1
|
Guha A, Goswami KK, Sultana J, Ganguly N, Choudhury PR, Chakravarti M, Bhuniya A, Sarkar A, Bera S, Dhar S, Das J, Das T, Baral R, Bose A, Banerjee S. Cancer stem cell-immune cell crosstalk in breast tumor microenvironment: a determinant of therapeutic facet. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1245421. [PMID: 38090567 PMCID: PMC10711058 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1245421] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 10/25/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer (BC) is globally one of the leading killers among women. Within a breast tumor, a minor population of transformed cells accountable for drug resistance, survival, and metastasis is known as breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs). Several experimental lines of evidence have indicated that BCSCs influence the functionality of immune cells. They evade immune surveillance by altering the characteristics of immune cells and modulate the tumor landscape to an immune-suppressive type. They are proficient in switching from a quiescent phase (slowly cycling) to an actively proliferating phenotype with a high degree of plasticity. This review confers the relevance and impact of crosstalk between immune cells and BCSCs as a fate determinant for BC prognosis. It also focuses on current strategies for targeting these aberrant BCSCs that could open avenues for the treatment of breast carcinoma.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Aishwarya Guha
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | | | - Jasmine Sultana
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Nilanjan Ganguly
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Pritha Roy Choudhury
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Mohona Chakravarti
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Avishek Bhuniya
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Anirban Sarkar
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Saurav Bera
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Sukanya Dhar
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Juhina Das
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Tapasi Das
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Rathindranath Baral
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| | - Anamika Bose
- Department of Pharmaceutical Technology Biotechnology National Institute of Pharmaceutical Education and Research (NIPER) Sahibzada Ajit Singh (S.A.S.) Nagar, Mohali, Punjab, India
| | - Saptak Banerjee
- Department of Immunoregulation and Immunodiagnostics, Chittaranjan National Cancer Institute, Kolkata, India
| |
Collapse
|
2
|
Karihtala P, Kilpivaara O, Porvari K. Mutational signatures and their association with survival and gene expression in urological carcinomas. Neoplasia 2023; 44:100933. [PMID: 37678146 PMCID: PMC10495641 DOI: 10.1016/j.neo.2023.100933] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2023] [Accepted: 08/31/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023]
Abstract
Different sources of mutagenesis cause consistently identifiable patterns of mutations and mutational signatures that mirror the various carcinogenetic processes. We used publicly available data from the Cancer Genome Atlas to evaluate the associations between the activity of the mutational signatures and various survival endpoints in six types of urological cancers after adjusting for established prognostic factors. The predictive power of the signatures was evaluated with dynamic area under curve models. In addition, links between mutational signature activities and differences in gene expression patterns were analysed. APOBEC-related signature SBS2 was associated with improved overall survival (OS) and disease-specific survival (DSS) in bladder carcinomas in the multivariate analysis, while clock-like signature SBS1 predicted shortened DSS and progression-free interval (PFI) in clear cell renal cell carcinomas (ccRCC). In papillary renal cell carcinomas (pRCC), SBS45 was a predictor of improved outcomes, and APOBEC-related SBS13 was a predictor of worse outcomes. Gene expression analyses revealed various enriched pathways between the low- and high-signature groups. Interestingly, in both the ccRCC and pRCC cohorts, the genes of several members of the melanoma antigen (MAGE) family were highly upregulated in the signatures, which predicted poor outcomes, and downregulated in signatures, which were associated with improved survival. To summarize, SBS signatures provide substantial prognostic value compared with just the traditional prognostic factors in certain cancer types. APOBEC-related SBS2 and SBS13 seem to provide robust prognostic information for particular urological cancers, maybe driven by the expression of specific groups of genes, including the MAGE gene family.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Peeter Karihtala
- Department of Oncology, Helsinki University Hospital Comprehensive Cancer Center and University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00290, Finland.
| | - Outi Kilpivaara
- Applied Tumor Genomics Research Program, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland; Department of Medical and Clinical Genetics, Medicum, Faculty of Medicine, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland; HUSLAB Laboratory of Genetics, HUS Diagnostic Center, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki FI-00014, Finland
| | - Katja Porvari
- Department of Pathology, Medical Research Center Oulu, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu FI-90220, Finland
| |
Collapse
|
3
|
Vlasenkova R, Konysheva D, Nurgalieva A, Kiyamova R. Characterization of Cancer/Testis Antigens as Prognostic Markers of Ovarian Cancer. Diagnostics (Basel) 2023; 13:3092. [PMID: 37835834 PMCID: PMC10572515 DOI: 10.3390/diagnostics13193092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/10/2023] [Revised: 09/22/2023] [Accepted: 09/27/2023] [Indexed: 10/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The main goal of this study was to characterize cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) as potential molecular markers of ovarian cancer. First, we gathered and analyzed a significantly large dataset of 21 selected CTAs that are encoded by 32 genes; the dataset consisted of the mutation data, expression data, and survival data of patients with ovarian cancer (n = 15,665). The 19 functionally significant missense mutations were identified in 9 CTA genes: ACRBP, CCT4, KDM5B, MAGEA1, MAGEA4, PIWIL1, PIWIL2, PRAME, and SPA17. The analysis of the mRNA expression levels of 21 CTAs in healthy and tumor ovarian tissue showed an up-regulation in the expression level of AKAP3, MAGEA4, PIWIL1, and PRAME in tumor samples and a down-regulation in the expression level of CTAG1A, CTAG1B, MAGEC1, and PIWIL2. The CCT4 up-regulation and PRAME mutations were correlated with a good prognosis for ovarian cancer, while higher levels of GAGE2A and CT45A1 mRNAs were correlated with a poor prognosis for ovarian cancer patients. Thus, GAGE2, CT45, CCT4, and PRAME cancer/testis antigens can be considered as potential prognostic markers for ovarian tumors, and GAGE2, CCT4, and PRAME were revealed to be correlated with the prognosis for ovarian cancer patients for the first time.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Ramziya Kiyamova
- Biomarker Research Laboratory, Institute of Fundamental Medicine and Biology, Kazan Federal University, Kazan 420008, Russia; (R.V.)
