kindled mice. Behavioral changes in all these paradigms including seizure score, latency, and frequency showed an increase in symptoms in PTZ (35 mg/kg) induced seizures in stressed mice (RS-PTZ) as compared to PTZ, Stress, and normal animals.

RESULTS

The Enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) results confirmed increased in serum cortisol levels. Histological examinations showed neurodegenerative changes in the hippocampus and cortex regions. The spectrophotometric evaluation showed an increase in oxidative stress by decreasing antioxidant production i.e. reduced glutathione, glutathione -s- transferase, and catalase (CAT), and increasing oxidant levels such as maloaldehyde and nitric oxide. Immunohistochemistry results showed increased expression of NF-κB, TNF-α, and IL-1β in the cortex and hippocampus of mice brains.

CONCLUSIONS

Results from the study conclude that stress increases the likelihood of eliciting an epileptic attack by increasing the level of reactive oxygen species and neuroinflammation.

Time-varying stimuli that prolong IKK activation promote nuclear remodeling and mechanistic switching of NF-κB dynamics

Temporal properties of molecules within signaling networks, such as sub-cellular changes in protein abundance, encode information that mediate cellular responses to stimuli. How dynamic signals relay and process information is a critical gap in understanding cellular behaviors. In this work, we investigate transmission of information about changing extracellular cytokine concentrations from receptor-level supramolecular assemblies of IκB kinases (IKK) downstream to the nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) transcription factor (TF). In a custom robot-controlled microfluidic cell culture, we simultaneously measure input-output (I/O) encoding of IKK-NF-κB in dual fluorescent-reporter cells. When compared with single cytokine pulses, dose-conserving pulse trains prolong IKK assemblies and lead to disproportionately enhanced retention of nuclear NF-κB. Using particle swarm optimization, we demonstrate that a mechanistic model does not recapitulate this emergent property. By contrast, invoking mechanisms for NF-κB-dependent chromatin remodeling to the model recapitulates experiments, showing how temporal dosing that prolongs IKK assemblies facilitates switching to permissive chromatin that sequesters nuclear NF-κB. Remarkably, using simulations to resolve single-cell receptor data accurately predicts same-cell NF-κB time courses for more than 80% of our single cell trajectories. Our data and simulations therefore suggest that cell-to-cell heterogeneity in cytokine responses are predominantly due to mechanisms at the level receptor-associated protein complexes.

Differentiation and regulation of CD4+ T cell subsets in Parkinson's disease

Parkinson's disease (PD) is the second most common neurodegenerative disease, and its hallmark pathological features are the loss of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in the midbrain substantia nigra pars compacta (SNpc) and the accumulation of alpha-synuclein (α-syn). It has been shown that the integrity of the blood-brain barrier (BBB) is damaged in PD patients, and a large number of infiltrating T cells and inflammatory cytokines have been detected in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and brain parenchyma of PD patients and PD animal models, including significant change in the number and proportion of different CD4+ T cell subsets. This suggests that the neuroinflammatory response caused by CD4+ T cells is an important risk factor for the development of PD. Here, we systematically review the differentiation of CD4+ T cell subsets, and focus on describing the functions and mechanisms of different CD4+ T cell subsets and their secreted cytokines in PD. We also summarize the current immunotherapy targeting CD4+ T cells with a view to providing assistance in the diagnosis and treatment of PD.

The mechanism by which cannabidiol (CBD) suppresses TNF-α secretion involves inappropriate localization of TNF-α converting enzyme (TACE)

Cannabidiol (CBD) is a phytocannabinoid derived from Cannabis sativa that exerts anti-inflammatory mechanisms. CBD is being examined for its putative effects on the neuroinflammatory disease, multiple sclerosis (MS). One of the major immune mediators that propagates MS and its mouse model experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) are macrophages. Macrophages can polarize into an inflammatory phenotype (M1) or an anti-inflammatory phenotype (M2a). Therefore, elucidating the impact on macrophage polarization with CBD pre-treatment is necessary to understand its anti-inflammatory mechanisms. To study this effect, murine macrophages (RAW 264.7) were pre-treated with CBD (10 µM) or vehicle (ethanol 0.1 %) and were either left untreated (naive; cell media only), or stimulated under M1 (IFN-γ + lipopolysaccharide, LPS) or M2a (IL-4) conditions for 24 hr. Cells were analyzed for macrophage polarization markers, and supernatants were analyzed for cytokines and chemokines. Immunofluorescence staining was performed on M1-polarized cells for the metalloprotease, tumor necrosis factor-α-converting enzyme (TACE), as this enzyme is responsible for the secretion of TNF-α. Overall results showed that CBD decreased several markers associated with the M1 phenotype while exhibiting less effects on the M2a phenotype. Significantly, under M1 conditions, CBD increased the percentage of intracellular and surface TNF-α but decreased secreted TNF-α. This phenomenon might be mediated by TACE as staining showed that CBD sequestered TACE intracellularly. CBD also prevented RelA nuclear translocation. These results suggest that CBD may exert its anti-inflammatory effects by reducing M1 polarization and decreasing TNF-α secretion via inappropriate localization of TACE and RelA.

Microglial TNFR2 signaling regulates the inflammatory response after CNS injury in a sex-specific fashion

Microglia, the resident immune cells of the central nervous system (CNS), play a major role in damage progression and tissue remodeling after acute CNS injury, including ischemic stroke (IS) and spinal cord injury (SCI). Understanding the molecular mechanisms regulating microglial responses to injury may thus reveal novel therapeutic targets to promote CNS repair. Here, we investigated the role of microglial tumor necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNFR2), a transmembrane receptor previously associated with pro-survival and neuroprotective responses, in shaping the neuroinflammatory environment after CNS injury. By inducing experimental IS and SCI in Cx3cr1CreER:Tnfrsf1bfl/fl mice, selectively lacking TNFR2 in microglia, and corresponding Tnfrsf1bfl/fl littermate controls, we found that ablation of microglial TNFR2 significantly reduces lesion size and pro-inflammatory cytokine levels, and favors infiltration of leukocytes after injury. Interestingly, these effects were paralleled by opposite sex-specific modifications of microglial reactivity, which was found to be limited in female TNFR2-ablated mice compared to controls, whereas it was enhanced in males. In addition, we show that TNFR2 protein levels in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of human subjects affected by IS and SCI, as well as healthy donors, significantly correlate with disease stage and severity, representing a valuable tool to monitor the inflammatory response after acute CNS injury. Hence, these results advance our understanding of the mechanisms regulating microglia reactivity after acute CNS injury, aiding the development of sex- and microglia-specific, personalized neuroregenerative strategies.

Structure-based development of a canine TNF-α-specific antibody using adalimumab as a template

The canine anti-tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) monoclonal antibody is a potential therapeutic option for treating canine arthritis. The current treatments for arthritis in dogs have limitations due to side effects, emphasizing the need for safer and more effective therapies. The crystal structure of canine TNF-α (cTNF-α) was successfully determined at a resolution of 1.85 Å, and the protein was shown to assemble as a trimer, with high similarity to the functional quaternary structure of human TNF-α (hTNF-α). Adalimumab (Humira), a known TNF-α inhibitor, effectively targets and neutralizes TNF-α to reduce inflammation and has been used to manage autoimmune conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis. By comparing the structure of cTNF-α with the complex structure of hTNF-α and adalimumab-Fab, the epitope of adalimumab on cTNF-α was identified. The significant structural similarities of epitopes in cTNF-α and hTNF-α indicate the potential of using adalimumab to target cTNF-α. Therefore, a canine/human chimeric antibody, Humivet-R1, was created by grafting the variable domain of adalimumab onto a canine antibody framework derived from ranevetmab. Humivet-R1 exhibits potent neutralizing ability (IC50  = 0.05 nM) and high binding affinity (EC50  = 0.416 nM) to cTNF-α, comparable to that of adalimumab for both hTNF-α and cTNF-α. These results strongly suggest that Humivet-R1 has the potential to provide effective treatment for canine arthritis with reduced side effects. Here, we propose a structure-guided antibody design for the use of a chimeric antibody to treat canine inflammatory disease. Our successful development strategy can speed up therapeutic antibody discovery for animals and has the potential to revolutionize veterinary medicine.

