1
|
Lamers-Kok N, Panella D, Georgoudaki AM, Liu H, Özkazanc D, Kučerová L, Duru AD, Spanholtz J, Raimo M. Natural killer cells in clinical development as non-engineered, engineered, and combination therapies. J Hematol Oncol 2022; 15:164. [DOI: 10.1186/s13045-022-01382-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 10/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
AbstractNatural killer (NK) cells are unique immune effectors able to kill cancer cells by direct recognition of surface ligands, without prior sensitization. Allogeneic NK transfer is a highly valuable treatment option for cancer and has recently emerged with hundreds of clinical trials paving the way to finally achieve market authorization. Advantages of NK cell therapies include the use of allogenic cell sources, off-the-shelf availability, and no risk of graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). Allogeneic NK cell therapies have reached the clinical stage as ex vivo expanded and differentiated non-engineered cells, as chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-engineered or CD16-engineered products, or as combination therapies with antibodies, priming agents, and other drugs. This review summarizes the recent clinical status of allogeneic NK cell-based therapies for the treatment of hematological and solid tumors, discussing the main characteristics of the different cell sources used for NK product development, their use in cell manufacturing processes, the engineering methods and strategies adopted for genetically modified products, and the chosen approaches for combination therapies. A comparative analysis between NK-based non-engineered, engineered, and combination therapies is presented, examining the choices made by product developers regarding the NK cell source and the targeted tumor indications, for both solid and hematological cancers. Clinical trial outcomes are discussed and, when available, assessed in comparison with preclinical data. Regulatory challenges for product approval are reviewed, highlighting the lack of specificity of requirements and standardization between products. Additionally, the competitive landscape and business field is presented. This review offers a comprehensive overview of the effort driven by biotech and pharmaceutical companies and by academic centers to bring NK cell therapies to pivotal clinical trial stages and to market authorization.
Collapse
|
2
|
Bates PD, Rakhmilevich AL, Cho MM, Bouchlaka MN, Rao SL, Hales JM, Orentas RJ, Fry TJ, Gilles SD, Sondel PM, Capitini CM. Combining Immunocytokine and Ex Vivo Activated NK Cells as a Platform for Enhancing Graft-Versus-Tumor Effects Against GD2 + Murine Neuroblastoma. Front Immunol 2021; 12:668307. [PMID: 34489927 PMCID: PMC8417312 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2021.668307] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/16/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Management for high-risk neuroblastoma (NBL) has included autologous hematopoietic stem cell transplant (HSCT) and anti-GD2 immunotherapy, but survival remains around 50%. The aim of this study was to determine if allogeneic HSCT could serve as a platform for inducing a graft-versus-tumor (GVT) effect against NBL with combination immunocytokine and NK cells in a murine model. Lethally irradiated C57BL/6 (B6) x A/J recipients were transplanted with B6 bone marrow on Day +0. On day +10, allogeneic HSCT recipients were challenged with NXS2, a GD2+ NBL. On days +14-16, mice were treated with the anti-GD2 immunocytokine hu14.18-IL2. In select groups, hu14.18-IL2 was combined with infusions of B6 NK cells activated with IL-15/IL-15Rα and CD137L ex vivo. Allogeneic HSCT alone was insufficient to control NXS2 tumor growth, but the addition of hu14.18-IL2 controlled tumor growth and improved survival. Adoptive transfer of ex vivo CD137L/IL-15/IL-15Rα activated NK cells with or without hu14.18-IL2 exacerbated lethality. CD137L/IL-15/IL-15Rα activated NK cells showed enhanced cytotoxicity and produced high levels of TNF-α in vitro, but induced cytokine release syndrome (CRS) in vivo. Infusing Perforin-/- CD137L/IL-15/IL-15Rα activated NK cells had no impact on GVT, whereas TNF-α-/- CD137L/IL-15/IL-15Rα activated NK cells improved GVT by decreasing peripheral effector cell subsets while preserving tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes. Depletion of Ly49H+ NK cells also improved GVT. Using allogeneic HSCT for NBL is a viable platform for immunocytokines and ex vivo activated NK cell infusions, but must be balanced with induction of CRS. Regulation of TNFα or activating NK subsets may be needed to improve GVT effects.
Collapse
MESH Headings
- Animals
- Antineoplastic Agents, Immunological/pharmacology
- Cell Line, Tumor
- Combined Modality Therapy
- Cytokines/pharmacology
- Female
- Gangliosides/antagonists & inhibitors
- Gangliosides/immunology
- Gangliosides/metabolism
- Graft vs Tumor Effect
- Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
- Immunotherapy, Adoptive
- Killer Cells, Natural/drug effects
- Killer Cells, Natural/immunology
- Killer Cells, Natural/metabolism
- Killer Cells, Natural/transplantation
- Lymphocyte Activation/drug effects
- Mice, Inbred BALB C
- Mice, Inbred C57BL
- Mice, Transgenic
- Neuroblastoma/immunology
- Neuroblastoma/metabolism
- Neuroblastoma/pathology
- Neuroblastoma/therapy
- Mice
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Paul D. Bates
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Alexander L. Rakhmilevich
- Department of Human Oncology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Monica M. Cho
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
- Pediatric Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Myriam N. Bouchlaka
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Seema L. Rao
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Joanna M. Hales
- Pediatric Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Rimas J. Orentas
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, United States
- Ben Towne Center for Childhood Cancer Research, Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Terry J. Fry
- Pediatric Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO, United States
| | | | - Paul M. Sondel
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
- Department of Human Oncology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
- Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| | - Christian M. Capitini
- Department of Pediatrics, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
- Carbone Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, United States
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Shaim H, Shanley M, Basar R, Daher M, Gumin J, Zamler DB, Uprety N, Wang F, Huang Y, Gabrusiewicz K, Miao Q, Dou J, Alsuliman A, Kerbauy LN, Acharya S, Mohanty V, Mendt M, Li S, Lu J, Wei J, Fowlkes NW, Gokdemir E, Ensley EL, Kaplan M, Kassab C, Li L, Ozcan G, Banerjee PP, Shen Y, Gilbert AL, Jones CM, Bdiwi M, Nunez-Cortes AK, Liu E, Yu J, Imahashi N, Muniz-Feliciano L, Li Y, Hu J, Draetta G, Marin D, Yu D, Mielke S, Eyrich M, Champlin RE, Chen K, Lang FF, Shpall EJ, Heimberger AB, Rezvani K. Targeting the αv integrin/TGF-β axis improves natural killer cell function against glioblastoma stem cells. J Clin Invest 2021; 131:e142116. [PMID: 34138753 DOI: 10.1172/jci142116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 121] [Impact Index Per Article: 40.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2020] [Accepted: 06/03/2021] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Glioblastoma multiforme (GBM), the most aggressive brain cancer, recurs because glioblastoma stem cells (GSCs) are resistant to all standard therapies. We showed that GSCs, but not normal astrocytes, are sensitive to lysis by healthy allogeneic natural killer (NK) cells in vitro. Mass cytometry and single-cell RNA sequencing of primary tumor samples revealed that GBM tumor-infiltrating NK cells acquired an altered phenotype associated with impaired lytic function relative to matched peripheral blood NK cells from patients with GBM or healthy donors. We attributed this immune evasion tactic to direct cell-to-cell contact between GSCs and NK cells via αv integrin-mediated TGF-β activation. Treatment of GSC-engrafted mice with allogeneic NK cells in combination with inhibitors of integrin or TGF-β signaling or with TGFBR2 gene-edited allogeneic NK cells prevented GSC-induced NK cell dysfunction and tumor growth. These findings reveal an important mechanism of NK cell immune evasion by GSCs and suggest the αv integrin/TGF-β axis as a potentially useful therapeutic target in GBM.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Hila Shaim
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA.,Department of Internal Medicine II, University Medical Center Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Mayra Shanley
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Rafet Basar
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - May Daher
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | | | | | - Nadima Uprety
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Fang Wang
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | - Yuefan Huang
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | | | - Qi Miao
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | - Jinzhuang Dou
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | - Abdullah Alsuliman
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Lucila N Kerbauy
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Sunil Acharya
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Vakul Mohanty
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | - Mayela Mendt
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Sufang Li
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - JunJun Lu
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | | | | | - Elif Gokdemir
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Emily L Ensley
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Mecit Kaplan
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | | | - Li Li
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Gonca Ozcan
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Pinaki P Banerjee
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Yifei Shen
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | - April L Gilbert
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Corry M Jones
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Mustafa Bdiwi
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Ana K Nunez-Cortes
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Enli Liu
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Jun Yu
- Department of Neurosurgery
| | - Nobuhiko Imahashi