| |
Collapse
|
4
|
Nin DS, Deng LW. Biology of Cancer-Testis Antigens and Their Therapeutic Implications in Cancer. Cells 2023; 12:cells12060926. [PMID: 36980267 PMCID: PMC10047177 DOI: 10.3390/cells12060926] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2023] [Accepted: 03/15/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Tumour-specific antigens have been an area of interest in cancer therapy since their discovery in the middle of the 20th century. In the era of immune-based cancer therapeutics, redirecting our immune cells to target these tumour-specific antigens has become even more relevant. Cancer-testis antigens (CTAs) are a class of antigens with an expression specific to the testis and cancer cells. CTAs have also been demonstrated to be expressed in a wide variety of cancers. Due to their frequency and specificity of expression in a multitude of cancers, CTAs have been particularly attractive as cancer-specific therapeutic targets. There is now a rapid expansion of CTAs being identified and many studies have been conducted to correlate CTA expression with cancer and therapy-resistant phenotypes. Furthermore, there is an increasing number of clinical trials involving using some of these CTAs as molecular targets in pharmacological and immune-targeted therapeutics for various cancers. This review will summarise the current knowledge of the biology of known CTAs in tumorigenesis and the regulation of CTA genes. CTAs as molecular targets and the therapeutic implications of these CTA-targeted anticancer strategies will also be discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dawn Sijin Nin
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, MD 7, 8 Medical Drive, Singapore 117596, Singapore
- NUS Center for Cancer Research, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 14 Medical Drive, Singapore 117599, Singapore
| | - Lih-Wen Deng
- Department of Biochemistry, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, MD 7, 8 Medical Drive, Singapore 117596, Singapore
- NUS Center for Cancer Research, Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine, National University of Singapore, 14 Medical Drive, Singapore 117599, Singapore
- National University Cancer Institute, National University Health System, 5 Lower Kent Ridge Road, Singapore 119074, Singapore
| |
Collapse
|
5
|
An J, Hu X, Liu F. Current understanding of cancer stem cells: Immune evasion and targeted immunotherapy in gastrointestinal malignancies. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1114621. [PMID: 36910604 PMCID: PMC9996315 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1114621] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2023] [Indexed: 02/25/2023] Open
Abstract
As a relatively rare population of cancer cells existing in the tumor microenvironment, cancer stem cells (CSCs) possess properties of immune privilege to evade the attack of immune system, regulated by the microenvironment of CSCs, the so-called CSCs niche. The bidirectional interaction of CSCs with tumor microenvironment (TME) components favors an immunosuppressive shelter for CSCs' survival and maintenance. Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells (GCSCs) are broadly regarded to be intimately involved in tumor initiation, progression, metastasis and recurrence, with elevated tumor resistance to conventional therapies, which pose a major hindrance to the clinical efficacy for treated patients with gastrointestinal malignancies. Thus, a multitude of efforts have been made to combat and eradicate GCSCs within the tumor mass. Among diverse methods of targeting CSCs in gastrointestinal malignancies, immunotherapy represents a promising strategy. And the better understanding of GCSCs immunomodulation and immunoresistance mechanisms is beneficial to guide and design novel GCSCs-specific immunotherapies with enhanced immune response and clinical efficacy. In this review, we have gathered available and updated information to present an overview of the immunoevasion features harbored by cancer stem cells, and we focus on the description of immune escape strategies utilized by CSCs and microenvironmental regulations underlying CSCs immuno-suppression in the context of gastrointestinal malignancies. Importantly, this review offers deep insights into recent advances of CSC-targeting immunotherapeutic approaches in gastrointestinal cancers.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Junyi An
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Xiaohua Hu
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| | - Feng Liu
- Department of Oncology, Shanghai Ninth People's Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, China
| |
Collapse
|
6
|
Gupta R, Jit BP, Kumar S, Mittan S, Tanwer P, Ray MD, Mathur S, Perumal V, Kumar L, Rath GK, Sharma A. Leveraging epigenetics to enhance the efficacy of cancer-testis antigen: a potential candidate for immunotherapy. Epigenomics 2022; 14:865-886. [DOI: 10.2217/epi-2021-0479] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Ovarian cancer is the most lethal gynecological malignancy in women. The phenotype is characterized by delayed diagnosis, recurrence and drug resistance. Inherent immunogenicity potential, oncogenic function and expression of cancer-testis/germline antigen (CTA) in ovarian cancer render them a potential candidate for immunotherapy. Revolutionary clinical findings indicate that tumor antigen-mediated T-cell and dendritic cell-based immunotherapeutic approaches provide an excellent strategy for targeting tumors. Currently, dendritic cell vaccination for the treatment of B-cell lymphoma and CTA-based T-cell receptor transduced T-cell therapy involving MAGE-A4 and NY-ESO-1 are well documented and shown to be effective. This review highlighted the mechanical aspects of epigenetic drugs that can elicit a CTA-based humoral and cellular immune response and implicate T-cell and dendritic cell-based immunotherapeutic approaches.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rashmi Gupta
- Department of Biochemistry, National Cancer Institute – India, Jhajjar Campus, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Bimal Prasad Jit
- Department of Biochemistry, National Cancer Institute – India, Jhajjar Campus, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Santosh Kumar
- Department of Biochemistry, National Cancer Institute – India, Jhajjar Campus, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Sandeep Mittan
- Montefiore Medical Center, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, NY 10467, USA
| | - Pranay Tanwer
- Laboratory Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - M D Ray
- Department of Surgical Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Sandeep Mathur