Neuroinflammation in epileptogenesis: from pathophysiology to therapeutic strategies

Epilepsy is a group of enduring neurological disorder characterized by spontaneous and recurrent seizures with heterogeneous etiology, clinical expression, severity, and prognosis. Growing body of research investigates that epileptic seizures are originated from neuronal synchronized and excessive electrical activity. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms of epileptogenesis have not yet been fully elucidated and 30% of epileptic patients still are resistant to the currently available pharmacological treatments with recurrent seizures throughout life. Over the past two decades years accumulated evidences provide strong support to the hypothesis that neuroinflammation, including microglia and astrocytes activation, a cascade of inflammatory mediator releasing, and peripheral immune cells infiltration from blood into brain, is associated with epileptogenesis. Meanwhile, an increasing body of preclinical researches reveal that the anti-inflammatory therapeutics targeting crucial inflammatory components are effective and promising in the treatment of epilepsy. The aim of the present study is to highlight the current understanding of the potential neuroinflammatory mechanisms in epileptogenesis and the potential therapeutic targets against epileptic seizures.

Fn14 and TNFR2 as regulators of cytotoxic TNFR1 signaling

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) receptor 1 (TNFR1), TNFR2 and fibroblast growth factor-inducible 14 (Fn14) belong to the TNF receptor superfamily (TNFRSF). From a structural point of view, TNFR1 is a prototypic death domain (DD)-containing receptor. In contrast to other prominent death receptors, such as CD95/Fas and the two TRAIL death receptors DR4 and DR5, however, liganded TNFR1 does not instruct the formation of a plasma membrane-associated death inducing signaling complex converting procaspase-8 into highly active mature heterotetrameric caspase-8 molecules. Instead, liganded TNFR1 recruits the DD-containing cytoplasmic signaling proteins TRADD and RIPK1 and empowers these proteins to trigger cell death signaling by cytosolic complexes after their release from the TNFR1 signaling complex. The activity and quality (apoptosis versus necroptosis) of TNF-induced cell death signaling is controlled by caspase-8, the caspase-8 regulatory FLIP proteins, TRAF2, RIPK1 and the RIPK1-ubiquitinating E3 ligases cIAP1 and cIAP2. TNFR2 and Fn14 efficiently recruit TRAF2 along with the TRAF2 binding partners cIAP1 and cIAP2 and can thereby limit the availability of these molecules for other TRAF2/cIAP1/2-utilizing proteins including TNFR1. Accordingly, at the cellular level engagement of TNFR2 or Fn14 inhibits TNFR1-induced RIPK1-mediated effects reaching from activation of the classical NFκB pathway to induction of apoptosis and necroptosis. In this review, we summarize the effects of TNFR2- and Fn14-mediated depletion of TRAF2 and the cIAP1/2 on TNFR1 signaling at the molecular level and discuss the consequences this has in vivo.

The TNFα/TNFR2 axis mediates natural killer cell proliferation by promoting aerobic glycolysis

Natural killer (NK) cells are predominant innate lymphocytes that initiate the early immune response during infection. NK cells undergo a metabolic switch to fuel augmented proliferation and activation following infection. Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) is a well-known inflammatory cytokine that enhances NK cell function; however, the mechanism underlying NK cell proliferation in response to TNFα is not well established. Here, we demonstrated that upon infection/inflammation, NK cells upregulate the expression of TNF receptor 2 (TNFR2), which is associated with increased proliferation, metabolic activity, and effector function. Notably, IL-18 can induce TNFR2 expression in NK cells, augmenting their sensitivity toward TNFα. Mechanistically, TNFα-TNFR2 signaling upregulates the expression of CD25 (IL-2Rα) and nutrient transporters in NK cells, leading to a metabolic switch toward aerobic glycolysis. Transcriptomic analysis revealed significantly reduced expression levels of genes involved in cellular metabolism and proliferation in NK cells from TNFR2 KO mice. Accordingly, our data affirmed that genetic ablation of TNFR2 curtails CD25 upregulation and TNFα-induced glycolysis, leading to impaired NK cell proliferation and antiviral function during MCMV infection in vivo. Collectively, our results delineate the crucial role of the TNFα-TNFR2 axis in NK cell proliferation, glycolysis, and effector function.

GBP5 Expression Predicted Prognosis of Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors in Small Cell Lung Cancer and Correlated with Tumor Immune Microenvironment

Background

The discovery and development of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) has significantly enhanced the arsenal of immunotherapy treatments available for cancer patients. The identification of biomarkers that are indicative of an individual's sensitivity to treatment with ICIs is useful for screening SCLC patients prior to commencement of any ICIs based immunotherapy. However, the relationship between GBP5 and the prognosis of SCLC immunotherapy is still unclear and requires further study.

Methods

We downloaded two SCLC datasets, namely the George-SCLC and Jiang-SCLC cohorts. We used the TIDE algorithm to predict the efficacy of immunotherapy for SCLC patients. The QuanTIseq, MCPcounter, and EPIC algorithms are used to calculate the proportions of immune cells in SCLC patients. Additionally, we retrospectively collected 35 SCLC samples from the first affiliated hospital of the Hengyang Medical school.

Results

Patients in each cohort were devided into two groups with high (GBP5-High) and low (GBP5-Low) expression of GBP5. In both cohorts, the GBP5-High population had a higher proportion of patients that responded well to immunotherapy (responders) (p < 0.05). In addition, both GBP5-High subgroups had significantly increased cytotoxicity, chemokines, antigen presenting, and TNF family related genes. We also determined that GBP5 was related to high-level infiltration of B cells, CD4+T cells, CD8+T cells and NK cells.

Conclusion

In this study, we found that GBP5 has the potential to be used as a biomarker of ICIs efficacy for SCLC patients. GBP5 is related to the quantity of inflammatory molecules, a high level of immune infiltration, and a highly activated immune response pathway.

How does the same ligand activate signaling of different receptors in TNFR superfamily: a computational study

TNFα is a highly pleiotropic cytokine inducing inflammatory signaling pathways. It is initially presented on plasma membrane of cells (mTNFα), and also exists in a soluble variant (sTNFα) after cleavage. The ligand is shared by two structurally similar receptors, TNFR1 and TNFR2. Interestingly, while sTNFα preferentially stimulates TNFR1, TNFR2 signaling can only be activated by mTNFα. How can two similar receptors respond to the same ligand in such a different way? We employed computational simulations in multiple scales to address this question. We found that both mTNFα and sTNFα can trigger the clustering of TNFR1. The size of clusters induced by sTNFα is constantly larger than the clusters induced by mTNFα. The systems of TNFR2, on the other hand, show very different behaviors. Only when the interactions between TNFR2 are very weak, mTNFα can trigger the receptors to form very large clusters. Given the same weak binding affinity, only small oligomers were obtained in the system of sTNFα. Considering that TNF-mediated signaling is modulated by the ligand-induced clustering of receptors on cell surface, our study provided the mechanistic foundation to the phenomenon that different isoforms of the ligand can lead to highly distinctive signaling patterns for its receptors.