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Luis Muniz-Feliciano
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Ye Li
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Jian Hu
- Department of Cancer Biology, and
| | | | - David Marin
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Dihua Yu
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Stephan Mielke
- Department of Internal Medicine II, University Medical Center Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany.,Department of Hematology, Karolinska Institute, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Matthias Eyrich
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Richard E Champlin
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | - Ken Chen
- Department of Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
| | | | - Elizabeth J Shpall
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| | | | - Katayoun Rezvani
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, Texas, USA
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
McArdel SL, Dugast AS, Hoover ME, Bollampalli A, Hong E, Castano Z, Leonard SC, Pawar S, Mellen J, Muriuki K, McLaughlin DC, Bayhi N, Carpenter CL, Turka LA, Wickham TJ, Elloul S. Anti-tumor effects of RTX-240: an engineered red blood cell expressing 4-1BB ligand and interleukin-15. Cancer Immunol Immunother 2021; 70:2701-2719. [PMID: 34244816 PMCID: PMC8360899 DOI: 10.1007/s00262-021-03001-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/28/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Recombinant agonists that activate co-stimulatory and cytokine receptors have shown limited clinical anticancer utility, potentially due to narrow therapeutic windows, the need for coordinated activation of co-stimulatory and cytokine pathways and the failure of agonistic antibodies to recapitulate signaling by endogenous ligands. RTX-240 is a genetically engineered red blood cell expressing 4-1BBL and IL-15/IL-15Rα fusion (IL-15TP). RTX-240 is designed to potently and simultaneously stimulate the 4-1BB and IL-15 pathways, thereby activating and expanding T cells and NK cells, while potentially offering an improved safety profile through restricted biodistribution. We assessed the ability of RTX-240 to expand and activate T cells and NK cells and evaluated the in vivo efficacy, pharmacodynamics and tolerability using murine models. Treatment of PBMCs with RTX-240 induced T cell and NK cell activation and proliferation. In vivo studies using mRBC-240, a mouse surrogate for RTX-240, revealed biodistribution predominantly to the red pulp of the spleen, leading to CD8 + T cell and NK cell expansion. mRBC-240 was efficacious in a B16-F10 melanoma model and led to increased NK cell infiltration into the lungs. mRBC-240 significantly inhibited CT26 tumor growth, in association with an increase in tumor-infiltrating proliferating and cytotoxic CD8 + T cells. mRBC-240 was tolerated and showed no evidence of hepatic injury at the highest feasible dose, compared with a 4-1BB agonistic antibody. RTX-240 promotes T cell and NK cell activity in preclinical models and shows efficacy and an improved safety profile. Based on these data, RTX-240 is now being evaluated in a clinical trial.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | - Enping Hong
- Rubius Therapeutics® Inc., Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | - Sneha Pawar
- Rubius Therapeutics® Inc., Cambridge, MA, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
5
|
Generating natural killer cells for adoptive transfer: expanding horizons. Cytotherapy 2021; 23:559-566. [PMID: 33431318 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2020.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2020] [Revised: 10/22/2020] [Accepted: 12/07/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are unique innate lymphoid cells that have therapeutic potential in adoptive cell transfer-based cancer immunotherapy that has been established across a range of early-phase clinical trials. NK cells for use in adoptive transfer therapies are obtained from various sources, including primary NK cells from peripheral blood or apheresis products (autologous or allogeneic) and umbilical cord blood. NK cells have also been generated from CD34+ hematopoietic progenitors, induced pluripotent stem cells, embryonic stem cells and malignant cell lines. Apheresis-derived NK cell products are often administered after brief cytokine-based ex vivo activation, ideally aiming for in vivo expansion and proliferation. NK cells from other sources or from smaller volumes of blood require a longer period of expansion prior to therapeutic use. Although ex vivo NK cell expansion introduces a concern for senescence and exhaustion, there is also an opportunity to achieve higher NK cell doses, modulate NK cell activation characteristics and apply genetic engineering approaches, ultimately generating potent effector cells from small volumes of readily available starting materials. Herein the authors review the field of clinical-grade NK cell expansion, explore the desirable features of an idealized NK cell expansion approach and focus on techniques used in recently published clinical trials.
Collapse
|
6
|
Zobel MJ, Zamora AK, Wu HW, Sun J, Lascano D, Malvar J, Wang L, Sheard MA, Seeger RC, Kim ES. Initiation of immunotherapy with activated natural killer cells and anti-GD2 antibody dinutuximab prior to resection of primary neuroblastoma prolongs survival in mice. J Immunother Cancer 2020; 8:jitc-2020-001560. [PMID: 33428582 PMCID: PMC7751216 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-001560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Immunotherapy with anti-disialoganglioside dinutuximab has improved survival for children with high-risk neuroblastoma (NB) when given after induction chemotherapy and surgery. However, disease recurrence and resistance persist. Dinutuximab efficacy has not been evaluated when initiated before primary tumor removal. Using a surgical mouse model of human NB, we examined if initiating dinutuximab plus ex vivo-activated natural killer (aNK) cells before resection of the primary tumor improves survival. Methods In vitro, human NB cells (SMS-KCNR-Fluc, CHLA-255-Fluc) were treated with dinutuximab and/or aNK cells and cytotoxicity was measured. In vivo, NB cells (SMS-KCNR-Fluc, CHLA-255-Fluc, or COG-N-415x PDX) were injected into the kidney of NOD-scid gamma mice. Mice received eight intravenous infusions of aNK cells plus dinutuximab beginning either 12 days before or 2 days after resection of primary tumors. Tumors in control mice were treated by resection alone or with immunotherapy alone. Disease was quantified by bioluminescent imaging and survival was monitored. aNK cell infiltration into primary tumors was quantified by flow cytometry and immunohistochemistry at varying timepoints. Results In vitro, aNK cells and dinutuximab were more cytotoxic than either treatment alone. In vivo, treatment with aNK cells plus dinutuximab prior to resection of the primary tumor was most effective in limiting metastatic disease and prolonging survival. aNK cell infiltration into xenograft tumors was observed after 1 day and peaked at 5 days following injection. Conclusion Dinutuximab plus aNK cell immunotherapy initiated before resection of primary tumors decreases disease burden and prolongs survival in an experimental mouse model of NB. These findings support the clinical investigation of this treatment strategy during induction therapy in patients with high-risk NB.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Michael John Zobel
- Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Abigail K Zamora
- Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Hong-Wei Wu
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Jianping Sun
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Danny Lascano
- Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Jemily Malvar
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Larry Wang
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Michael A Sheard
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Robert C Seeger
- Division of Hematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Eugene S Kim
- Division of Pediatric Surgery, Department of Surgery, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA .,Department of Surgery, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, California, USA
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Tschan-Plessl A, Kalberer CP, Wieboldt R, Stern M, Siegler U, Wodnar-Filipowicz A, Gerull S, Halter J, Heim D, Tichelli A, Tsakiris DA, Malmberg KJ, Passweg JR, Bottos A. Cellular immunotherapy with multiple infusions of in vitro-expanded haploidentical natural killer cells after autologous transplantation for patients with plasma cell myeloma. Cytotherapy 2020; 23:329-338. [PMID: 33268029 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2020.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2020] [Revised: 09/18/2020] [Accepted: 09/22/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AIMS To investigate the feasibility and safety of haploidentical natural killer (NK) cell infusions as consolidation immunotherapy after autologous stem cell transplant (ASCT) in patients with plasma cell myeloma. METHODS Ten patients (median age, 59 years) received induction treatment followed by high-dose melphalan (200 mg/m2) at day -1, ASCT at day 0 and increasing NK cell doses (1.5 × 106, 1.5 × 107 and multiple doses of 1.0 × 108 cells/kg body weight) from day +1 to day +30 after ASCT. NK cells were harvested and purified from peripheral blood of haploidentical donors and expanded for 19 days with interleukin (IL)-2 and IL-15 under Good Manufacturing Practice conditions. RESULTS NK cell numbers increased 56.0-fold (37.4- to 75.5-fold). Patients received a median of 3.8 × 108 (0.9-5.7 × 108) NK cells/kg body weight in six (three to eight) infusions. Multiparametric mass cytometry analysis demonstrated an altered surface receptor repertoire of expanded NK cells with increased degranulation and cytokine production activities but diminished expression of perforin. Donor NK cells were detectable in the peripheral blood, peaking 1 h after each dose (up to 90% donor NK cells). The treatment was safe and well tolerated, without evidence of graft-versus-host disease. Comparison with a control patient population receiving ASCT without NK cell infusions showed no significant difference in relapse, progression-free survival and overall survival. CONCLUSIONS This study demonstrates reliable manufacturing of high numbers of activated NK cells for multiple-dose infusions and safe administration of these cellular products. The trial was registered at ClinicalTrials.gov (identifier no. NCT01040026).