- Department of Pathology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Vanamail Perumal
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Lalit Kumar
- Department of Medical Oncology, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - G K Rath
- Department of Radiotherapy, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, 110029, India
| | - Ashok Sharma
- Department of Biochemistry, National Cancer Institute – India, Jhajjar Campus, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi, 110029, India
| |
Collapse
|
7
|
Bai R, Yuan C. Kita-Kyushu Lung Cancer Antigen-1 (KK-LC-1): A Promising Cancer Testis Antigen. Aging Dis 2022; 13:1267-1277. [PMID: 35855340 PMCID: PMC9286905 DOI: 10.14336/ad.2021.1207] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2021] [Accepted: 12/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer has always been a huge problem in the field of human health, and its early diagnosis and treatment are the key to solving this problem. Cancer testis antigens (CTAs) are a family of multifunctional proteins that are specifically expressed in male spermatozoa and tumor cells but not in healthy somatic cells. Studies have found that CTAs are involved in the occurrence and development of tumors, and some CTAs trigger immunogenicity, which suggests a possibility of tumor immunotherapy. The differential expression and function of CTAs in normal tissues and tumor cells can promote the screening of tumor markers and the development of new immunotherapies. This article introduces the expression of Kita-Kyushu lung cancer antigen-1 (KK-LC-1), a new member of the CTA family, in different types of tumors and its role in immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rui Bai
- 1Department of Radiation and Medical Oncology, Zhongnan Hospital of Wuhan University, Wuhan, Hubei, China
| | - Cheng Yuan
- 2Department of Gynecological Oncology, Zhongnan Hospital, Wuhan University, Wuhan, China
| |
Collapse
|
8
|
Singh D, Khan MA, Siddique HR. Specific targeting of cancer stem cells by immunotherapy: A possible stratagem to restrain cancer recurrence and metastasis. Biochem Pharmacol 2022; 198:114955. [PMID: 35181312 DOI: 10.1016/j.bcp.2022.114955] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2021] [Revised: 02/09/2022] [Accepted: 02/09/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Cancer stem cells (CSCs), the tumor-initiating cells playing a crucial role in cancer progression, recurrence, and metastasis, have the intrinsic property of self-renewal and therapy resistance. The tumorigenic properties of these cells include generation of cellular heterogeneity and immuno-suppressive tumor microenvironment (TME), conferring them the capability to resist a variety of anti-cancer therapeutics. Further, CSCs possess several unique immunological properties that help them escape recognition by the innate and adaptive immune system and shape a TME into a pro-tumorigenic and immunosuppressive landscape. In this context, immunotherapy is considered one of the best therapeutic options for eliminating CSCs to halt cancer recurrence and metastasis. In this review, we discuss the various immunomodulatory properties of CSCs and the interaction of CSCs with the immune system enabling immune evasion. In addition, we also highlight the present research update on immunotherapeutic targeting of CSCs and the possible further scope of research on this topic. We believe that a deeper understanding of CSCs' immunological properties and the crosstalk between CSCs and the immune system can develop better innovative immune-therapeutics and enhance the efficacy of current therapy-resistant cancer treatments.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Deepti Singh
- Molecular Cancer Genetics & Translational Research Lab, Section of Genetics, Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India
| | - Mohammad Afsar Khan
- Molecular Cancer Genetics & Translational Research Lab, Section of Genetics, Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India
| | - Hifzur R Siddique
- Molecular Cancer Genetics & Translational Research Lab, Section of Genetics, Department of Zoology, Aligarh Muslim University, Aligarh 202002, India.
| |
Collapse
|
9
|
Niu T, Wu Z, Xiao W. Uev1A promotes breast cancer cell migration by up-regulating CT45A expression via the AKT pathway. BMC Cancer 2021; 21:1012. [PMID: 34503444 PMCID: PMC8431945 DOI: 10.1186/s12885-021-08750-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/28/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Background UEV1A encodes a ubiquitin-E2 variant closely associated with tumorigenesis and metastasis, but its underlying mechanism in promoting metastasis remains to be investigated. Methods In this study, we experimentally manipulated UEV1A and CT45A gene expression and monitored their effects on cancer-related gene expression, cell migration and the signal transduction cascade. Results It was found that UEV1A overexpression induces CT45A family gene expression in breast cancer cells. Indeed, ectopic expression of UEV1A was sufficient to induce CT45A and its downstream genes involved in tumorigenesis, epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT), stemness and metastasis, and to promote cell migration and EMT signaling. Consistently, depletion of CT45A abolished the above effects, indicating that CT45A is a critical downstream effector of Uev1A. The Uev1A-induced cell migration and EMT signaling was dependent on AKT but independent of NF-κB, indicating that CT45A acts downstream of the AKT pathway. Conclusions Based on previous reports and observations in this study, we propose that the Ubc13-Uev1A complex activates AKT through K63-linked polyubiquitination, which leads to enhanced CT45A expression, stimulated cell migration and EMT signaling in breast cells. Since similar effects were also observed in a colorectal cancer cell line, the Ubc13/Uev1A-AKT-CT45A axis may also promote tumorigenesis and metastasis in other tissues. Supplementary Information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s12885-021-08750-3.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tong Niu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of DNA Damage Responses and College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing, 100048, China.,Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada
| | - Zhaojia Wu
- Beijing Key Laboratory of DNA Damage Responses and College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing, 100048, China.,Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada
| | - Wei Xiao
- Beijing Key Laboratory of DNA Damage Responses and College of Life Sciences, Capital Normal University, Beijing, 100048, China. .,Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, SK, S7N 5E5, Canada.