TNF and TNF receptors as therapeutic targets for rheumatic diseases and beyond

The cytokine TNF signals via two distinct receptors, TNF receptor 1 (TNFR1) and TNFR2, and is a central mediator of various immune-mediated diseases. Indeed, TNF-neutralizing biologic drugs have been in clinical use for the treatment of many inflammatory pathological conditions, including various rheumatic diseases, for decades. TNF has pleiotropic effects and can both promote and inhibit pro-inflammatory processes. The integrated net effect of TNF in vivo is a result of cytotoxic TNFR1 signalling and the stimulation of pro-inflammatory processes mediated by TNFR1 and TNFR2 and also TNFR2-mediated anti-inflammatory and tissue-protective activities. Inhibition of the beneficial activities of TNFR2 might explain why TNF-neutralizing drugs, although highly effective in some diseases, have limited benefit in the treatment of other TNF-associated pathological conditions (such as graft-versus-host disease) or even worsen the pathological condition (such as multiple sclerosis). Receptor-specific biologic drugs have the potential to tip the balance from TNFR1-mediated activities to TNFR2-mediated activities and enable the treatment of diseases that do not respond to current TNF inhibitors. Accordingly, a variety of reagents have been developed that either selectively inhibit TNFR1 or selectively activate TNFR2. Several of these reagents have shown promise in preclinical studies and are now in, or approaching, clinical trials.

Synthetic Peptide Antibodies as TNF-α Inhibitors: Molecularly Imprinted Polymer Nanogels Neutralize the Inflammatory Activity of TNF-α in THP-1 Derived Macrophages

Tumor Necrosis Factor-α (TNF-α) is a cytokine that is normally produced by immune cells when fighting an infection. But, when too much TNF-α is produced as in autoimmune diseases, this leads to unwanted and persistent inflammation. Anti-TNF-α monoclonal antibodies have revolutionized the therapy of these disorders by blocking TNF-α and preventing its binding to TNF-α receptors, thus suppressing the inflammation. Herein, we propose an alternative in the form of molecularly imprinted polymer nanogels (MIP-NGs). MIP-NGs are synthetic antibodies obtained by nanomoulding the 3-dimensional shape and chemical functionalities of a desired target in a synthetic polymer. Using an in-house developed in silico rational approach, epitope peptides of TNF-α were generated and 'synthetic peptide antibodies' were prepared. The resultant MIP-NGs bind the template peptide and recombinant TNF-α with high affinity and selectivity, and can block the binding of TNF-α to its receptor. Consequently they were applied to neutralize pro-inflammatory TNF-α in the supernatant of human THP-1 macrophages, leading to a downregulation of the secretion of pro-inflammatory cytokines. Our results suggest that MIP-NGs, which are thermally and biochemically more stable and easier to manufacture than antibodies, and cost-effective, are very promising as next generation TNF-α inhibitors for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.

A novel therapeutic vaccine targeting the soluble TNFα receptor II to limit the progression of cardiovascular disease: AtheroVax™

The burden of atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease contributes to a large proportion of morbidity and mortality, globally. Vaccination against atherosclerosis has been proposed for over 20 years targeting different mediators of atherothrombosis; however, these have not been adequately evaluated in human clinical trials to assess safety and efficacy. Inflammation is a driver of atherosclerosis, but inflammatory mediators are essential components of the immune response. Only pathogenic forms of sTNFR2 are acted upon while preserving the membrane-bound (wild-type) TNFR2 contributions to a non-pathogenic immune response. We hypothesize that the inhibition of sTNRF2 will be more specific and offer long-term treatment options. Here we describe pre-clinical findings of an sTNFR2-targeting peptide vaccine (AtheroVax™) in a mouse model. The multiple pathways to synthesis of the soluble TNFRII receptor (sTNFRII) were identified as sTNFRII(PC), sTNFRII(Δ7), and sTNFRII(Δ7,9). The sTNFRII(Δ7) peptide, NH2-DFALPVEKPLCLQR-COOH is specific to sTNFR2 based on an mRNA splice-variant in which exon 6 is joined to exon 8. The role of sTNFRII(Δ7) as a mediator of prolonged TNFα activity by preventing degradation and clearance was investigated. Inflammation is a critical driver of onset, progression and expansion of atherosclerosis. The TNFα ligand represents a driver of inflammation that is mediated by a splice variant of TNFR2, referred to as sTNFRII(Δ7). The multiple forms of TNFRII, both membrane bound and soluble, are associated with distinctly different phenotypes. sTNFRII(PC) and sTNFRII(Δ7) are not equivalent to etanercept because they lack a clearance mechanism. The unique peptide associated with sTNFRII(Δ7) contains a linear B-cell epitope with amino acids from both exon 6 and exon 8 supporting the vaccine design. Animal studies to evaluate the vaccine are ongoing, and results will be forthcoming. We describe a peptide vaccine targeting sTNFR2 in limiting the progression of atherosclerosis. A therapeutic vaccine limiting the progression of atherosclerosis will greatly contribute to the reduction in morbidity and mortality from cardiovascular disease. It is likely the vaccine will be used in combination with the current standards of care and lifestyle modifications.

Study of tumor necrosis factor receptor in the inflammatory bowel disease

Ulcerative colitis (UC) and Crohn’s disease (CD) are part of Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) and have pathophysiological processes such as bowel necrosis and enteric neurons and enteric glial cells. In addition, the main inflammatory mediator is related to the tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α). TNF-α is a me-diator of the intestinal inflammatory processes, thus being one of the main cytokines involved in the pathogenesis of IBD, however, its levels, when measured, are present in the serum of patients with IBD. In addition, TNF-α plays an important role in promoting inflammation, such as the production of interleukins (IL), for instance IL-1β and IL-6. There are two receptors for TNF as following: The tumor necrosis factor 1 receptor (TNFR1); and the tumor necrosis factor 2 receptor (TNFR2). They are involved in the pathogenesis of IBD and their receptors have been detected in IBD and their expression is correlated with disease activity. The soluble TNF form binds to the TNFR1 receptor with, and its activation results in a signaling cascade effects such as apoptosis, cell proliferation and cytokine secretion. In contrast, the transmembrane TNF form can bind both to TNFR1 and TNFR2. Recent studies have suggested that TNF-α is one of the main pro-inflammatory cytokines involved in the pathogenesis of IBD, since TNF levels are present in the serum of both patients with UC and CD. Intravenous and subcutaneous biologics targeting TNF-α have revolutionized the treatment of IBD, thus becoming the best available agents to induce and maintain IBD remission. The application of antibodies aimed at neutralizing TNF-α in patients with IBD that induce a satisfactory clinical response in up to 60% of patients, and also induced long-term maintenance of disease remission in most patients. It has been suggested that anti-TNF-α agents inactivate the pro-inflammatory cytokine TNF-α by direct neutralization, i.e., resulting in suppression of inflammation. However, anti-TNF-α antibodies perform more complex functions than a simple blockade.

Sequential treatment with a TNFR2 agonist and a TNFR1 antagonist improves outcomes in a humanized mouse model for MS

TNF signaling is an essential regulator of cellular homeostasis. Through its two receptors TNFR1 and TNFR2, soluble versus membrane-bound TNF enable cell death or survival in a variety of cell types. TNF-TNFRs signaling orchestrates important biological functions such as inflammation, neuronal activity as well as tissue de- and regeneration. TNF-TNFRs signaling is a therapeutic target for neurodegenerative diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD), but animal and clinical studies yielded conflicting findings. Here, we ask whether a sequential modulation of TNFR1 and TNFR2 signaling is beneficial in experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE), an experimental mouse model that recapitulates inflammatory and demyelinating aspects of MS. To this end, human TNFR1 antagonist and TNFR2 agonist were administered peripherally at different stages of disease development in TNFR-humanized mice. We found that stimulating TNFR2 before onset of symptoms leads to improved response to anti-TNFR1 therapeutic treatment. This sequential treatment was more effective in decreasing paralysis symptoms and demyelination, when compared to single treatments. Interestingly, the frequency of the different immune cell subsets is unaffected by TNFR modulation. Nevertheless, treatment with only a TNFR1 antagonist increases T-cell infiltration in the central nervous system (CNS) and B-cell cuffing at the perivascular sites, whereas a TNFR2 agonist promotes Treg CNS accumulation. Our findings highlight the complicated nature of TNF signaling which requires a timely balance of selective activation and inhibition of TNFRs in order to exert therapeutic effects in the context of CNS autoimmunity.