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Astrid Tschan-Plessl
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland.
| | - Christian P Kalberer
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Ronja Wieboldt
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Martin Stern
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Uwe Siegler
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | | | - Sabine Gerull
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Jörg Halter
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Dominik Heim
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - André Tichelli
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Dimitrios A Tsakiris
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Karl-Johan Malmberg
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway; Department of Medicine, Huddinge, Center for Infectious Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Karolinska University Hospital, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Jakob R Passweg
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| | - Alessia Bottos
- Clinical and Diagnostic Hematology, University Hospital Basel, Basel, Switzerland
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Michen S, Frosch J, Füssel M, Schackert G, Momburg F, Temme A. Artificial feeder cells expressing ligands for killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors and CD94/NKG2A for expansion of functional primary natural killer cells with tolerance to self. Cytotherapy 2020; 22:354-368. [PMID: 32451262 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2020.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Revised: 02/07/2020] [Accepted: 02/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AIMS Natural killer (NK) cells are promising cells for immunotherapy of cancer, and there are ongoing efforts to improve their ex vivo expansion to clinically relevant numbers. This study focused on the development of a C1-, C2-, Bw4 killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIR) ligand and NKG2A ligand-containing feeder cell line for autonomous expansion of functional NK cells. METHODS PC3PSCA-derived feeder cells expressing IL-2, 4-1BBL and membrane-bound IL-15-mutDAP12 (mIL-15d) fusion protein in combinations or alone were generated and used for expansion. Expanded NK cells were analyzed with respect to subpopulations, expression of NK cell receptors and immune checkpoint molecules as well as their cytotoxicity against K562 cells, cetuximab-marked tumor cells and autologous B cells. RESULTS Only combinatorial expression of IL-2 plus 4-1BBL or IL-2, 4-1BBL plus mIL-15d in feeder cells efficiently expanded NK cells and supported selective outgrowth of NK cells from peripheral blood mononuclear cell samples. Best expansion of NK cells was achieved using PC3PSCA-IL-2-4-1BBL-mIL-15d feeder cells. Such expanded NK cells exhibited upregulation of natural cytotoxicity receptors, DNAM-1 and NKG2C and induced expression of high affinity IL-2 receptor, which were paralleled by attenuated KIR and increased expression of NKG2A and ILT2. In addition, elevated TIM-3 levels were noted and PD-1 and T cell immunoreceptor with Ig and ITIM domain (TIGIT) levels remained low. Expanded NK cells were highly cytolytic when encountering K562 cells and cetuximab-marked target cells but remained unresponsive to autologous B cells and target cells with protective levels of human leukocyte antigen. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, the results demonstrate the feasibility of PC3PSCA-IL-2-4-1BBL-mIL-15d feeder cells for robust expansion of NK cells, which remain tolerant to self and could be used in the future for adoptive cell therapy of cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Susanne Michen
- Department of Neurosurgery, Section Experimental Neurosurgery/Tumor Immunology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universitat Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Jennifer Frosch
- Department of Neurosurgery, Section Experimental Neurosurgery/Tumor Immunology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universitat Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | | | - Gabriele Schackert
- Department of Neurosurgery, Section Experimental Neurosurgery/Tumor Immunology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universitat Dresden, Dresden, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Partner Site Dresden, Dresden, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany; National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Dresden, Germany
| | - Frank Momburg
- Antigen Presentation and T/NK Cell Activation Group (D121), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany; Clinical Cooperation Unit "Applied Tumor Immunity" (D120), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Achim Temme
- Department of Neurosurgery, Section Experimental Neurosurgery/Tumor Immunology, University Hospital Carl Gustav Carus, Technische Universitat Dresden, Dresden, Germany; German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Partner Site Dresden, Dresden, Germany; German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany; National Center for Tumor Diseases (NCT), Dresden, Germany.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Abstract
The clinical success of chimeric antigen receptor-directed T cells in leukemia and lymphoma has boosted the interest in cellular therapy of cancer. It has been known for nearly half a century that a subset of lymphocytes called natural killer (NK) cells can recognize and kill cancer cells, but their clinical potential as therapeutics has not yet been fully explored. Progress in methods to expand and genetically modify human NK cells has resulted in technologies that allow the production of large numbers of highly potent cells with specific anticancer activity. Here, we describe clinically applicable protocols for NK cell engineering, including expansion of NK cells and genetic modification using electroporation of messenger RNA.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Noriko Shimasaki
- Departments of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore.
| | - Dario Campana
- Departments of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore, Singapore
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Lee DA. Cellular therapy: Adoptive immunotherapy with expanded natural killer cells. Immunol Rev 2019; 290:85-99. [DOI: 10.1111/imr.12793] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/05/2019] [Revised: 06/27/2019] [Accepted: 06/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Dean A. Lee
- Department of Hematology, Oncology, and Bone Marrow Transplantation Nationwide Children's Hospital Columbus Ohio
- Department of Pediatrics The Ohio State University Columbus Ohio
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Fang F, Xiao W, Tian Z. Challenges of NK cell-based immunotherapy in the new era. Front Med 2018; 12:440-450. [PMID: 30047028 DOI: 10.1007/s11684-018-0653-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2018] [Accepted: 06/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
Natural killer cells (NKs) have a great potential for cancer immunotherapy because they can rapidly and directly kill transformed cells in the absence of antigen presensitization. Various cellular sources, including peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs), stem cells, and NK cell lines, have been used for producing NK cells. In particular, NK cells that expanded from allogeneic PBMCs exhibit better efficacy than those that did not. However, considering the safety, activities, and reliability of the cell products, researchers must develop an optimal protocol for producing NK cells from PBMCs in the manufacture setting and clinical therapeutic regimen. In this review, the challenges on NK cell-based therapeutic approaches and clinical outcomes are discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fang Fang
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, Innovation Center for Cell Signaling Network, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, China
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, Hefei, 230027, China
| | - Weihua Xiao
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, Innovation Center for Cell Signaling Network, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, China.
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, Hefei, 230027, China.
| | - Zhigang Tian
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, Innovation Center for Cell Signaling Network, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, 230027, China.
- Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, Hefei, 230027, China.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
NK Cell-derived Exosomes From NK Cells Previously Exposed to Neuroblastoma Cells Augment the Antitumor Activity of Cytokine-activated NK Cells. J Immunother 2018. [PMID: 28622272 DOI: 10.1097/cji.0000000000000179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Immune cell-derived exosomes can increase immunity against tumors. In contrast, tumor-derived exosomes can reduce the immunity and can change the tumor microenvironment to further develop and provide metastasis. These effects take place by an alteration in the innate and adaptive immune cell functions. In this experiment, we studied the natural killer (NK) cells' effectiveness on tumor cells after expansion and thereafter incubated it with exosomes. The exosomes were derived from 2 populations of NK cells: (1) naive NK cells and, (2) NK cells previously exposed to neuroblastoma (NB) cells. Moreover, we have studied the NB-derived exosomes on NK cell function. The molecular load of the characterized exosomes (by means of nanoparticle-tracking analysis, flow cytometry, scanning electron microscopy, and western blot) from NK cells exposed to the NB cell revealed their expression of natural killer cell receptors in addition to CD56, NKG2D, and KIR2DL2 receptors. These exosomes were used to treat NK cells and thereafter administered to NB tumor cells both in vitro and in vivo. Our results showed some kind of NK cells' education by the exosomes. This education from NK cells previously exposed to NB cell-derived exosomes caused efficient and greater cytotoxicity against NB tumors, but NB-derived exosomes act as tumor promoters by providing a tumor supporting niche. Hence, this method of preparing the exosomes has a dramatic effect on activation of anti-NK cells against NB cells.