| |
Collapse
|
10
|
Carron J, Della Coletta R, Lourenço GJ. Pseudogene Transcripts in Head and Neck Cancer: Literature Review and In Silico Analysis. Genes (Basel) 2021; 12:genes12081254. [PMID: 34440428 PMCID: PMC8391979 DOI: 10.3390/genes12081254] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2021] [Revised: 08/10/2021] [Accepted: 08/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Once considered nonfunctional, pseudogene transcripts are now known to provide valuable information for cancer susceptibility, including head and neck cancer (HNC), a serious health problem worldwide, with about 50% unimproved overall survival over the last decades. The present review focuses on the role of pseudogene transcripts involved in HNC risk and prognosis. We combined current literature and in silico analyses from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) database to identify the most deregulated pseudogene transcripts in HNC and their genetic variations. We then built a co-expression network and performed gene ontology enrichment analysis to better understand the pseudogenes’ interactions and pathways in HNC. In the literature, few pseudogenes have been studied in HNC. Our in silico analysis identified 370 pseudogene transcripts associated with HNC, where SPATA31D5P, HERC2P3, SPATA31C2, MAGEB6P1, SLC25A51P1, BAGE2, DNM1P47, SPATA31C1, ZNF733P and OR2W5 were found to be the most deregulated and presented several genetic alterations. NBPF25P, HSP90AB2P, ZNF658B and DPY19L2P3 pseudogenes were predicted to interact with 12 genes known to participate in HNC, DNM1P47 was predicted to interact with the TP53 gene, and HLA-H pseudogene was predicted to interact with HLA-A and HLA-B genes. The identified pseudogenes were associated with cancer biology pathways involving cell communication, response to stress, cell death, regulation of the immune system, regulation of gene expression, and Wnt signaling. Finally, we assessed the prognostic values of the pseudogenes with the Kaplan–Meier Plotter database, and found that expression of SPATA31D5P, SPATA31C2, BAGE2, SPATA31C1, ZNF733P and OR2W5 pseudogenes were associated with patients’ survival. Due to pseudogene transcripts’ potential for cancer diagnosis, progression, and as therapeutic targets, our study can guide new research to HNC understanding and development of new target therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Juliana Carron
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics, School of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas, Campinas 13083-888, São Paulo, Brazil;
| | - Rafael Della Coletta
- Department of Agronomy and Plant Genetics, University of Minnesota, Saint Paul, MN 55108, USA;
| | - Gustavo Jacob Lourenço
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics, School of Medical Sciences, University of Campinas, Campinas 13083-888, São Paulo, Brazil;
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +55-19-3521-9120
| |
Collapse
|
11
|
Poojary M, Jishnu PV, Kabekkodu SP. Prognostic Value of Melanoma-Associated Antigen-A (MAGE-A) Gene Expression in Various Human Cancers: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis of 7428 Patients and 44 Studies. Mol Diagn Ther 2021; 24:537-555. [PMID: 32548799 PMCID: PMC7497308 DOI: 10.1007/s40291-020-00476-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Background Members of the melanoma-associated antigen-A (MAGE-A) subfamily are overexpressed in many cancers and can drive cancer progression, metastasis, and therapeutic recurrence. Objective This study is the first comprehensive meta-analysis evaluating the prognostic utility of MAGE-A members in different cancers. Methods A systematic literature search was conducted in PubMed, Google Scholar, Science Direct, and Web of Science. The pooled hazard ratios with 95% confidence intervals were estimated to evaluate the prognostic significance of MAGE-A expression in various cancers. Results In total, 44 eligible studies consisting of 7428 patients from 11 countries were analysed. Univariate and multivariate analysis for overall survival, progression-free survival, and disease-free survival showed a significant association between high MAGE-A expression and various cancers (P < 0.00001). Additionally, subgroup analysis demonstrated that high MAGE-A expression was significantly associated with poor prognosis for lung, gastrointestinal, breast, and ovarian cancer in both univariate and multivariate analysis for overall survival. Conclusion Overexpression of MAGE-A subfamily members is linked to poor prognosis in multiple cancers. Therefore, it could serve as a potential prognostic marker of poor prognosis in cancers. Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (10.1007/s40291-020-00476-5) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Manish Poojary
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India
| | - Padacherri Vethil Jishnu
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India
| | - Shama Prasada Kabekkodu
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, Manipal School of Life Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher Education (MAHE), Manipal, Karnataka, 576104, India.
| |
Collapse
|
12
|
Zhang M, Hong JA, Kunst TF, Bond CD, Kenney CM, Warga CL, Yeray J, Lee MJ, Yuno A, Lee S, Miettinen M, Ripley RT, Hoang CD, Gnjatic S, Trepel JB, Schrump DS. Randomized phase II trial of a first-in-human cancer cell lysate vaccine in patients with thoracic malignancies. Transl Lung Cancer Res 2021; 10:3079-3092. [PMID: 34430349 PMCID: PMC8350099 DOI: 10.21037/tlcr-21-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/01/2021] [Accepted: 05/21/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Although most malignancies express cancer-testis antigens (CTA), immune responses to these proteins are limited in thoracic oncology patients. This trial was undertaken to examine if a cancer cell lysate vaccine could induce immunity to CTA, and to ascertain if metronomic cyclophosphamide and celecoxib enhances vaccine-induced immune responses. METHODS Eleven patients with primary thoracic malignancies and 10 patients with extrathoracic neoplasms metastatic to the chest rendered NED by conventional therapies were randomized to receive H1299 lung cancer cell lysates (10 mg protein/vaccine) with Iscomatrix™ adjuvant via deep intradermal injection q 4 weeks ×6 with or without daily oral metronomic cyclophosphamide/celecoxib. The primary endpoint was serologic response to purified CTA assessed 1 month after the 6th vaccination. Secondary endpoints included assessment of the effects of cyclophosphamide and celecoxib on frequency and magnitude of vaccine-induced immune responses to CTA. Exploratory endpoints included evaluation of the effects of the vaccine regimens on peripheral immune subsets. Standard of care imaging studies were obtained at baseline and 1 month after the 3rd and 6th vaccinations. RESULTS All patients exhibited local and systemic inflammatory responses lasting 72-96 hours following vaccinations. There were no dose limiting treatment related toxicities. Fourteen patients (67%) completed all six vaccinations. Eight of 14 patients (57%) exhibited serologic responses to NY-ESO-1. One patient developed antibodies to GAGE7; several patients exhibited reactivity to XAGE and MAGE-C2. Vaccine therapy decreased the percent of Tregs (P=0.0068), PD-1 expression on Tregs (P=0.0027), PD-L1 expression on CD14+ monocytes (P=0.0089), PD-L1 expression on classical monocytes (P=0.016), and PD-L1 expression on intermediate monocytes (P=0.0031). Cyclophosphamide/celecoxib did not appear to increase immune responses or enhance vaccine-induced alterations in peripheral immune subsets. CONCLUSIONS H1299 lysate vaccines with Iscomatrix™ induce immune responses to CTA and modulate peripheral immune subsets in a manner that may enhance antitumor immunity in patients with thoracic malignancies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mary Zhang
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Julie A. Hong
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Tricia F. Kunst
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Colleen D. Bond
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Cara M. Kenney
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Cheryl L. Warga
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Javier Yeray
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Min-Jung Lee
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Akira Yuno
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sunmin Lee
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Markku Miettinen