Delivering co-stimulatory tumor necrosis factor receptor agonism for cancer immunotherapy: past, current and future perspectives

The tumor necrosis factor superfamily (TNFSF) and their receptors (TNFRSF) are important regulators of the immune system, mediating proliferation, survival, differentiation, and function of immune cells. As a result, their targeting for immunotherapy is attractive, although to date, under-exploited. In this review we discuss the importance of co-stimulatory members of the TNFRSF in optimal immune response generation, the rationale behind targeting these receptors for immunotherapy, the success of targeting them in pre-clinical studies and the challenges in translating this success into the clinic. The efficacy and limitations of the currently available agents are discussed alongside the development of next generation immunostimulatory agents designed to overcome current issues, and capitalize on this receptor class to deliver potent, durable and safe drugs for patients.

Computational analyses of the interactome between TNF and TNFR superfamilies

Proteins in the tumor necrosis factor (TNF) superfamily (TNFSF) regulate diverse cellular processes by interacting with their receptors in the TNF receptor (TNFR) superfamily (TNFRSF). Ligands and receptors in these two superfamilies form a complicated network of interactions, in which the same ligand can bind to different receptors and the same receptor can be shared by different ligands. In order to study these interactions on a systematic level, a TNFSF-TNFRSF interactome was constructed in this study by searching the database which consists of both experimentally measured and computationally predicted protein-protein interactions (PPIs). The interactome contains a total number of 194 interactions between 18 TNFSF ligands and 29 TNFRSF receptors in human. We modeled the structure for each ligand-receptor interaction in the network. Their binding affinities were further computationally estimated based on modeled structures. Our computational outputs, which are all publicly accessible, serve as a valuable addition to the currently limited experimental resources to study TNF-mediated cell signaling.

The Role of Tumor Necrosis Factor Following Spinal Cord Injury: A Systematic Review

Pre-clinical studies place tumor necrosis factor (TNF) as a central player in the inflammatory response after spinal cord injury (SCI), and blocking its production and/or activity has been proposed as a possible treatment option after SCI. This systematic review provides an overview of the literature on the temporal and cellular expression of TNF after SCI and clarifies the potential for its therapeutic manipulation in SCI. A systematic search was performed in EMBASE (Ovid), MEDLINE (Ovid), and Web of Science (Core Collection). The search terms were the MeSH forms of tumor necrosis factor and spinal cord injury in the different databases, and the last search was performed on February 3, 2021. We found twenty-four articles examining the expression of TNF, with most using a thoracic contusive SCI model in rodents. Two articles described the expression of TNF receptors in the acute phase after SCI. Twenty-one articles described the manipulation of TNF signaling using genetic knock-out, pharmaceutical inhibition, or gain-of-function approaches. Overall, TNF expression increased rapidly after SCI, within the first hours, in resident cells (neurons, astrocytes, oligodendrocytes, and microglia) and again in macrophages in the chronic phase after injury. The review underscores the complexity of TNF's role after SCI and indicates that TNF inhibition is a promising therapeutic option. This review concludes that TNF plays a significant role in the inflammatory response after SCI and suggests that targeting TNF signaling is a feasible therapeutic approach.

Intrathymic dendritic cell-biased precursors promote human T cell lineage specification through IRF8-driven transmembrane TNF

The cross-talk between thymocytes and thymic stromal cells is fundamental for T cell development. In humans, intrathymic development of dendritic cells (DCs) is evident but its physiological significance is unknown. Here we showed that DC-biased precursors depended on the expression of the transcription factor IRF8 to express the membrane-bound precursor form of the cytokine TNF (tmTNF) to promote differentiation of thymus seeding hematopoietic progenitors into T-lineage specified precursors through activation of the TNF receptor (TNFR)-2 instead of TNFR1. In vitro recapitulation of TNFR2 signaling by providing low-density tmTNF or a selective TNFR2 agonist enhanced the generation of human T cell precursors. Our study shows that, in addition to mediating thymocyte selection and maturation, DCs function as hematopoietic stromal support for the early stages of human T cell development and provide proof of concept that selective targeting of TNFR2 can enhance the in vitro generation of T cell precursors for clinical application.

Bistability regulates TNFR2-mediated survival and death of T-regulatory cells

A subgroup of T cells called T-regulatory cells (Tregs) regulates the body's immune responses to maintain homeostasis and self-tolerance. Tregs are crucial for preventing illnesses like cancer and autoimmunity. However, contrasting patterns of Treg frequency are observed in different autoimmune diseases. The commonality of tumour necrosis factor receptor 2 (TNFR2) defects and decrease in Treg frequency on the onset of autoimmunity demands an in-depth study of the TNFR2 pathway. To unravel this mystery, we need to study the mechanism of cell survival and death in Tregs. Here, we construct an ordinary differential equation (ODE)-based model to capture the mechanism of cell survival and apoptosis in Treg cells via TNFR2 signalling. The sensitivity analysis reveals that the input stimulus, the concentration of tumour necrosis factor (TNF), is the most sensitive parameter for the model system. The model shows that the cell goes into survival or apoptosis via bistable switching. Through hysteretic switching, the system tries to cope with the changing stimuli. In order to understand how stimulus strength and feedback strength influence cell survival and death, we compute bifurcation diagrams and obtain cell fate maps. Our results indicate that the elevated TNF concentration and increased c-Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) phosphorylation are the major contributors to the death of T-regulatory cells. Biological evidence cements our hypothesis and can be controlled by reducing the TNF concentration. Finally, the system was studied under stochastic perturbation to see the effect of noise on the system's dynamics. We observed that introducing random perturbations disrupts the bistability, reducing the system's bistable region, which can affect the system's normal functioning.

TNFR2 is a potent prognostic biomarker for post-transplant lung metastasis in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma

Objective

Lung metastasis is a common and fatal complication of liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The precise prediction of post-transplant lung metastasis in the early phase is of great value.

Methods

The mRNA profiles of primary and paired lung metastatic lesions were analyzed to determine key signaling pathways. We enrolled 241 HCC patients who underwent liver transplantation from three centers. Tissue microarrays were used to evaluate the prognostic capacity of tumor necrosis factor (TNF), tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNFR1), and TNFR2, particularly for post-transplant lung metastasis.

Results

Comparison of primary and lung metastatic lesions revealed that the TNF-dependent signaling pathway was related to lung metastasis of HCC. The expression of TNF was degraded in comparison to that in para-tumor tissues (P<0.001). The expression of key receptors in the TNF-dependent signaling pathway, TNFR1 and TNFR2, was higher in HCC tissues than in para-tumor tissues (P<0.001). TNF and TNFR1 showed no relationship with patients' outcomes, whereas elevated TNFR2 in tumor tissue was significantly associated with worse overall survival (OS) and increased recurrence risk (5-year OS rate: 31.9% vs. 62.5%, P<0.001). Notably, elevated TNFR2 levels were also associated with an increased risk of post-transplant lung metastasis (hazard ratio: 1.146; P<0.001). Cox regression analysis revealed that TNFR2, Hangzhou criteria, age, and hepatitis B surface antigen were independent risk factors for post-transplant lung metastasis, and a novel nomogram was established accordingly. The nomogram achieved excellent prognostic efficiency (area under time-dependent receiver operating characteristic =0.755, concordance-index =0.779) and was superior to conventional models, such as the Milan criteria.