Collapse
|
13
|
Wagner JA, Rosario M, Romee R, Berrien-Elliott MM, Schneider SE, Leong JW, Sullivan RP, Jewell BA, Becker-Hapak M, Schappe T, Abdel-Latif S, Ireland AR, Jaishankar D, King JA, Vij R, Clement D, Goodridge J, Malmberg KJ, Wong HC, Fehniger TA. CD56bright NK cells exhibit potent antitumor responses following IL-15 priming. J Clin Invest 2017; 127:4042-4058. [PMID: 28972539 DOI: 10.1172/jci90387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 201] [Impact Index Per Article: 28.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2016] [Accepted: 08/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
NK cells, lymphocytes of the innate immune system, are important for defense against infectious pathogens and cancer. Classically, the CD56dim NK cell subset is thought to mediate antitumor responses, whereas the CD56bright subset is involved in immunomodulation. Here, we challenge this paradigm by demonstrating that brief priming with IL-15 markedly enhanced the antitumor response of CD56bright NK cells. Priming improved multiple CD56bright cell functions: degranulation, cytotoxicity, and cytokine production. Primed CD56bright cells from leukemia patients demonstrated enhanced responses to autologous blasts in vitro, and primed CD56bright cells controlled leukemia cells in vivo in a murine xenograft model. Primed CD56bright cells from multiple myeloma (MM) patients displayed superior responses to autologous myeloma targets, and furthermore, CD56bright NK cells from MM patients primed with the IL-15 receptor agonist ALT-803 in vivo displayed enhanced ex vivo functional responses to MM targets. Effector mechanisms contributing to IL-15-based priming included improved cytotoxic protein expression, target cell conjugation, and LFA-1-, CD2-, and NKG2D-dependent activation of NK cells. Finally, IL-15 robustly stimulated the PI3K/Akt/mTOR and MEK/ERK pathways in CD56bright compared with CD56dim NK cells, and blockade of these pathways attenuated antitumor responses. These findings identify CD56bright NK cells as potent antitumor effectors that warrant further investigation as a cancer immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Julia A Wagner
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Maximillian Rosario
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Rizwan Romee
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Melissa M Berrien-Elliott
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Stephanie E Schneider
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Jeffrey W Leong
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Ryan P Sullivan
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Brea A Jewell
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Michelle Becker-Hapak
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Timothy Schappe
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Sara Abdel-Latif
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Aaron R Ireland
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Devika Jaishankar
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Justin A King
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Ravi Vij
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| | - Dennis Clement
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway.,The KG Jebsen Centre for Cancer Immunotherapy, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Jodie Goodridge
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
| | - Karl-Johan Malmberg
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital, Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway.,The KG Jebsen Centre for Cancer Immunotherapy, Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.,Centre for Infectious Medicine, Department of Medicine Huddinge, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Todd A Fehniger
- Department of Medicine, Division of Oncology, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri, USA
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Vahedi F, Nham T, Poznanski SM, Chew MV, Shenouda MM, Lee D, Ashkar AA. Ex Vivo Expanded Human NK Cells Survive and Proliferate in Humanized Mice with Autologous Human Immune Cells. Sci Rep 2017; 7:12083. [PMID: 28935883 PMCID: PMC5608690 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-12223-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/20/2017] [Accepted: 09/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Adoptive immune cell therapy is emerging as a promising immunotherapy for cancer. Particularly, the adoptive transfer of NK cells has garnered attention due to their natural cytotoxicity against tumor cells and safety upon adoptive transfer to patients. Although strategies exist to efficiently generate large quantities of expanded NK cells ex vivo, it remains unknown whether these expanded NK cells can persist and/or proliferate in vivo in the absence of exogenous human cytokines. Here, we have examined the adoptive transfer of ex vivo expanded human cord blood-derived NK cells into humanized mice reconstituted with autologous human cord blood immune cells. We report that ex vivo expanded NK cells are able to survive and possibly proliferate in vivo in humanized mice without exogenous cytokine administration, but not in control mice that lack human immune cells. These findings demonstrate that the presence of autologous human immune cells supports the in vivo survival of ex vivo expanded human NK cells. These results support the application of ex vivo expanded NK cells in cancer immunotherapy and provide a translational humanized mouse model to test the lifespan, safety, and functionality of adoptively transferred cells in the presence of autologous human immune cells prior to clinical use.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Fatemeh Vahedi
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Tina Nham
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sophie M Poznanski
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Marianne V Chew
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Mira M Shenouda
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Dean Lee
- Cellular Therapy and Cancer Immunology Program, Department of Hematology/Oncology and BMT, Nationwide Children's Hospital, The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center, Columbus, United States
| | - Ali A Ashkar
- Department of Pathology and Molecular Medicine, McMaster Immunology Research Centre, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Wu Y, Tian Z, Wei H. Developmental and Functional Control of Natural Killer Cells by Cytokines. Front Immunol 2017; 8:930. [PMID: 28824650 PMCID: PMC5543290 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.00930] [Citation(s) in RCA: 181] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2017] [Accepted: 07/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are effective in combating infections and tumors and as such are tempting for adoptive transfer therapy. However, they are not homogeneous but can be divided into three main subsets, including cytotoxic, tolerant, and regulatory NK cells, with disparate phenotypes and functions in diverse tissues. The development and functions of such NK cells are controlled by various cytokines, such as fms-like tyrosine kinase 3 ligand (FL), kit ligand (KL), interleukin (IL)-3, IL-10, IL-12, IL-18, transforming growth factor-β, and common-γ chain family cytokines, which operate at different stages by regulating distinct signaling pathways. Nevertheless, the specific roles of each cytokine that regulates NK cell development or that shapes different NK cell functions remain unclear. In this review, we attempt to describe the characteristics of each cytokine and the existing protocols to expand NK cells using different combinations of cytokines and feeder cells. A comprehensive understanding of the role of cytokines in NK cell development and function will aid the generation of better efficacy for adoptive NK cell treatment.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yang Wu
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Zhigang Tian
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| | - Haiming Wei
- Institute of Immunology and the CAS Key Laboratory of Innate Immunity and Chronic Disease, School of Life Sciences and Medical Center, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China.,Hefei National Laboratory for Physical Sciences at Microscale, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, China
| |
Collapse
|
16
|
Oberschmidt O, Kloess S, Koehl U. Redirected Primary Human Chimeric Antigen Receptor Natural Killer Cells As an "Off-the-Shelf Immunotherapy" for Improvement in Cancer Treatment. Front Immunol 2017. [PMID: 28649246 PMCID: PMC5465249 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.00654] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Primary human natural killer (NK) cells recognize and subsequently eliminate virus infected cells, tumor cells, or other aberrant cells. However, cancer cells are able to develop tumor immune escape mechanisms to undermine this immune control. To overcome this obstacle, NK cells can be genetically modified to express chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) in order to improve specific recognition of cancer surface markers (e.g., CD19, CD20, and ErbB2). After target recognition, intracellular CAR domain signaling (CD3ζ, CD28, 4-1BB, and 2B4) leads to activation of PI3K or DNAX proteins (DAP10, DAP12) and finally to enhanced cytotoxicity, proliferation, and/or interferon γ release. This mini-review summarizes both the first preclinical trials with CAR-engineered primary human NK cells and the translational implications for “off-the-shelf immunotherapy” in cancer treatment. Signal transduction in NK cells as well as optimization of CAR signaling will be described, becoming more and more a focal point of interest in addition to redirected T cells. Finally, strategies to overcome off-target effects will be discussed in order to improve future clinical trials and to avoid attacking healthy tissues.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Olaf Oberschmidt
- Institute of Cellular Therapeutics, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Stephan Kloess
- Institute of Cellular Therapeutics, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Ulrike Koehl
- Institute of Cellular Therapeutics, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Fang F, Xiao W, Tian Z. NK cell-based immunotherapy for cancer. Semin Immunol 2017; 31:37-54. [DOI: 10.1016/j.smim.2017.07.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 156] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2017] [Accepted: 07/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
|
18
|
Granzin M, Wagner J, Köhl U, Cerwenka A, Huppert V, Ullrich E. Shaping of Natural Killer Cell Antitumor Activity by Ex Vivo Cultivation. Front Immunol 2017; 8:458. [PMID: 28491060 PMCID: PMC5405078 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.00458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 113] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/28/2017] [Accepted: 04/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells are a promising tool for the use in adoptive immunotherapy, since they efficiently recognize and kill tumor cells. In this context, ex vivo cultivation is an attractive option to increase NK cells in numbers and to improve their antitumor potential prior to clinical applications. Consequently, various strategies to generate NK cells for adoptive immunotherapy have been developed. Here, we give an overview of different NK cell cultivation approaches and their impact on shaping the NK cell antitumor activity. So far, the cytokines interleukin (IL)-2, IL-12, IL-15, IL-18, and IL-21 are used to culture and expand NK cells. The selection of the respective cytokine combination is an important factor that directly affects NK cell maturation, proliferation, survival, distribution of NK cell subpopulations, activation, and function in terms of cytokine production and cytotoxic potential. Importantly, cytokines can upregulate the expression of certain activating receptors on NK cells, thereby increasing their responsiveness against tumor cells that express the corresponding ligands. Apart from using cytokines, cocultivation with autologous accessory non-NK cells or addition of growth-inactivated feeder cells are approaches for NK cell cultivation with pronounced effects on NK cell activation and expansion. Furthermore, ex vivo cultivation was reported to prime NK cells for the killing of tumor cells that were previously resistant to NK cell attack. In general, NK cells become frequently dysfunctional in cancer patients, for instance, by downregulation of NK cell activating receptors, disabling them in their antitumor response. In such scenario, ex vivo cultivation can be helpful to arm NK cells with enhanced antitumor properties to overcome immunosuppression. In this review, we summarize the current knowledge on NK cell modulation by different ex vivo cultivation strategies focused on increasing NK cytotoxicity for clinical application in malignant diseases. Moreover, we critically discuss the technical and regulatory aspects and challenges underlying NK cell based therapeutic approaches in the clinics.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Markus Granzin
- Clinical Research, Miltenyi Biotec Inc., Gaithersburg, MD, USA
| | - Juliane Wagner
- Division for Stem Cell Transplantation and Immunology, Department for Children and Adolescents Medicine, Hospital of the Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany.,LOEWE Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Cellular Immunology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Ulrike Köhl
- Institute of Cellular Therapeutics, Integrated Research and Treatment Center Transplantation, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Adelheid Cerwenka
- Innate Immunity Group, German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany.,Division of Immunbiochemistry, Medical Faculty Mannheim, Heidelberg University, Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Volker Huppert