- Laboratory of Pathology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - R. Taylor Ripley
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Chuong D. Hoang
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sacha Gnjatic
- Tisch Cancer Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, USA
| | - Jane B. Trepel
- Developmental Therapeutics Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - David S. Schrump
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic Surgery Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| |
Collapse
|
13
|
Frank MH, Wilson BJ, Gold JS, Frank NY. Clinical Implications of Colorectal Cancer Stem Cells in the Age of Single-Cell Omics and Targeted Therapies. Gastroenterology 2021; 160:1947-1960. [PMID: 33617889 PMCID: PMC8215897 DOI: 10.1053/j.gastro.2020.12.080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2020] [Revised: 11/30/2020] [Accepted: 12/10/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The cancer stem cell (CSC) concept emerged from the recognition of inherent tumor heterogeneity and suggests that within a given tumor, in analogy to normal tissues, there exists a cellular hierarchy composed of a minority of more primitive cells with enhanced longevity (ie, CSCs) that give rise to shorter-lived, more differentiated cells (ie, cancer bulk populations), which on their own are not capable of tumor perpetuation. CSCs can be responsible for cancer therapeutic resistance to conventional, targeted, and immunotherapeutic treatment modalities, and for cancer progression through CSC-intrinsic molecular mechanisms. The existence of CSCs in colorectal cancer (CRC) was first established through demonstration of enhanced clonogenicity and tumor-forming capacity of this cell subset in human-to-mouse tumor xenotransplantation experiments and subsequently confirmed through lineage-tracing studies in mice. Surface markers for CRC CSC identification and their prospective isolation are now established. Therefore, the application of single-cell omics technologies to CSC characterization, including whole-genome sequencing, RNA sequencing, and epigenetic analyses, opens unprecedented opportunities to discover novel targetable molecular pathways and hence to develop novel strategies for CRC eradication. We review recent advances in this field and discuss the potential implications of next-generation CSC analyses for currently approved and experimental targeted CRC therapies.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Markus H. Frank
- Transplant Research Program, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts;,Department of Dermatology, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts;,Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts;,School of Medical and Health Sciences, Edith Cowan University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | - Brian J. Wilson
- Transplant Research Program, Boston Children’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts;,Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts
| | - Jason S. Gold
- Department of Surgery, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts;,Department of Surgery, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Natasha Y. Frank
- Harvard Stem Cell Institute, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts;,Department of Medicine, Veterans Affairs Boston Healthcare System, Boston, Massachusetts;,Division of Genetics, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| |
Collapse
|
14
|
Yang P, Meng M, Zhou Q. Oncogenic cancer/testis antigens are a hallmarker of cancer and a sensible target for cancer immunotherapy. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2021; 1876:188558. [PMID: 33933558 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2021.188558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2020] [Revised: 03/16/2021] [Accepted: 04/26/2021] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Increasing evidence shows that numerous cancer-testis antigens (CTAs) are uniquely overexpressed in various types of cancer and most CTAs are oncogenic. Overexpression of oncogenic CTAs promotes carcinogenesis, cancer metastasis, and drug resistance. Oncogenic CTAs are generally associated with poor prognosis in cancer patients and are an important hallmark of cancer, making them a crucial target for cancer immunotherapy. CTAs-targeted antibodies, vaccines, and chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells (CAR-T) have recently been used in cancer treatment and achieved promising outcomes in the preclinical and early clinical trials. However, the efficacy of current CTA-targeted therapeutics is either moderate or low in cancer therapy. CTA-targeted cancer immunotherapy is facing enormous challenges. Several critical scientific problems need to be resolved: (1) the antigen presentation function of MHC-I protein is usually deficient in cancer patients, so that very low amounts of intracellular CTA epitopes are presented to tumor cell membrane surface, leading to weak immune response and subsequent immunity to CTAs; (2) various immunosuppressive cells are rich in tumor tissues leading to diminished tumor immunity; (3) the tumor tissue microenvironment markedly reduces the efficacy of cancer immunotherapy. In the current review paper, the authors propose new strategies and approaches to overcome the barriers of CTAs-targeted immunotherapy and to develop novel potent immune therapeutics against cancer. Finally, we highlight that the oncogenic CTAs have high tumor specificity and immunogenicity, and are sensible targets for cancer immunotherapy. We predict that CTAs-targeted immunotherapy will bring about breakthroughs in cancer therapy in the near future.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ping Yang
- Department of Pathophysiology, School of Medicine, Nantong University, Nantong, Jiangsu 226000, PR China
| | - Mei Meng
- Cyrus Tang Hematology Center, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, PR China; 2011 Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, PR China
| | - Quansheng Zhou
- Cyrus Tang Hematology Center, Jiangsu Institute of Hematology, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, PR China; 2011 Collaborative Innovation Center of Hematology, Soochow University, Suzhou, Jiangsu 215123, PR China.
| |
Collapse
|
15
|
Cancer Stem Cells Are Possible Key Players in Regulating Anti-Tumor Immune Responses: The Role of Immunomodulating Molecules and MicroRNAs. Cancers (Basel) 2021; 13:cancers13071674. [PMID: 33918136 PMCID: PMC8037840 DOI: 10.3390/cancers13071674] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2021] [Revised: 03/05/2021] [Accepted: 03/09/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary This review provides a critical overview of the state of the art of the characterization of the immunological profile of a rare component of the tumors, denominated cancer stem cells (CSCs) or cancer initiating cells (CICs). These cells are endowed with the ability to form and propagate tumors and resistance to therapies, including the most innovative approaches. These investigations contribute to understanding the mechanisms regulating the interaction of CSCs/CICs with the immune system and identifying novel therapeutic approaches to render these cells visible and susceptible to immune responses. Abstract Cancer cells endowed with stemness properties and representing a rare population of cells within malignant lesions have been isolated from tumors with different histological origins. These cells, denominated as cancer stem cells (CSCs) or cancer initiating cells (CICs), are responsible for tumor initiation, progression and resistance to therapies, including immunotherapy. The dynamic crosstalk of CSCs/CICs with the tumor microenvironment orchestrates their fate and plasticity as well as their immunogenicity. CSCs/CICs, as observed in multiple studies, display either the aberrant expression of immunomodulatory molecules or suboptimal levels of molecules involved in antigen processing and presentation, leading to immune evasion. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) that can regulate either stemness properties or their immunological profile, with in some cases dual functions, can provide insights into these mechanisms and possible interventions to develop novel therapeutic strategies targeting CSCs/CICs and reverting their immunogenicity. In this review, we provide an overview of the immunoregulatory features of CSCs/CICs including miRNA profiles involved in the regulation of the interplay between stemness and immunological properties.