Conclusions

TNFR2 is a potent prognostic biomarker for predicting post-transplant lung metastasis in patients with HCC. A nomogram incorporating TNFR2 deserves to be a helpful prognostic tool in liver transplantation for HCC.

Information transfer in mammalian glycan-based communication

Glycan-binding proteins, so-called lectins, are exposed on mammalian cell surfaces and decipher the information encoded within glycans translating it into biochemical signal transduction pathways in the cell. These glycan-lectin communication pathways are complex and difficult to analyze. However, quantitative data with single-cell resolution provide means to disentangle the associated signaling cascades. We chose C-type lectin receptors (CTLs) expressed on immune cells as a model system to study their capacity to transmit information encoded in glycans of incoming particles. In particular, we used nuclear factor kappa-B-reporter cell lines expressing DC-specific ICAM-3-grabbing nonintegrin (DC-SIGN), macrophage C-type lectin (MCL), dectin-1, dectin-2, and macrophage-inducible C-type lectin (MINCLE), as well as TNFαR and TLR-1&2 in monocytic cell lines and compared their transmission of glycan-encoded information. All receptors transmit information with similar signaling capacity, except dectin-2. This lectin was identified to be less efficient in information transmission compared to the other CTLs, and even when the sensitivity of the dectin-2 pathway was enhanced by overexpression of its co-receptor FcRγ, its transmitted information was not. Next, we expanded our investigation toward the integration of multiple signal transduction pathways including synergistic lectins, which is crucial during pathogen recognition. We show how the signaling capacity of lectin receptors using a similar signal transduction pathway (dectin-1 and dectin-2) is being integrated by compromising between the lectins. In contrast, co-expression of MCL synergistically enhanced the dectin-2 signaling capacity, particularly at low-glycan stimulant concentration. By using dectin-2 and other lectins as examples, we demonstrate how signaling capacity of dectin-2 is modulated in the presence of other lectins, and therefore, the findings provide insight into how immune cells translate glycan information using multivalent interactions.

Neuroinflammatory mediators in acquired epilepsy: an update

Epilepsy is a group of chronic neurological disorders that have diverse etiologies but are commonly characterized by spontaneous seizures and behavioral comorbidities. Although the mechanisms underlying the epileptic seizures mostly remain poorly understood and the causes often can be idiopathic, a considerable portion of cases are known as acquired epilepsy. This form of epilepsy is typically associated with prior neurological insults, which lead to the initiation and progression of epileptogenesis, eventually resulting in unprovoked seizures. A convergence of evidence in the past two decades suggests that inflammation within the brain may be a major contributing factor to acquired epileptogenesis. As evidenced in mounting preclinical and human studies, neuroinflammatory processes, such as activation and proliferation of microglia and astrocytes, elevated production of pro-inflammatory cytokines and chemokines, blood-brain barrier breakdown, and upregulation of inflammatory signaling pathways, are commonly observed after seizure-precipitating events. An increased knowledge of these neuroinflammatory processes in the epileptic brain has led to a growing list of inflammatory mediators that can be leveraged as potential targets for new therapies of epilepsy and/or biomarkers that may provide valued information for the diagnosis and prognosis of the otherwise unpredictable seizures. In this review, we mainly focus on the most recent progress in understanding the roles of these inflammatory molecules in acquired epilepsy and highlight the emerging evidence supporting their candidacy as novel molecular targets for new pharmacotherapies of acquired epilepsy and the associated behavioral deficits.

An orally available small molecule that targets soluble TNF to deliver anti-TNF biologic-like efficacy in rheumatoid arthritis

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF) is a pleiotropic cytokine belonging to a family of trimeric proteins with both proinflammatory and immunoregulatory functions. TNF is a key mediator in autoimmune diseases and during the last couple of decades several biologic drugs have delivered new therapeutic options for patients suffering from chronic autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and chronic inflammatory bowel disease. Attempts to design small molecule therapies directed to this cytokine have not led to approved products yet. Here we report the discovery and development of a potent small molecule inhibitor of TNF that was recently moved into phase 1 clinical trials. The molecule, SAR441566, stabilizes an asymmetrical form of the soluble TNF trimer, compromises downstream signaling and inhibits the functions of TNF in vitro and in vivo. With SAR441566 being studied in healthy volunteers we hope to deliver a more convenient orally bioavailable and effective treatment option for patients suffering with chronic autoimmune diseases compared to established biologic drugs targeting TNF.

The dichotomous outcomes of TNFα signaling in CD4+ T cells

TNFa blocking agents were the first-in-class biologic drugs used for the treatment of autoimmune disease. Paradoxically, however, exacerbation of autoimmunity was observed in some patients. TNFa is a pleiotropic cytokine that has both proinflammatory and regulatory effects on CD4+ T cells and can influence the adaptive immune response against autoantigens. Here, we critically appraise the literature and discuss the intricacies of TNFa signaling that may explain the controversial findings of previous studies. The pleiotropism of TNFa is based in part on the existence of two biologically active forms of TNFa, soluble and membrane-bound, with different affinities for two distinct TNF receptors, TNFR1 and TNFR2, leading to activation of diverse downstream molecular pathways involved in cell fate decisions and immune function. Distinct membrane expression patterns of TNF receptors by CD4+ T cell subsets and their preferential binding of distinct forms of TNFα produced by a diverse pool of cellular sources during different stages of an immune response are important determinants of the differential outcomes of TNFa-TNF receptor signaling. Targeted manipulation of TNFa-TNF receptor signaling on select CD4+ T cell subsets may offer specific therapeutic interventions to dampen inflammation while fortifying immune regulation for the treatment of autoimmune diseases.

Reducing brain TACE activity improves neuroinflammation and cardiac function in heart failure rats

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-α converting enzyme (TACE) is a key metalloprotease mediating ectodomain shedding of a variety of inflammatory mediators, substrates, and growth factors. We previously reported that TACE-mediated production of TNF-α in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) contributes to sympathetic excitation in heart failure (HF). Here, we sought to determine whether central interventions in TACE activity attenuate neuroinflammation and improve cardiac function in heart failure. Myocardial infarction-induced HF or sham-operated (SHAM) rats were treated with bilateral paraventricular nucleus microinjection of a TACE siRNA or a 4-week intracerebroventricular (ICV) infusion of the TACE inhibitor TAPI-0. Compared with SHAM rats, scrambled siRNA-treated HF rats had higher TACE levels in the PVN along with increased mRNA levels of TNF-α, TNF-α receptor 1 and cyclooxygenase-2. The protein levels of TNF-α in cerebrospinal fluid and phosphorylated (p-) NF-κB p65 and extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase (ERK)1/2 in the PVN were also elevated in HF rats treated with scrambled siRNA. The expression of these inflammatory mediators and signaling molecules in the PVN of HF rats were significantly attenuated by TACE siRNA. Interestingly, the mRNA level of TNF-α receptor 2 in the PVN was increased in HF treated with TACE siRNA. Moreover, sympathetic excitation, left ventricular end-diastolic pressure, pulmonary congestion, and cardiac hypertrophy and fibrosis were reduced by PVN microinjection of TACE siRNA. A 4-week treatment with intracerebroventricular TAPI-0 had similar effects to ameliorate these variables in HF rats. These data indicate that interventions suppressing TACE activity in the brain mitigate neuroinflammation, sympathetic activation and cardiac dysfunction in HF rats.