- R&D Reagents, Miltenyi Biotec GmbH, Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
| | - Evelyn Ullrich
- Division for Stem Cell Transplantation and Immunology, Department for Children and Adolescents Medicine, Hospital of the Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany.,LOEWE Center for Cell and Gene Therapy, Cellular Immunology, Goethe University, Frankfurt, Germany
| |
Collapse
|
19
|
Jong AY, Wu CH, Li J, Sun J, Fabbri M, Wayne AS, Seeger RC. Large-scale isolation and cytotoxicity of extracellular vesicles derived from activated human natural killer cells. J Extracell Vesicles 2017; 6:1294368. [PMID: 28326171 PMCID: PMC5345580 DOI: 10.1080/20013078.2017.1294368] [Citation(s) in RCA: 154] [Impact Index Per Article: 22.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2016] [Revised: 11/29/2016] [Accepted: 12/06/2016] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Extracellular vesicles (EVs) have been the focus of great interest, as they appear to be involved in numerous important cellular processes. They deliver bioactive macromolecules such as proteins, lipids, and nucleic acids, allowing intercellular communication in multicellular organisms. EVs are secreted by all cell types, including immune cells such as natural killer cells (NK), and they may play important roles in the immune system. Currently, a large-scale procedure to obtain functional NK EVs is lacking, limiting their use clinically. In this report, we present a simple, robust, and cost-effective method to isolate a large quantity of NK EVs. After propagating and activating NK cells ex vivo and then incubating them in exosome-free medium for 48 h, EVs were isolated using a polymer precipitation method. The isolated vesicles contain the tetraspanin CD63, an EV marker, and associated proteins (fibronectin), but are devoid of cytochrome C, a cytoplasmic marker. Nanoparticle tracking analysis showed a size distribution between 100 and 200 nm while transmission electron microscopy imaging displayed vesicles with an oval shape and comparable sizes, fulfilling the definition of EV. Importantly, isolated EV fractions were cytotoxic against cancer cells. Furthermore, our results demonstrate for the first time that isolated activated NK (aNK) cell EVs contain the cytotoxic proteins perforin, granulysin, and granzymes A and B, incorporated from the aNK cells. Activation of caspase -3, -7 and -9 was detected in cancer cells incubated with aNK EVs, and caspase inhibitors blocked aNK EV-induced cytotoxicity, suggesting that aNK EVs activate caspase pathways in target cells. The ability to isolate functional aNK EVs on a large scale may lead to new clinical applications. Abbreviations: NK: natural killer cells; activated NK (aNK) cells; EVs: extracellular vesicles; ALL: acute lymphoblastic leukaemia; aAPC: artificial antigen-presenting cell; TEM: transmission electron microscope; PBMC: peripheral blood mononuclear cells; FBS: foetal bovine serum.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ambrose Y Jong
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Chun-Hua Wu
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Jingbo Li
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Jianping Sun
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Muller Fabbri
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Alan S Wayne
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| | - Robert C Seeger
- Children's Center for Cancer and Blood Diseases and Division of Hematology, Oncology and Blood & Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, The Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, USC-Norris Comprehensive Cancer Center, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California , Los Angeles , CA , USA
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Adoptive immunotherapy for hematological malignancies: Current status and new insights in chimeric antigen receptor T cells. Blood Cells Mol Dis 2016; 62:49-63. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bcmd.2016.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2016] [Revised: 11/05/2016] [Accepted: 11/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
|
21
|
Vargas-Inchaustegui DA, Ying O, Demberg T, Robert-Guroff M. Evaluation of Functional NK Cell Responses in Vaccinated and SIV-Infected Rhesus Macaques. Front Immunol 2016; 7:340. [PMID: 27630641 PMCID: PMC5005425 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2016.00340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2016] [Accepted: 08/22/2016] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
NK cells are crucial components of the innate immune system due to their capacity to exert rapid cytotoxic and immunomodulatory function in the absence of prior sensitization. NK cells can become activated by exposure to target cells and/or by cytokines produced by antigen-presenting cells. In this study, we examined the effects of a simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV) vaccine regimen and subsequent SIV infection on the cytotoxic and immunomodulatory functions of circulatory NK cells. While vaccination did not significantly impact the capacity of NK cells to kill MHC-devoid 721.221 target cells, SIV-infection led to a significant decrease in target cell killing. NK cells from uninfected macaques were responsive to a low dose (5 ng/ml) of IL-15 pre-activation, leading to significant increases in their cytotoxic potential, however, NK cells from SIV-infected macaques required a higher dose (50 ng/ml) of IL-15 pre-activation in order to significantly increase their cytotoxic potential. By contrast, no differences were observed in the capacity of NK cells from vaccinated and SIV-infected macaques to respond to IL-12 and IL-18. Similarly, NK cells both before and after infection exhibited equivalent responses to Fc-mediated activation. Collectively, our results show that early SIV-infection impairs the natural cytotoxic capacity of circulatory NK cells without affecting Fc-mediated or cytokine-producing function.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Diego A Vargas-Inchaustegui
- Vaccine Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD , USA
| | - Olivia Ying
- Vaccine Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD , USA
| | - Thorsten Demberg
- Vaccine Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD , USA
| | - Marjorie Robert-Guroff
- Vaccine Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health , Bethesda, MD , USA
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
TRAIL-mediated killing of acute lymphoblastic leukemia by plasmacytoid dendritic cell-activated natural killer cells. Oncotarget 2016; 6:29440-55. [PMID: 26320191 PMCID: PMC4745738 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.4984] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2015] [Accepted: 07/12/2015] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) still frequently recurs after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), underscoring the need to improve the graft-versus-leukemia (GvL) effect. Natural killer (NK) cells reconstitute in the first months following HSCT when leukemia burden is at its lowest, but ALL cells have been shown to be resistant to NK cell-mediated killing. We show here that this resistance is overcome by NK cell stimulation with TLR-9-activated plasmacytoid dendritic cells (pDCs). NK cell priming with activated pDCs resulted in TRAIL and CD69 up-regulation on NK cells and IFN-γ production. NK cell activation was dependent on IFN-α produced by pDCs, but was not reproduced by IFN-α alone. ALL killing was further enhanced by inhibition of KIR engagement. We showed that ALL lysis was mainly mediated by TRAIL engagement, while the release of cytolytic granules was involved when ALL expressed NK cell activating receptor ligands. Finally, adoptive transfers of activated-pDCs in ALL-bearing humanized mice delayed the leukemia onset and cure 30% of mice. Our data therefore demonstrate that TLR-9 activated pDCs are a powerful tool to overcome ALL resistance to NK cell-mediated killing and to reinforce the GvL effect of HSCT. These results open new therapeutic avenues to prevent relapse in children with ALL.
Collapse
|
23
|
Shimasaki N, Coustan-Smith E, Kamiya T, Campana D. Expanded and armed natural killer cells for cancer treatment. Cytotherapy 2016; 18:1422-1434. [PMID: 27497701 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2016.06.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2016] [Revised: 06/11/2016] [Accepted: 06/16/2016] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The capacity of natural killer (NK) cells to recognize and kill transformed cells suggests that their infusion could be used to treat cancer. It is difficult to obtain large numbers of NK cells ex vivo by exposure to cytokines alone but the addition of stimulatory cells to the cultures can induce NK cell proliferation and long-term expansion. Some of these methods have been validated for clinical-grade application and support clinical trials testing feasibility and safety of NK cell administration. Early data indicate that ex vivo expansion of NK cells from healthy donors or from patients with cancer is robust, allowing multiple infusions from a single apheresis. NK cells can transiently expand in vivo after infusion. Allogeneic NK cells are not direct effectors of graft-versus-host disease but this may occur if donor NK cells are infused after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant, which may activate T cell alloreactivity. NK cells can be directed with antibodies, or engineered using either transient modification by electroporation of mRNA or prolonged gene expression by viral transduction. Thus, expanded NK cells can be armed with activating receptors that enhance their natural anti-tumor capacity or with chimeric antigen receptors that can redirect them towards specific tumor targets. They can also be induced to express cytokines that promote their autonomous growth, further supporting their in vivo expansion. With the implementation of these approaches, expanded and armed NK cells should ultimately become a powerful component of immunotherapy of cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Noriko Shimasaki
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Elaine Coustan-Smith
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Takahiro Kamiya
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore
| | - Dario Campana
- Department of Pediatrics, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Thompson PA, Rezvani K, Hosing CM, Oran B, Olson AL, Popat UR, Alousi AM, Shah ND, Parmar S, Bollard C, Hanley P, Kebriaei P, Cooper L, Kellner J, McNiece IK, Shpall EJ. Umbilical cord blood graft engineering: challenges and opportunities. Bone Marrow Transplant 2016; 50 Suppl 2:S55-62. [PMID: 26039209 DOI: 10.1038/bmt.2015.97] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
We are entering a very exciting era in umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT), where many of the associated formidable challenges may become treatable by ex vivo graft manipulation and/or adoptive immunotherapy utilizing specific cellular products. We envisage the use of double UCBT rather than single UCBT for most patients; this allows for greater ability to treat larger patients as well as to manipulate the graft. Ex vivo expansion and/or fucosylation of one cord will achieve more rapid engraftment, minimize the period of neutropenia and also give certainty that the other cord will provide long-term engraftment/immune reconstitution. The non-expanded (and future dominant) cord could be chosen for characteristics such as better HLA matching to minimize GvHD, or larger cell counts to enable part of the unit to be utilized for the development of specific cellular therapies such as the production of virus-specific T-cells or chimeric-antigen receptor T-cells which are reviewed in this study.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- P A Thompson
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - K Rezvani
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - C M Hosing
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - B Oran
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - A L Olson
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - U R Popat
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - A M Alousi
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - N D Shah
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - S Parmar
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - C Bollard
- Center for Cell Therapy and Department of Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - P Hanley
- Center for Cell Therapy and Department of Immunology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, TX, USA
| | - P Kebriaei
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - L Cooper
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - J Kellner
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - I K McNiece
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - E J Shpall
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, UT MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells have gained significant attention for adoptive immunotherapy of cancer due to their well-documented antitumor function. In order to evaluate the therapeutic efficacy of NK cell adoptive immunotherapy in preclinical models with a potential for clinical translation, there is a need for a reliable platform for ex vivo expansion of NK cells. Numerous methods are reported in literature using cytokines and feeder cells to activate and expand human NK cells, and many of these methods are limited by low-fold expansion, cytokine dependency of expanded NK cells or expansion-related senescence. In this chapter, a robust NK cell expansion protocol is described using K562 cell line gene modified to express membrane bound IL21 (K562 mb.IL21). We had previously demonstrated that this platform enables the highest fold expansion of NK cells reported in the literature to date (>47,000-folds in 21 days), and produces highly activated and pure NK cells without signs of senescence, as determined by telomere shortening.