Collapse
|
16
|
Kundu S, Ray MD, Sharma A. Interplay between genome organization and epigenomic alterations of pericentromeric DNA in cancer. J Genet Genomics 2021; 48:184-197. [PMID: 33840602 DOI: 10.1016/j.jgg.2021.02.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2020] [Revised: 02/07/2021] [Accepted: 02/20/2021] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
In eukaryotic genome biology, the genomic organization inside the three-dimensional (3D) nucleus is highly complex, and whether this organization governs gene expression is poorly understood. Nuclear lamina (NL) is a filamentous meshwork of proteins present at the lining of inner nuclear membrane that serves as an anchoring platform for genome organization. Large chromatin domains termed as lamina-associated domains (LADs), play a major role in silencing genes at the nuclear periphery. The interaction of the NL and genome is dynamic and stochastic. Furthermore, many genes change their positions during developmental processes or under disease conditions such as cancer, to activate certain sorts of genes and/or silence others. Pericentromeric heterochromatin (PCH) is mostly in the silenced region within the genome, which localizes at the nuclear periphery. Studies show that several genes located at the PCH are aberrantly expressed in cancer. The interesting question is that despite being localized in the pericentromeric region, how these genes still manage to overcome pericentromeric repression. Although epigenetic mechanisms control the expression of the pericentromeric region, recent studies about genome organization and genome-nuclear lamina interaction have shed light on a new aspect of pericentromeric gene regulation through a complex and coordinated interplay between epigenomic remodeling and genomic organization in cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Subhadip Kundu
- Laboratory of Chromatin and Cancer Epigenetics, Department of Biochemistry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi 110029, India
| | - M D Ray
- Department of Surgical Oncology, IRCH, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi 110029, India
| | - Ashok Sharma
- Laboratory of Chromatin and Cancer Epigenetics, Department of Biochemistry, All India Institute of Medical Sciences, Ansari Nagar, New Delhi 110029, India.
| |
Collapse
|
17
|
Donini C, Rotolo R, Proment A, Aglietta M, Sangiolo D, Leuci V. Cellular Immunotherapy Targeting Cancer Stem Cells: Preclinical Evidence and Clinical Perspective. Cells 2021; 10:cells10030543. [PMID: 33806296 PMCID: PMC8001974 DOI: 10.3390/cells10030543] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Revised: 02/24/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 02/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The term “cancer stem cells” (CSCs) commonly refers to a subset of tumor cells endowed with stemness features, potentially involved in chemo-resistance and disease relapses. CSCs may present peculiar immunogenic features influencing their homeostasis within the tumor microenvironment. The susceptibility of CSCs to recognition and targeting by the immune system is a relevant issue and matter of investigation, especially considering the multiple emerging immunotherapy strategies. Adoptive cellular immunotherapies, especially those strategies encompassing the genetic redirection with chimeric antigen receptors (CAR), hold relevant promise in several tumor settings and might in theory provide opportunities for selective elimination of CSC subsets. Initial dedicated preclinical studies are supporting the potential targeting of CSCs by cellular immunotherapies, indirect evidence from clinical studies may be derived and new studies are ongoing. Here we review the main issues related to the putative immunogenicity of CSCs, focusing on and highlighting the existing evidence and opportunities for cellular immunotherapy approaches with T and non-T antitumor lymphocytes.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Donini
- Department of Oncology, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy; (C.D.); (A.P.); (M.A.)
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO–IRCCS, Str. Prov. 142, km 3,95, 10060 Candiolo (TO), Italy; (R.R.); (V.L.)
| | - Ramona Rotolo
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO–IRCCS, Str. Prov. 142, km 3,95, 10060 Candiolo (TO), Italy; (R.R.); (V.L.)
| | - Alessia Proment
- Department of Oncology, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy; (C.D.); (A.P.); (M.A.)
| | - Massimo Aglietta
- Department of Oncology, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy; (C.D.); (A.P.); (M.A.)
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO–IRCCS, Str. Prov. 142, km 3,95, 10060 Candiolo (TO), Italy; (R.R.); (V.L.)
| | - Dario Sangiolo
- Department of Oncology, University of Turin, 10124 Turin, Italy; (C.D.); (A.P.); (M.A.)
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO–IRCCS, Str. Prov. 142, km 3,95, 10060 Candiolo (TO), Italy; (R.R.); (V.L.)
- Correspondence: ; Tel.: +39-011-993-3503; Fax: +39-011-993-3522
| | - Valeria Leuci
- Candiolo Cancer Institute, FPO–IRCCS, Str. Prov. 142, km 3,95, 10060 Candiolo (TO), Italy; (R.R.); (V.L.)
| |
Collapse
|
18
|
LncRNAs and microRNAs as Essential Regulators of Stemness in Breast Cancer Stem Cells. Biomolecules 2021; 11:biom11030380. [PMID: 33802575 PMCID: PMC7998729 DOI: 10.3390/biom11030380] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2020] [Revised: 02/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer is an aggressive disease with a high incidence in women worldwide. Two decades ago, a controversial hypothesis was proposed that cancer arises from a subpopulation of “tumor initiating cells” or “cancer stem cells-like” (CSC). Today, CSC are defined as small subset of somatic cancer cells within a tumor with self-renewal properties driven by the aberrant expression of genes involved in the maintenance of a stemness-like phenotype. The understanding of the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms involved in the maintenance of CSC subpopulation are fundamental in the development and persistence of breast cancer. Nowadays, the hypothesis suggests that genetic and epigenetic alterations give rise to breast cancer stem cells (bCSC), which are responsible for self-renewal, tumor growth, chemoresistance, poor prognosis and low survival in patients. However, the prominence of bCSC, as well as the molecular mechanisms that regulates and promotes the malignant phenotypes, are still poorly understood. The role of non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), such as long non-coding RNAs (lncRNAs) and microRNAs (miRNAs) acting as oncogenes or tumor suppressor genes has been recently highlighted by a plethora of studies in breast cancer. These ncRNAs positively or negatively impact on different signaling pathways that govern the cancer hallmarks associated with bCSC, making them attractive targets for therapy. In this review, we present a current summary of the studies on the pivotal roles of lncRNAs and microRNAs in the regulation of genes associated to stemness of bCSC.