Co-expression of TNF receptors 1 and 2 on melanomas facilitates soluble TNF-induced resistance to MAPK pathway inhibitors

BACKGROUND

The effectiveness of MAPK pathway inhibitors (MAPKi) used to treat patients with BRAF-mutant melanoma is limited by a range of resistance mechanisms, including soluble TNF (solTNF)-mediated NF-kB signaling. solTNF preferentially signals through type-1 TNF receptor (TNFR1), however, it can also bind to TNFR2, a receptor that is primarily expressed on leukocytes. Here, we investigate the TNFR2 expression pattern on human BRAFV600E+ melanomas and its role in solTNF-driven resistance reprogramming to MAPKi.

METHODS

Flow cytometry was used to test TNFR1, TNFR2 and CD271 expression on, as well as NF-kB phosphorylation in human BRAF-mutant melanoma. The ability of melanoma cell lines to acquire MAPKi resistance in response to recombinant or macrophage-derived TNF was evaluated using the MTT cytotoxicity assay. Gene editing was implemented to knock out or knock in TNF receptors in melanoma cell lines. Knockout and knock-in cell line variants were employed to assess the intrinsic roles of these receptors in TNF-induced resistance to MAPKi. Multicolor immunofluorescence microscopy was utilized to test TNFR2 expression by melanoma in patients receiving MAPKi therapy.

RESULTS

TNFR1 and TNFR2 are co-expressed at various levels on 4/7 BRAFV600E+ melanoma cell lines evaluated in this study. In vitro treatments with solTNF induce MAPKi resistance solely in TNFR2-expressing BRAFV600E+ melanoma cell lines. TNFR1 and TNFR2 knockout and knock-in studies indicate that solTNF-mediated MAPKi resistance in BRAFV600E+ melanomas is predicated on TNFR1 and TNFR2 co-expression, where TNFR1 is the central mediator of NF-kB signaling, while TNFR2 plays an auxiliary role. solTNF-mediated effects are transient and can be abrogated with biologics. Evaluation of patient specimens indicates that TNFR2 is expressed on 50% of primary BRAFV600E+ melanoma cells and that MAPKi therapy may lead to the enrichment of TNFR2-expressing tumor cells.

CONCLUSIONS

Our data suggest that TNFR2 is essential to solTNF-induced MAPKi resistance and a possible biomarker to identify melanoma patients that can benefit from solTNF-targeting therapies.

Localization of signaling receptors maximizes cellular information acquisition in spatially structured natural environments

Cells in natural environments, such as tissue or soil, sense and respond to extracellular ligands with intricately structured and non-monotonic spatial distributions, sculpted by processes such as fluid flow and substrate adhesion. In this work, we show that spatial sensing and navigation can be optimized by adapting the spatial organization of signaling pathways to the spatial structure of the environment. We develop an information-theoretic framework for computing the optimal spatial organization of a sensing system for a given signaling environment. We find that receptor localization previously observed in cells maximizes information acquisition in simulated natural contexts, including tissue and soil. Specifically, information acquisition is maximized when receptors form localized patches at regions of maximal ligand concentration. Receptor localization extends naturally to produce a dynamic protocol for continuously redistributing signaling receptors, which when implemented using simple feedback, boosts cell navigation efficiency by 30-fold.

Signaling pathways involved in ischemic stroke: molecular mechanisms and therapeutic interventions

Ischemic stroke is caused primarily by an interruption in cerebral blood flow, which induces severe neural injuries, and is one of the leading causes of death and disability worldwide. Thus, it is of great necessity to further detailly elucidate the mechanisms of ischemic stroke and find out new therapies against the disease. In recent years, efforts have been made to understand the pathophysiology of ischemic stroke, including cellular excitotoxicity, oxidative stress, cell death processes, and neuroinflammation. In the meantime, a plethora of signaling pathways, either detrimental or neuroprotective, are also highly involved in the forementioned pathophysiology. These pathways are closely intertwined and form a complex signaling network. Also, these signaling pathways reveal therapeutic potential, as targeting these signaling pathways could possibly serve as therapeutic approaches against ischemic stroke. In this review, we describe the signaling pathways involved in ischemic stroke and categorize them based on the pathophysiological processes they participate in. Therapeutic approaches targeting these signaling pathways, which are associated with the pathophysiology mentioned above, are also discussed. Meanwhile, clinical trials regarding ischemic stroke, which potentially target the pathophysiology and the signaling pathways involved, are summarized in details. Conclusively, this review elucidated potential molecular mechanisms and related signaling pathways underlying ischemic stroke, and summarize the therapeutic approaches targeted various pathophysiology, with particular reference to clinical trials and future prospects for treating ischemic stroke.

TNFR2 Costimulation Differentially Impacts Regulatory and Conventional CD4+ T-Cell Metabolism

CD4+ conventional T cells (Tconvs) mediate adaptive immune responses, whereas regulatory T cells (Tregs) suppress those responses to safeguard the body from autoimmunity and inflammatory diseases. The opposing activities of Tconvs and Tregs depend on the stage of the immune response and their environment, with an orchestrating role for cytokine- and costimulatory receptors. Nutrient availability also impacts T-cell functionality via metabolic and biosynthetic processes that are largely unexplored. Many data argue that costimulation by Tumor Necrosis Factor Receptor 2 (TNFR2) favors support of Treg over Tconv responses and therefore TNFR2 is a key clinical target. Here, we review the pertinent literature on this topic and highlight the newly identified role of TNFR2 as a metabolic regulator for thymus-derived (t)Tregs. We present novel transcriptomic and metabolomic data that show the differential impact of TNFR2 on Tconv and tTreg gene expression and reveal distinct metabolic impact on both cell types.

Early Feasibility Assessment: A Method for Accurately Predicting Biotherapeutic Dosing to Inform Early Drug Discovery Decisions

The application of model-informed drug discovery and development (MID3) approaches in the early stages of drug discovery can help determine feasibility of drugging a target, prioritize between targets, or define optimal drug properties for a target product profile (TPP). However, applying MID3 in early discovery can be challenging due to the lack of pharmacokinetic (PK) and pharmacodynamic (PD) data at this stage. Early Feasibility Assessment (EFA) is the application of mechanistic PKPD models, built from first principles, and parameterized by data that is readily available early in drug discovery to make effective dose predictions. This manuscript demonstrates the ability of EFA to make accurate predictions of clinical effective doses for nine approved biotherapeutics and outlines the potential of extending this approach to novel therapeutics to impact early drug discovery decisions.

Understanding the functional role of membrane confinements in TNF-mediated signaling by multiscale simulations

The interaction between TNFα and TNFR1 is essential in maintaining tissue development and immune responses. While TNFR1 is a cell surface receptor, TNFα exists in both soluble and membrane-bound forms. Interestingly, it was found that the activation of TNFR1-mediated signaling pathways is preferentially through the soluble form of TNFα, which can also induce the clustering of TNFR1 on plasma membrane of living cells. We developed a multiscale simulation framework to compare receptor clustering induced by soluble and membrane-bound ligands. Comparing with the freely diffusive soluble ligands, we hypothesize that the conformational dynamics of membrane-bound ligands are restricted, which affects the clustering of ligand-receptor complexes at cell-cell interfaces. Our simulation revealed that only small clusters can form if TNFα is bound on cell surface. In contrast, the clustering triggered by soluble TNFα is more dynamic, and the size of clusters is statistically larger. We therefore demonstrated the impact of membrane-bound ligand on dynamics of receptor clustering. Moreover, considering that larger TNFα-TNFR1 clusters is more likely to provide spatial platform for downstream signaling pathway, our studies offer new mechanistic insights about why the activation of TNFR1-mediated signaling pathways is not preferred by membrane-bound form of TNFα.