Collapse
|
26
|
Cellular and Antibody Based Approaches for Pediatric Cancer Immunotherapy. J Immunol Res 2015; 2015:675269. [PMID: 26587548 PMCID: PMC4637498 DOI: 10.1155/2015/675269] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2015] [Accepted: 08/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Progress in the use of traditional chemotherapy and radiation-based strategies for the treatment of pediatric malignancies has plateaued in the past decade, particularly for patients with relapsing or therapy refractory disease. As a result, cellular and humoral immunotherapy approaches have been investigated for several childhood cancers. Several monoclonal antibodies are now FDA approved and commercially available, some of which are currently considered standard of practice. There are also several new cellular immunotherapy approaches under investigation, including chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) modified T cells, cancer vaccines and adjuvants, and natural killer (NK) cell therapies. In this review, we will discuss previous studies on pediatric cancer immunotherapy and new approaches that are currently being investigated in clinical trials.
Collapse
|
27
|
Therapeutic approaches to enhance natural killer cell cytotoxicity against cancer: the force awakens. Nat Rev Drug Discov 2015; 14:487-98. [PMID: 26000725 DOI: 10.1038/nrd4506] [Citation(s) in RCA: 185] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Scientific insights into the human immune system have recently led to unprecedented breakthroughs in immunotherapy. In the twenty-first century, drugs and cell-based therapies developed to bolster humoral and T cell immunity represent an established and growing component of cancer therapeutics. Although natural killer (NK) cells have long been known to have advantages over T cells in terms of their capacity to induce antigen-independent host immune responses against malignancies, their therapeutic potential in the clinic has been largely unexplored. A growing number of scientific discoveries into pathways that both activate and suppress NK cell function, as well as methods to sensitize tumours to NK cell cytotoxicity, have led to the development of numerous pharmacological and genetic methods to enhance NK cell antitumour immunity. These findings, as well as advances in our ability to expand NK cells ex vivo and manipulate their capacity to home to the tumour, have now provided investigators with a variety of new methods and strategies to harness the full potential of NK cell-based cancer immunotherapy in the clinic.
Collapse
|
28
|
LI XIAOMEI, HE CHENHUI, LIU CHANGZHEN, MA JUAN, MA PAN, CUI HONGLIAN, TAO HUA, GAO BIN. Expansion of NK cells from PBMCs using immobilized 4-1BBL and interleukin-21. Int J Oncol 2015; 47:335-42. [DOI: 10.3892/ijo.2015.3005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2015] [Accepted: 04/02/2015] [Indexed: 11/05/2022] Open
|
29
|
Anguille S, Van Acker HH, Van den Bergh J, Willemen Y, Goossens H, Van Tendeloo VF, Smits EL, Berneman ZN, Lion E. Interleukin-15 Dendritic Cells Harness NK Cell Cytotoxic Effector Function in a Contact- and IL-15-Dependent Manner. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0123340. [PMID: 25951230 PMCID: PMC4423923 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0123340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2014] [Accepted: 03/02/2015] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The contribution of natural killer (NK) cells to the treatment efficacy of dendritic cell (DC)-based cancer vaccines is being increasingly recognized. Much current efforts to optimize this form of immunotherapy are therefore geared towards harnessing the NK cell-stimulatory ability of DCs. In this study, we investigated whether generation of human monocyte-derived DCs with interleukin (IL)-15 followed by activation with a Toll-like receptor stimulus endows these DCs, commonly referred to as "IL-15 DCs", with the capacity to stimulate NK cells. In a head-to-head comparison with "IL-4 DCs" used routinely for clinical studies, IL-15 DCs were found to induce a more activated, cytotoxic effector phenotype in NK cells, in particular in the CD56bright NK cell subset. With the exception of GM-CSF, no significant enhancement of cytokine/chemokine secretion was observed following co-culture of NK cells with IL-15 DCs. IL-15 DCs, but not IL-4 DCs, promoted NK cell tumoricidal activity towards both NK-sensitive and NK-resistant targets. This effect was found to require cell-to-cell contact and to be mediated by DC surface-bound IL-15. This study shows that DCs can express a membrane-bound form of IL-15 through which they enhance NK cell cytotoxic function. The observed lack of membrane-bound IL-15 on "gold-standard" IL-4 DCs and their consequent inability to effectively promote NK cell cytotoxicity may have important implications for the future design of DC-based cancer vaccine studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sébastien Anguille
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
- Center for Cell Therapy & Regenerative Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, Edegem, Belgium
| | - Heleen H. Van Acker
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Johan Van den Bergh
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Yannick Willemen
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Herman Goossens
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Viggo F. Van Tendeloo
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Evelien L. Smits
- Center for Cell Therapy & Regenerative Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, Edegem, Belgium
- Center for Oncological Research, University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Zwi N. Berneman
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
- Center for Cell Therapy & Regenerative Medicine, Antwerp University Hospital, Edegem, Belgium
| | - Eva Lion
- Laboratory of Experimental Hematology, Tumor Immunology Group (TIGR), Vaccine & Infectious Disease Institute (VAXINFECTIO), University of Antwerp, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Antwerp, Belgium
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Abstract
The past decade has seen several anticancer immunotherapeutic strategies transition from "promising preclinical models" to treatments with proven clinical activity or benefit. In 2013, the journal Science selected the field of Cancer Immunotherapy as the overall number-1 breakthrough for the year in all of scientific research. In the setting of cancer immunotherapy for adult malignancies, many of these immunotherapy strategies have relied on the cancer patient's endogenous antitumor T-cell response. Although much promising research in pediatric oncology is similarly focused on T-cell reactivity, several pediatric malignancies themselves, or the chemo-radiotherapy used to achieve initial responses, can be associated with profound immune suppression, particularly of the T-cell system. A separate component of the immune system, also able to mediate antitumor effects and less suppressed by conventional cancer treatment, is the NK-cell system. In recent years, several distinct immunotherapeutic approaches that rely on the activity of NK cells have moved from preclinical development into clinical testing, and some have shown clear antitumor benefit. This review provides an overview of NK cell-based immunotherapy efforts that are directed toward childhood malignancies, with an emphasis on protocols that are already in clinical testing.
Collapse
|
31
|
Acute GVHD in patients receiving IL-15/4-1BBL activated NK cells following T-cell-depleted stem cell transplantation. Blood 2014; 125:784-92. [PMID: 25452614 DOI: 10.1182/blood-2014-07-592881] [Citation(s) in RCA: 184] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Natural killer (NK) cells can enhance engraftment and mediate graft-versus-leukemia following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), but the potency of graft-versus-leukemia mediated by naturally reconstituting NK cells following HSCT is limited. Preclinical studies demonstrate that activation of NK cells using interleukin-15 (IL-15) plus 4-1BBL upregulates activating receptor expression and augments killing capacity. In an effort to amplify the beneficial effects of NK cells post-HSCT, we conducted a first-in-human trial of adoptive transfer of donor-derived IL-15/4-1BBL-activated NK cells (aNK-DLI) following HLA-matched, T-cell-depleted (1-2 × 10(4) T cells/kg) nonmyeloablative peripheral blood stem cell transplantation in children and young adults with ultra-high-risk solid tumors. aNK-DLI were CD3(+)-depleted, CD56(+)-selected lymphocytes, cultured for 9 to 11 days with recombinant human IL-15 plus 4-1BBL(+)IL-15Rα(+) artificial antigen-presenting cells. aNK-DLI demonstrated potent killing capacity and displayed high levels of activating receptor expression. Five of 9 transplant recipients experienced acute graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) following aNK-DLI, with grade 4 GVHD observed in 3 subjects. GVHD was more common in matched unrelated donor vs matched sibling donor recipients and was associated with higher donor CD3 chimerism. Given that the T-cell dose was below the threshold required for GVHD in this setting, we conclude that aNK-DLI contributed to the acute GVHD observed, likely by augmenting underlying T-cell alloreactivity. This trial was registered at www.clinicaltrials.gov as #NCT01287104.