Collapse
|
19
|
Zeng X, Liu C, Yao J, Wan H, Wan G, Li Y, Chen N. Breast cancer stem cells, heterogeneity, targeting therapies and therapeutic implications. Pharmacol Res 2020; 163:105320. [PMID: 33271295 DOI: 10.1016/j.phrs.2020.105320] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 15.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/17/2020] [Revised: 11/27/2020] [Accepted: 11/27/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Both hereditary and sporadic breast cancer are suggested to develop from a stem cell subcomponent retaining most key stem cell properties but with dysregulation of self-renewal pathways, which drives tumorigenic differentiation and cellular heterogeneity. Cancer stem cells (CSCs), characterized by their self-renewal and differentiation potential, have been reported to contribute to chemo-/radio-resistance and tumor initiation and to be the main reason for the failure of current therapies in breast cancer and other CSC-bearing cancers. Thus, CSC-targeted therapies, such as those inducing CSC apoptosis and differentiation, inhibiting CSC self-renewal and division, and targeting the CSC niche to combat CSC activity, are needed and may become an important component of multimodal treatment. To date, the understanding of breast cancer has been extended by advances in CSC biology, providing more accurate prognostic and predictive information upon diagnosis. Recent improvements have enhanced the prospect of targeting breast cancer stem cells (BCSCs), which has shown promise for increasing the breast cancer remission rate. However, targeted therapy for breast cancer remains challenging due to tumor heterogeneity. One major challenge is determining the CSC properties that can be exploited as therapeutic targets. Another challenge is identifying suitable BCSC biomarkers to assess the efficacy of novel BCSC-targeted therapies. This review focuses mainly on the characteristics of BCSCs and the roles of BCSCs in the formation, maintenance and recurrence of breast cancer; self-renewal signaling pathways in BCSCs; the BCSC microenvironment; potential therapeutic targets related to BCSCs; and current therapies and clinical trials targeting BCSCs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Xiaobin Zeng
- Center Lab of Longhua Branch and Department of Infectious Disease, Shenzhen People's Hospital, The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518020, PR China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Medicine School of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, 518037, PR China
| | - Chengxiao Liu
- Center Lab of Longhua Branch and Department of Infectious Disease, Shenzhen People's Hospital, The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518020, PR China
| | - Jie Yao
- Center Lab of Longhua Branch and Department of Infectious Disease, Shenzhen People's Hospital, The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518020, PR China
| | - Haoqiang Wan
- Center Lab of Longhua Branch and Department of Infectious Disease, Shenzhen People's Hospital, The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518020, PR China; Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Regional Immunity and Diseases, Medicine School of Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, 518037, PR China; Department of Gastroenterology, (Longhua Branch), Shenzhen People's Hospital, 2nd Clinical Medical College of Jinan University, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, 518120, PR China
| | - Guoqing Wan
- Shanghai University of Medicine and Health Sciences Affiliated Zhoupu Hospital, Shanghai, 201318, PR China
| | - Yingpeng Li
- Department of Gastroenterology, (Longhua Branch), Shenzhen People's Hospital, 2nd Clinical Medical College of Jinan University, Shenzhen, Guangdong Province, 518120, PR China.
| | - Nianhong Chen
- Center Lab of Longhua Branch and Department of Infectious Disease, Shenzhen People's Hospital, The Second Clinical Medical College, Jinan University, The First Affiliated Hospital, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, Guangdong, 518020, PR China; Department of Cell Biology & University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, School of Medicine, University of Pittsburgh, PA, 15261, USA; Laboratory of Signal Transduction, Department of Radiation Oncology, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, New York, 10065, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
20
|
Mediratta K, El-Sahli S, D’Costa V, Wang L. Current Progresses and Challenges of Immunotherapy in Triple-Negative Breast Cancer. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E3529. [PMID: 33256070 PMCID: PMC7761500 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12123529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2020] [Revised: 11/23/2020] [Accepted: 11/24/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
With improved understanding of the immunogenicity of triple-negative breast cancer (TNBC), immunotherapy has emerged as a promising candidate to treat this lethal disease owing to the lack of specific targets and effective treatments. While immune checkpoint inhibition (ICI) has been effectively used in immunotherapy for several types of solid tumor, monotherapies targeting programmed death 1 (PD-1), its ligand PD-L1, or cytotoxic T lymphocyte-associated protein 4 (CTLA-4) have shown little efficacy for TNBC patients. Over the past few years, various therapeutic candidates have been reviewed, attempting to improve ICI efficacy on TNBC through combinatorial treatment. In this review, we describe the clinical limitations of ICI and illustrate candidates from an immunological, pharmacological, and metabolic perspective that may potentiate therapy to improve the outcomes of TNBC patients.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Karan Mediratta
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada; (K.M.); (S.E.-S.)
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
- Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Sara El-Sahli
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada; (K.M.); (S.E.-S.)
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
- Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Vanessa D’Costa
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada; (K.M.); (S.E.-S.)
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| | - Lisheng Wang
- Department of Biochemistry, Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada; (K.M.); (S.E.-S.)
- Centre for Infection, Immunity and Inflammation, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
- Ottawa Institute of Systems Biology, University of Ottawa, 451 Smyth Road, Ottawa, ON K1H 8M5, Canada
| |
Collapse
|
21
|
Florke Gee RR, Chen H, Lee AK, Daly CA, Wilander BA, Fon Tacer K, Potts PR. Emerging roles of the MAGE protein family in stress response pathways. J Biol Chem 2020; 295:16121-16155. [PMID: 32921631 PMCID: PMC7681028 DOI: 10.1074/jbc.rev120.008029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2020] [Revised: 09/08/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The melanoma antigen (MAGE) proteins all contain a MAGE homology domain. MAGE genes are conserved in all eukaryotes and have expanded from a single gene in lower eukaryotes to ∼40 genes in humans and mice. Whereas some MAGEs are ubiquitously expressed in tissues, others are expressed in only germ cells with aberrant reactivation in multiple cancers. Much of the initial research on MAGEs focused on exploiting their antigenicity and restricted expression pattern to target them with cancer immunotherapy. Beyond their potential clinical application and role in tumorigenesis, recent studies have shown that MAGE proteins regulate diverse cellular and developmental pathways, implicating them in many diseases besides cancer, including lung, renal, and neurodevelopmental disorders. At the molecular level, many MAGEs bind to E3 RING ubiquitin ligases and, thus, regulate their substrate specificity, ligase activity, and subcellular localization. On a broader scale, the MAGE genes likely expanded in eutherian mammals to protect the germline from environmental stress and aid in stress adaptation, and this stress tolerance may explain why many cancers aberrantly express MAGEs Here, we present an updated, comprehensive review on the MAGE family that highlights general characteristics, emphasizes recent comparative studies in mice, and describes the diverse functions exerted by individual MAGEs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Rebecca R Florke Gee
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
| | - Helen Chen
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
| | - Anna K Lee
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
| | - Christina A Daly
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
| | - Benjamin A Wilander
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA
| | - Klementina Fon Tacer
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA; School of Veterinary Medicine, Texas Tech University, Amarillo, Texas, USA.