Targeting TNFR2 in Cancer: All Roads Lead to Rome

TNF receptor 2 (TNFR2) has become one of the best potential immune checkpoints that might be targeted, mainly because of its vital role in tumor microenvironments (TMEs). Overexpression of TNFR2 in some tumor cells and essential function in immunosuppressive cells, especially regulatory T cells (Tregs), makes blocking TNFR2 an excellent strategy in cancer treatment; however, there is evidence showing that activating TNFR2 can also inhibit tumor progression in vivo. In this review, we will discuss drugs that block and activate TNFR2 under clinical trials or preclinical developments up till now. Meanwhile, we summarize and explore the possible mechanisms related to them.

Tumor necrosis factor‑α in systemic lupus erythematosus: Structure, function and therapeutic implications (Review)

Tumor necrosis factor‑α (TNF‑α) is a pleiotropic pro‑inflammatory cytokine that contributes to the pathophysiology of several autoimmune diseases, such as multiple sclerosis, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriatic arthritis and systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE). The specific role of TNF‑α in autoimmunity is not yet fully understood however, partially, in a complex disease such as SLE. Through the engagement of the TNF receptor 1 (TNFR1) and TNF receptor 2 (TNFR2), both the two variants, soluble and transmembrane TNF‑α, can exert multiple biological effects according to different settings. They can either function as immune regulators, impacting B‑, T‑ and dendritic cell activity, modulating the autoimmune response, or as pro‑inflammatory mediators, regulating the induction and maintenance of inflammatory processes in SLE. The present study reviews the dual role of TNF‑α, focusing on the different effects that TNF‑α may have on the pathogenesis of SLE. In addition, the efficacy and safety of anti‑TNF‑α therapies in preclinical and clinical trials SLE are discussed.

Relationship between Dynamics of TNF-α and Its Soluble Receptors in Saliva and Periodontal Health State

Soluble tumor necrosis factor receptors 1 and 2 (sTNF-R1 and sTNF-R2) are reported to protect against excessive TNF-α, a primary mediator of systemic responses to infection. This study aimed to investigate the levels of TNF-α, sTNF-R1, and sTNF-R2 in saliva and to verify whether their dynamics are associated with periodontal health. The study population comprised 28 adult patients. Probing pocket depth, clinical attachment level, and bleeding on probing were assessed, and periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA) was calculated. Stimulated saliva was collected before the oral examinations. The levels of TNF-α, sTNF-R1, sTNF-R2, and total protein (TP) in saliva samples were determined. There were significant positive correlations between TNF-α, sTNF-R1, and sTNF-R2 to TP (/TP) in stimulated saliva. Moreover, there were significant positive correlations between PISA and sTNF-R2/TP. Stepwise multiple regression analysis revealed that PISA was significantly associated with sTNF-R2/TP in saliva; however, TNF-α/TP was not significantly associated with PISA. In conclusion, this study demonstrates that significant relationships exist between the salivary levels of TNF-α and sTNF-R1, and that salivary sTNF-R2 is associated with the expansion of inflamed periodontal tissue.

Receptor Specificity Engineering of TNF Superfamily Ligands

The tumor necrosis factor (TNF) ligand family has nine ligands that show promiscuity in binding multiple receptors. As different receptors transduce into diverse pathways, the study on the functional role of natural ligands is very complex. In this review, we discuss the TNF ligands engineering for receptor specificity and summarize the performance of the ligand variants in vivo and in vitro. Those variants have an increased binding affinity to specific receptors to enhance the cell signal conduction and have reduced side effects due to a lowered binding to untargeted receptors. Refining receptor specificity is a promising research strategy for improving the application of multi-receptor ligands. Further, the settled variants also provide experimental guidance for engineering receptor specificity on other proteins with multiple receptors.

Missense variants in the TNFA epitopes and their effects on interaction with therapeutic antibodies-in silico analysis

BACKGROUND

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFA) is an important cytokine that influences multiple biological processes. It is one of the key mediators of acute and chronic systemic inflammatory reactions and plays a central role in several autoimmune diseases. A number of approved monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are widely used to subside these autoimmune diseases. However, there is a high rate of non-responsiveness to treatments with these mAbs. Therefore, it is important to be able to predict responses of the patients in an individualistic manner to these therapeutic antibodies before administration. In the present study, we used in silico tools to explore the effects of missense variants in the respective epitopes of four therapeutic anti-TNFA mAbs-adalimumab (ADA), certolizumab pegol (CZP), golimumab (GLM), and infliximab (IFX)-on their interactions with TNFA.

RESULTS

The binding affinities of CZP and ADA to corresponding epitopes appear to be reduced by four (TNFAR131Q, TNFAE135G, TNFAR138Q, and TNFAR138W) and two (TNFAG66C and TNFAG66S) variants, respectively. The binding of GLM and IFX appears to be affected by TNFAR141S and TNFAR138W, respectively. TNFAG66C and TNFAG66S may be associated with autoimmune diseases, whereas TNFAE135G, TNFAR138W, and TNFAR141S may be pathogenic per se.

CONCLUSION

These variants may contribute to the observed inter-individual variability in response to anti-TNFA mAbs treatments and be used as markers to predict responses, and thus optimize therapeutic benefits to the patients.

TNFα in MS and Its Animal Models: Implications for Chronic Pain in the Disease

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a debilitating autoimmune disease often accompanied by severe chronic pain. The most common type of pain in MS, called neuropathic pain, arises from disease processes affecting the peripheral and central nervous systems. It is incredibly difficult to study these processes in patients, so animal models such as experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis (EAE) mice are used to dissect the complex mechanisms of neuropathic pain in MS. The pleiotropic cytokine tumor necrosis factor α (TNFα) is a critical factor mediating neuropathic pain identified by these animal studies. The TNF signaling pathway is complex, and can lead to cell death, inflammation, or survival. In complex diseases such as MS, signaling through the TNFR1 receptor tends to be pro-inflammation and death, whereas signaling through the TNFR2 receptor is pro-homeostatic. However, most TNFα-targeted therapies indiscriminately block both arms of the pathway, and thus are not therapeutic in MS. This review explores pain in MS, inflammatory TNF signaling, the link between the two, and how it could be exploited to develop more effective TNFα-targeting pain therapies.

PMA treatment fosters rat retinal ganglion cell survival via TNF signaling

An insult can trigger a protective response or even cell death depending on different factors that include the duration and magnitude of the event and the ability of the cell to activate protective intracellular signals, including inflammatory cytokines. Our previous work showed that the treatment of Lister Hooded rat retinal cell cultures with 50 ng/mL phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate (PMA), a protein kinase C activator, increases the survival of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs) kept in culture for 48 h after axotomy. Here we aim to analyze how PMA modulates the levels of TNF-α and IL-1β (both key inflammatory mediators) and the impact of this modulation on RGCs survival. We hypothesize that the increase in RGCs survival mediated by PMA treatment depends upon modulation of the levels of IL-1β and TNF-α. The effect of PMA treatment was assayed on cell viability, caspase 3 activation, TNF-α and IL-1β release and TNF receptor type I (TNFRI) and TNF receptor type II (TNFRII) levels. PMA treatment increases IL-1β and TNF-α levels in 15 min in culture and increases the release of both cytokines after 30 min and 24 h, respectively. Both IL-1β and TNF-α levels decrease after 48 h of PMA treatment. PMA treatment also induces an increase in TNFRII levels while decreasing TNFRI after 24 h. PMA also inhibited caspase-3 activation, and decreased ROS production and EthD-1/calcein ratio in retinal cell cultures leading to an increase in cell viability. The neutralization of IL-1β (anti-IL1β 0,1ng/mL), the neutralization of TNF-α (anti-TNF-α 0,1ng/mL) and the TNF-α inhibition using a recombinant soluble TNFRII abolished PMA effect on RGCs survival. These data suggest that PMA treatment induces IL1β and TNF-α release and modulation of TNFRI/TNFRII expression promoting RGCs survival after axotomy.