Collapse
|
32
|
Abstract
After decades of research, immunotherapies for cancer are demonstrating increasing success. These agents can amplify existent antitumour immunity or induce durable antitumour immune responses in a wide array of cancers. The spectrum of immunotherapeutics is broad, spanning monoclonal antibodies and their derivatives, tumour vaccines, and adoptive therapies using T cells and natural killer cells. Only a small number of immunotherapies have been tested in paediatric cancers, but impressive antitumour effects have already been observed. Mononclonal antibodies targeting GD2 that induce antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity improve survival in high-risk neuroblastoma. Bi-specific monoclonal antibodies that simultaneously target CD19 and activate T cells can induce remission in acute B-cell lymphoblastic leukaemia (B-ALL) and adoptive immunotherapy using T cells genetically engineered to express chimeric antigen receptors targeting CD19 induce impressive responses in B-ALL. Efforts are underway to generate and test new immunotherapies in a wider array of paediatric cancers. Major challenges include a need to identify immunotherapy targets on the most lethal childhood cancers, to expand availability of technology-intense platforms, such as adoptive cell therapy, to optimize management of novel toxicities associated with this new class of cancer therapies and to determine how best to incorporate these therapies into standard treatment paradigms.
Collapse
|
33
|
Jiang B, Wu X, Li XN, Yang X, Zhou Y, Yan H, Wei AH, Yan W. Expansion of NK cells by engineered K562 cells co-expressing 4-1BBL and mMICA, combined with soluble IL-21. Cell Immunol 2014; 290:10-20. [PMID: 24859012 DOI: 10.1016/j.cellimm.2014.04.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/21/2014] [Revised: 04/11/2014] [Accepted: 04/15/2014] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
NK cells hold promise for protecting hosts from cancer and pathogen infection through direct killing and expressing immune-regulatory cytokines. In our study, a genetically modified K562 cell line with surface expression of 4-1BBL and MICA was constructed to expand functional NK cells in vitro for further adoptive immunotherapy against cancer. After a long-term up to 21 day co-culture with newly isolated peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) in the presence of soluble IL-21 (sIL-21), notable increase in proportion of expanded NK cells was observed, especially the CD56(bright)CD16(+) subset. Apparent up-regulation of activating receptors CD38, CD69 and NKG2D was detected on expanded NK cells, so did inhibitory receptor CD94; the cytotoxicity of expanded NK cells against target tumor cells exceeded that of NK cells within fresh PBMCs. The intracellular staining showed expanded NK cells produced immune-regulatory IFN-γ. Taken together, we expanded NK cells with significant up-regulation of activating NKG2D and moderate enhancement of cytotoxicity, with IFN-γ producing ability and a more heterogeneous population of NK cells. These findings provide a novel perspective on expanding NK cells in vitro for further biology study and adoptive immunotherapy of NK cells against cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Bo Jiang
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Xuan Wu
- First Hospital of Jilin University, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Xi-Ning Li
- Department of Endemic Diseases, Jilin University, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Xi Yang
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Yulai Zhou
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Haowei Yan
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - An-Hui Wei
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China
| | - Weiqun Yan
- Department of Biological Engineering, College of Pharmacy, Jilin University, 1266 Fu Jin Road, Changchun 130021, Jilin Province, China.
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Implication of different effector mechanisms by cord blood-derived and peripheral blood-derived cytokine-induced killer cells to kill precursor B acute lymphoblastic leukemia cell lines. Cytotherapy 2014; 16:845-56. [PMID: 24529554 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2013.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2013] [Revised: 12/12/2013] [Accepted: 12/26/2013] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AIMS Cytokine-induced killer (CIK) cells ex vivo-expanded from cord blood (CB) or peripheral blood (PB) have been shown to be cytotoxic against autologous and allogeneic tumor cells. We have previously shown that CD56(+) CIK cells (CD3(+)CD56(+) and CD3(-)CD56(+)) are capable of killing precursor B-cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B-ALL) cell lines. However, the lytic pathways used by CD56(+) PB and CB-CIK cells to kill B-ALL cell lines have not been studied. METHODS CB and PB-CIK cells were differentiated. CD56(+) CB- and PB-CIK cells were compared for expression of different phenotypic markers and for the lytic pathways used to kill B-ALL cell lines. RESULTS We found that cytotoxic granule proteins were expressed at higher levels in CD56(+) PB-CIK than in CD56(+) CB-CIK cells. However, CD56(+) CB-CIK cells expressed more tumor necrosis factor-related apoptosis-inducing ligand (TRAIL) compared with CD56(+) PB-CIK cells. We observed that CD56(+) CB-CIK cells used both the NKG2D and TRAIL cytotoxic pathways and were more effective at killing REH cells than CD56(+) PB-CIK cells that used only the NKG2D pathway. In contrast, CD56(+) PB-CIK cells used both NKG2D and TRAIL pathways to kill NALM6 cells, whereas CD56(+) CB-CIK cells used only the NKG2D pathway. CONCLUSIONS Our results suggest that both the source of CIK and the type of B-ALL cell line have an impact on the intensity of the cytolytic activity and on the pathway used. These findings may have clinical implications with respect to optimizing therapeutic efficacy, which may be dependent on the source of the CIK cells and on the target tumor cells.
Collapse
|
35
|
Brehm C, Huenecke S, Pfirrmann V, Rossig C, Mackall CL, Bollard CM, Gottschalk S, Schlegel PG, Klingebiel T, Bader P. Highlights of the third International Conference on Immunotherapy in Pediatric Oncology. Pediatr Hematol Oncol 2013; 30:349-66. [PMID: 23758210 DOI: 10.3109/08880018.2013.802106] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The third International Conference on Immunotherapy in Pediatric Oncology was held in Frankfurt/Main, Germany, October 1-2, 2012. Major topics of the conference included (i) cellular therapies using antigen-specific and gene-modified T cells for targeting leukemia and pediatric solid tumors; (ii) overcoming hurdles and barriers with regard to immunogenicity, immune escape, and the role of tumor microenvironment; (iii) vaccine strategies and antigen presentation; (iv) haploidentical transplantation and innate immunity; (v) the role of immune cells in allogeneic transplantation; and (vi) current antibody/immunoconjugate approaches for the treatment of pediatric malignancies. During the past decade, major advances have been made in improving the efficacy of these modalities and regulatory hurdles have been taken. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go to fully exploit the potential of immunotherapeutic strategies to improve the cure of children and adolescents with malignancies. This and future meetings will support new collaborations and insights for further translational and clinical immunotherapy studies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Claudia Brehm
- Department for Stem Cell Transplantation and Immunology, J.W. Goethe-University Hospital, University Hospital for Children and Adolescents, Frankfurt/Main, Germany
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
36
|
Liu Y, Wu HW, Sheard MA, Sposto R, Somanchi SS, Cooper LJN, Lee DA, Seeger RC. Growth and activation of natural killer cells ex vivo from children with neuroblastoma for adoptive cell therapy. Clin Cancer Res 2013; 19:2132-43. [PMID: 23378384 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-12-1243] [Citation(s) in RCA: 75] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Adoptive transfer of natural killer (NK) cells combined with tumor-specific monoclonal antibodies (mAb) has therapeutic potential for malignancies. We determined if large numbers of activated NK (aNK) cells can be grown ex vivo from peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of children with high-risk neuroblastoma using artificial antigen-presenting cells (aAPC). EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN Irradiated K562-derived Clone 9.mbIL21 aAPC were cocultured with PBMC, and propagated NK cells were characterized with flow cytometry, cytotoxicity assays, Luminex multicytokine assays, and a nonobese diabetic/severe combined immunodeficient (NOD/SCID) mouse model of disseminated neuroblastoma. RESULTS Coculturing patient PBMC with aAPC for 14 days induced 2,363- ± 443-fold expansion of CD56(+)CD3(-)CD14(-) NK cells with 83% ± 3% purity (n = 10). Results were similar to PBMC from normal donors (n = 5). Expression of DNAM-1, NKG2D, FcγRIII/CD16, and CD56 increased 6- ± 3-, 10- ± 2-, 21- ± 20-, and 18- ± 3-fold, respectively, on day 14 compared with day 0, showing activation of NK cells. In vitro, aNK cells were highly cytotoxic against neuroblastoma cell lines and killing was enhanced with GD2-specific mAb ch14.18. When mediating cytotoxicity with ch14.18, release of TNF-α, granulocyte macrophage colony-stimulating factor, IFN-γ, sCD40L, CCL2/MCP-1, CXCL9/MIG, and CXCL11/I-TAC by aNK cells increased 4-, 5-, 6-, 15-, 265-, 917-, and 363-fold (151-9,121 pg/mL), respectively, compared with aNK cells alone. Survival of NOD/SCID mice bearing disseminated neuroblastoma improved when treated with thawed and immediately intravenously infused cryopreserved aNK cells compared with untreated mice and was further improved when ch14.18 was added. CONCLUSION Propagation of large numbers of aNK cells that maintain potent antineuroblastoma activities when cryopreserved supports clinical testing of adoptive cell therapy with ch14.18.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yin Liu