TNFα and Immune Checkpoint Inhibition: Friend or Foe for Lung Cancer?

Tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNFα) can bind two distinct receptors (TNFR1/2). The transmembrane form (tmTNFα) preferentially binds to TNFR2. Upon tmTNFα cleavage by the TNF-alpha-converting enzyme (TACE), its soluble (sTNFα) form is released with higher affinity for TNFR1. This assortment empowers TNFα with a plethora of opposing roles in the processes of tumor cell survival (and apoptosis) and anti-tumor immune stimulation (and suppression), in addition to angiogenesis and metastases. Its functions and biomarker potential to predict cancer progression and response to immunotherapy are reviewed here, with a focus on lung cancer. By mining existing sequencing data, we further demonstrate that the expression levels of TNF and TACE are significantly decreased in lung adenocarcinoma patients, while the TNFR1/TNFR2 balance are increased. We conclude that the biomarker potential of TNFα alone will most likely not provide conclusive findings, but that TACE could have a key role along with the delicate balance of sTNFα/tmTNFα as well as TNFR1/TNFR2, hence stressing the importance of more research into the potential of rationalized treatments that combine TNFα pathway modulators with immunotherapy for lung cancer patients.

TNF-α: The shape of small molecules to come?

In 2020, the anti-tumor necrosis factor (TNF) monoclonal antibody Humira® generated US$165.8 billion in cumulative sales and snatched the crown for the industry's most successful drug from Lipitor (atorvastatin). TNF-α is a major component in beneficial and disease-related inflammation and TNF-α-inhibitor biologics have gained widespread use in autoimmune diseases, such as rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Many more diseases could benefit from TNF-α inhibitors, such as Alzheimer's disease (AD) or major depression. However, the nature of TNF-α-inhibitor biologics prohibits central nervous system (CNS) applications. Moreover, high drug production costs and pricing, together with antidrug immune reactions and insufficient patient coverage, argue for the development of small-molecule drugs. Recently, drug-like orally available small molecules were described with high activity in animal disease models with activities comparable to those of antibodies.

A cross-linked anti-TNF-α aptamer for neutralization of TNF-α-induced cutaneous Shwartzman phenomenon: A simple and novel approach for improving aptamers' affinity and efficiency

To increase the efficiency of aptamers to their targets, a simple and novel method has been developed based on aptamer oligomerization. To this purpose, previously anti-human TNF-α aptamer named T1-T4 was trimerized through a trimethyl aconitate core for neutralization of in vitro and in vivo of TNF-α. At first, 54 mer T1-T4 aptamers with 5'-NH₂ groups were covalently coupled to three ester residues in the trimethyl aconitate. In vitro activity of novel anti-TNF-α aptamer and its dissociation constant (K_d ) was done using the L929 cell cytotoxicity assay. In vivo anti-TNF-α activity of new oligomerized aptamer was assessed in a mouse model of cutaneous Shwartzman. Anchoring of three T1-T4 aptamers to trimethyl aconitate substituent results in formation of the 162 mer fragment, which was well revealed by gel electrophoresis. In vitro study indicated that the trimerization of T1-T4 aptamer significantly improved its anti-TNF-α activity compared to non-modified aptamers (P < 0.0001) from 40% to 60%. The determination of K_d showed that trimerization could effectively enhance K_d of aptamer from 67 nM to 36 nM. In vivo study showed that trimer aptamer markedly reduced mean scar size from 15.2 ± 1.2 mm to 1.6 ± 0.1 mm (P < 0.0001), which prevent the formation of skin lesions. In vitro and in vivo studies indicate that trimerization of anti-TNF-α aptamer with a novel approach could improve the anti-TNF-α activity and therapeutic efficacy. According to our findings, a new anti-TNF-α aptamer described here could be considered an appropriate therapeutic agent in treating several inflammatory diseases.

A variable-gain stochastic pooling motif mediates information transfer from receptor assemblies into NF-κB

A myriad of inflammatory cytokines regulate signaling pathways to maintain cellular homeostasis. The IκB kinase (IKK) complex is an integration hub for cytokines that govern nuclear factor κB (NF-κB) signaling. In response to inflammation, IKK is activated through recruitment to receptor-associated protein assemblies. How and what information IKK complexes transmit about the milieu are open questions. Here, we track dynamics of IKK complexes and nuclear NF-κB to identify upstream signaling features that determine same-cell responses. Experiments and modeling of single complexes reveal their size, number, and timing relays cytokine-specific control over shared signaling mechanisms with feedback regulation that is independent of transcription. Our results provide evidence for variable-gain stochastic pooling, a noise-reducing motif that enables cytokine-specific regulation and parsimonious information transfer. We propose that emergent properties of stochastic pooling are general principles of receptor signaling that have evolved for constructive information transmission in noisy molecular environments.

Upregulation of COX-2 and PGE2 Induced by TNF-α Mediated Through TNFR1/MitoROS/PKCα/P38 MAPK, JNK1/2/FoxO1 Cascade in Human Cardiac Fibroblasts

Purpose

Tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) has been shown to exert as a pathogenic factor in cardiac fibrosis and heart failure which were associated with the up-regulation of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2/prostaglandin E₂ (PGE₂) axis. However, whether TNF-α-induced COX-2/PGE₂ upregulation mediated through ROS-dependent cascade remains elusive in human cardiac fibroblasts (HCFs). This study aims to address the underlying mechanisms of TNF-α-induced COX-2/PGE₂ expression.

Methods

Here, we used TNF receptor neutralizing antibody (TNFR nAb), pharmacologic inhibitors, and siRNAs to dissect the involvement of signaling components examined by Western blot and ELISA in TNF-α-mediated responses in HCFs. MitoSOX Red was used to measure mitoROS generation. Isolation of subcellular fractions was performed to determine membrane translocation of PKCα. Promoter luciferase assay and chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) assay were used to determine the role of transcription factor.

Results

We found that TNF-α time- and concentration-dependently upregulated COX-2 protein and mRNA expression as well as PGE₂ synthesis which was attenuated by TNFR1 nAb, the inhibitor of mitochondrial ROS scavenger (MitoTEMPO), protein kinase C [(PKC)α, Gö6976], p38 MAPK [p38 inhibitor VIII, (p38i VIII)], JNK1/2 (SP600125), or forkhead box protein O1 [(FoxO1), AS1842856], and transfection with their respective siRNAs in HCFs. TNF-α-stimulated PKCα phosphorylation was inhibited by TNFR1 nAb, MitoTEMPO, or Gö6976. TNF-α stimulated phosphorylation of p38 MAPK and JNK1/2 was attenuated by TNFR1 nAb, MitoTEMPO, Gö6976, and their inhibitors p38i VIII and SP600125. Moreover, TNF-α-triggered FoxO1 phosphorylation was abolished by AS1842856, TNFR1 nAb, and its upstream inhibitors MitoTEMPO, Gö6976, p38i VIII, and SP600125. Phosphorylation of FoxO1 could enhance its interaction with the COX-2 promoter element revealed by ChIP assay, which was attenuated by AS1842856.

Conclusion

Our results suggested that TNF-α-induced COX-2/PGE₂ upregulation is mediated through TNFR1-dependent MitoROS/PKCα/p38 MAPK and JNK1/2 cascade to activate FoxO1 binding with the COX-2 promoter in HCFs.