- Division of Hematology/Oncology and Saban Research Institute, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
37
|
|
38
|
Childs RW, Berg M. Bringing natural killer cells to the clinic: ex vivo manipulation. HEMATOLOGY. AMERICAN SOCIETY OF HEMATOLOGY. EDUCATION PROGRAM 2013; 2013:234-46. [PMID: 24319186 PMCID: PMC6610030 DOI: 10.1182/asheducation-2013.1.234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Recently, there has been a substantial gain in our understanding of the role that natural killer (NK) cells play in mediating innate host immune responses against viruses and cancer. Although NK cells have long been known to be capable of killing cancer cells independently of antigen recognition, the full therapeutic potential of NK cell-based immunotherapy has yet to be realized. Here we review novel methods to activate and expand human NK cells ex vivo for adoptive transfer in humans, focusing on the important phenotypic and functional differences observed among freshly isolated, cytokine activated, and ex vivo-expanded NK populations.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Richard W. Childs
- Section of Transplantation Immunotherapy, Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| | - Maria Berg
- Section of Transplantation Immunotherapy, Hematology Branch, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Soland MA, Bego MG, Colletti E, Porada CD, Zanjani ED, St Jeor S, Almeida-Porada G. Modulation of human mesenchymal stem cell immunogenicity through forced expression of human cytomegalovirus us proteins. PLoS One 2012; 7:e36163. [PMID: 22666319 PMCID: PMC3364258 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0036163] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2011] [Accepted: 04/01/2012] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) are promising candidates for cell therapy, as they migrate to areas of injury, differentiate into a broad range of specialized cells, and have immunomodulatory properties. However, MSC are not invisible to the recipient's immune system, and upon in vivo administration, allogeneic MSC are able to trigger immune responses, resulting in rejection of the transplanted cells, precluding their full therapeutic potential. Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) has developed several strategies to evade cytotoxic T lymphocyte (CTL) and Natural Killer (NK) cell recognition. Our goal is to exploit HCMV immunological evasion strategies to reduce MSC immunogenicity. Methodology/Principal Findings We genetically engineered human MSC to express HCMV proteins known to downregulate HLA-I expression, and investigated whether modified MSC were protected from CTL and NK attack. Flow cytometric analysis showed that amongst the US proteins tested, US6 and US11 efficiently reduced MSC HLA-I expression, and mixed lymphocyte reaction demonstrated a corresponding decrease in human and sheep mononuclear cell proliferation. NK killing assays showed that the decrease in HLA-I expression did not result in increased NK cytotoxicity, and that at certain NK∶MSC ratios, US11 conferred protection from NK cytotoxic effects. Transplantation of MSC-US6 or MSC-US11 into pre-immune fetal sheep resulted in increased liver engraftment when compared to control MSC, as demonstrated by qPCR and immunofluorescence analyses. Conclusions and Significance These data demonstrate that engineering MSC to express US6 and US11 can be used as a means of decreasing recognition of MSC by the immune system, allowing higher levels of engraftment in an allogeneic transplantation setting. Since one of the major factors responsible for the failure of allogeneic-donor MSC to engraft is the mismatch of HLA-I molecules between the donor and the recipient, MSC-US6 and MSC-US11 could constitute an off-the-shelf product to overcome donor-recipient HLA-I mismatch.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Melisa A Soland
- Department of Animal Biotechnology, University of Nevada, Reno, Nevada, United States of America
| | | | | | | | | | | | | |
Collapse
|
40
|
Denman CJ, Senyukov VV, Somanchi SS, Phatarpekar PV, Kopp LM, Johnson JL, Singh H, Hurton L, Maiti SN, Huls MH, Champlin RE, Cooper LJN, Lee DA. Membrane-bound IL-21 promotes sustained ex vivo proliferation of human natural killer cells. PLoS One 2012; 7:e30264. [PMID: 22279576 PMCID: PMC3261192 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0030264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 430] [Impact Index Per Article: 35.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2011] [Accepted: 12/12/2011] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
NK cells have therapeutic potential for a wide variety of human malignancies. However, because NK cells expand poorly in vitro, have limited life spans in vivo, and represent a small fraction of peripheral white blood cells, obtaining sufficient cell numbers is the major obstacle for NK-cell immunotherapy. Genetically-engineered artificial antigen-presenting cells (aAPCs) expressing membrane-bound IL-15 (mbIL15) have been used to propagate clinical-grade NK cells for human trials of adoptive immunotherapy, but ex vivo proliferation has been limited by telomere shortening. We developed K562-based aAPCs with membrane-bound IL-21 (mbIL21) and assessed their ability to support human NK-cell proliferation. In contrast to mbIL15, mbIL21-expressing aAPCs promoted log-phase NK cell expansion without evidence of senescence for up to 6 weeks of culture. By day 21, parallel expansion of NK cells from 22 donors demonstrated a mean 47,967-fold expansion (median 31,747) when co-cultured with aAPCs expressing mbIL21 compared to 825-fold expansion (median 325) with mbIL15. Despite the significant increase in proliferation, mbIL21-expanded NK cells also showed a significant increase in telomere length compared to freshly obtained NK cells, suggesting a possible mechanism for their sustained proliferation. NK cells expanded with mbIL21 were similar in phenotype and cytotoxicity to those expanded with mbIL15, with retained donor KIR repertoires and high expression of NCRs, CD16, and NKG2D, but had superior cytokine secretion. The mbIL21-expanded NK cells showed increased transcription of the activating receptor CD160, but otherwise had remarkably similar mRNA expression profiles of the 96 genes assessed. mbIL21-expanded NK cells had significant cytotoxicity against all tumor cell lines tested, retained responsiveness to inhibitory KIR ligands, and demonstrated enhanced killing via antibody-dependent cell cytotoxicity. Thus, aAPCs expressing mbIL21 promote improved proliferation of human NK cells with longer telomeres and less senescence, supporting their clinical use in propagating NK cells for adoptive immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Cecele J. Denman
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Vladimir V. Senyukov
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Srinivas S. Somanchi
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Prasad V. Phatarpekar
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Health Science Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Lisa M. Kopp
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Jennifer L. Johnson
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Harjeet Singh
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Lenka Hurton
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Health Science Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Sourindra N. Maiti
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - M. Helen Huls
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Richard E. Champlin
- Department of Stem Cell Transplantation and Cellular Therapy, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Laurence J. N. Cooper
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Health Science Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
| | - Dean A. Lee
- Division of Pediatrics, MD Anderson Cancer Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Health Science Center, The University of Texas, Houston, Texas, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Abstract
Increased evidence of cross-talk between NK cells and other immune cells has enhanced the possibilities of exploiting the interplay between the activation and inhibition of NK cells for immunotherapeutic purposes. The battery of receptors possessed by NK cells help them to efficiently detect aberrant and infected cells and embark on the signaling pathways necessary to eliminate them. Endogenous expansion of NK cells and their effector mechanisms are under exploration for enhancing adoptive immunotherapy prospects in combination with immunostimulatory and cell-death-sensitizing treatments against cancer, viral infections and other pathophysiological autoimmune conditions. Various modes of NK cell manipulation are being undertaken to overcome issues such as relapse and graft rejections associated with adoptive immunotherapy. While tracing the remarkable properties of NK cells and the major developments in this field, we highlight the role of immune cooperativity in the betterment of current immunotherapeutic approaches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anshu Malhotra
- Laboratory of Lymphocyte Function, Department of Biochemistry & Cancer Biology, School of Medicine, Meharry Medical College, 2005 Harold D West Basic Sciences Building, 1005 Dr DB Todd Jr Boulevard, Nashville, TN 37208, USA
| | - Anil Shanker
- Laboratory of Lymphocyte Function, Department of Biochemistry & Cancer Biology, School of Medicine, Meharry Medical College, 2005 Harold D West Basic Sciences Building, 1005 Dr DB Todd Jr Boulevard, Nashville, TN 37208, USA
- Department of Cancer Biology, Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Vanderbilt University, 2200 Pierce Avenue, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| |
Collapse
|