| | - Patrick Ryan Potts
- Cell and Molecular Biology Department, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, Tennessee, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
22
|
Chivu-Economescu M, Necula LG, Matei L, Dragu DL, Neagu AI, Alexiu I, Bleotu C, Diaconu CC. Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells as targets for innovative immunotherapy. World J Gastroenterol 2020; 26:1580-1593. [PMID: 32327907 PMCID: PMC7167409 DOI: 10.3748/wjg.v26.i14.1580] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2019] [Revised: 01/22/2020] [Accepted: 03/14/2020] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The role of cancer stem cells in gastrointestinal cancer-associated death has been widely recognized. Gastrointestinal cancer stem cells (GCSCs) are considered to be responsible for tumor initiation, growth, resistance to cytotoxic therapies, recurrence and metastasis due to their unique properties. These properties make the current therapeutic trials against GCSCs ineffective. Moreover, recent studies have shown that targeting stem cell surface markers or stemness associated pathways might have an additional off-target effect on the immune system. Recent advances in oncology and precision medicine have opened alternative therapeutic strategies in the form of cancer immunotherapy. This approach differs from classical anti-cancer therapy through its mechanism of action involving the activation and use of a functional immune system against tumor cells, instead of aiming physically destruction of cancer cells through radio- or chemotherapy. New immunological approaches for GCSCs targeting involve the use of different immune cells and various immune mechanisms like targeting specific surface antigens, using innate immune cells like the natural killer and T cells, T-cell chimeric antigen receptor technology, dendritic cell vaccine, or immune checkpoint inhibitors. In this respect, better understandings of immune regulatory mechanisms that govern anti-tumor response bring new hope in obtaining long-term remission for cancer therapy.
Collapse
MESH Headings
- Antigens, Neoplasm/immunology
- Antigens, Neoplasm/metabolism
- Biomarkers, Tumor/antagonists & inhibitors
- Biomarkers, Tumor/immunology
- Biomarkers, Tumor/metabolism
- Cancer Vaccines/administration & dosage
- Combined Modality Therapy/methods
- Dendritic Cells/immunology
- Drug Resistance, Neoplasm/immunology
- Gastrointestinal Neoplasms/immunology
- Gastrointestinal Neoplasms/pathology
- Gastrointestinal Neoplasms/therapy
- Humans
- Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors/pharmacology
- Immune Checkpoint Inhibitors/therapeutic use
- Immunity, Innate/drug effects
- Immunity, Innate/immunology
- Immunotherapy/methods
- Killer Cells, Natural/drug effects
- Killer Cells, Natural/immunology
- Killer Cells, Natural/transplantation
- Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/immunology
- Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/pathology
- Neoplasm Recurrence, Local/prevention & control
- Neoplastic Stem Cells/immunology
- Neoplastic Stem Cells/metabolism
- Neoplastic Stem Cells/pathology
- Receptors, Chimeric Antigen/immunology
- T-Lymphocytes/drug effects
- T-Lymphocytes/immunology
- T-Lymphocytes/transplantation
- Tumor Escape/drug effects
- Tumor Escape/immunology
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Mihaela Chivu-Economescu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Laura G Necula
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
- Nicolae Cajal Institute, Titu Maiorescu University, Bucharest 040441, Romania
| | - Lilia Matei
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Denisa Laura Dragu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Ana I Neagu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Irina Alexiu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Coralia Bleotu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| | - Carmen Cristina Diaconu
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Pathology, Stefan S. Nicolau Institute of Virology, Bucharest 030304, Romania
| |
Collapse
|
23
|
Quaglino E, Conti L, Cavallo F. Breast cancer stem cell antigens as targets for immunotherapy. Semin Immunol 2020; 47:101386. [PMID: 31932198 DOI: 10.1016/j.smim.2020.101386] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2019] [Accepted: 01/01/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The great success of immunotherapy is paving the way for a new era in cancer treatment and is driving major improvements in the therapy of patients suffering from a range of solid tumors. However, the choice of the appropriate tumor antigens to be targeted with cancer vaccines and T-cell therapies is still a challenge. Most antigens targeted so far have been identified on the tumor bulk and are expressed on differentiated cancer cells. The discovery of a small population of cancer stem cells (CSC), which is refractory to most current therapies and responsible for the development of metastasis and recurrence, has made it clear that the ideal targets for immunotherapies are the antigens that are expressed in CSC and play a key role in their function. Indeed, their immunotargeting would enable the eradication of CSC to be performed, thus eliminating the tumor source. We call these antigens "CSC oncoantigens". Herein, we summarize the controversial nature of breast CSC, discuss why they represent good candidates for cancer immunotherapy, and review the CSC antigens that have been used as targets for CSC immunotargeting this far. Moreover, we describe the pipeline that we have developed for the identification of fresh CSC oncoantigens, and present the pre-clinical results obtained with vaccines that target some of these antigens.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Elena Quaglino
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
| | - Laura Conti
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
| | - Federica Cavallo
- Department of Molecular Biotechnology and Health Sciences, University of Torino, Torino, Italy.
| |
Collapse
|
24
|
Ravindran S, Rasool S, Maccalli C. The Cross Talk between Cancer Stem Cells/Cancer Initiating Cells and Tumor Microenvironment: The Missing Piece of the Puzzle for the Efficient Targeting of these Cells with Immunotherapy. CANCER MICROENVIRONMENT 2019; 12:133-148. [PMID: 31758404 PMCID: PMC6937350 DOI: 10.1007/s12307-019-00233-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2019] [Accepted: 10/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Cancer Stem Cells/Cancer Initiating Cells (CSCs/CICs) is a rare sub-population within a tumor that is responsible for tumor formation, progression and resistance to therapies. The interaction between CSCs/CICs and tumor microenvironment (TME) can sustain “stemness” properties and promote their survival and plasticity. This cross-talk is also pivotal in regulating and modulating CSC/CIC properties. This review will provide an overview of the mechanisms underlying the mutual interaction between CSCs/CICs and TME. Particular focus will be dedicated to the immunological profile of CSCs/CICs and its role in orchestrating cancer immunosurveillance. Moreover, the available immunotherapy strategies that can target CSCs/CICs and of their possible implementation will be discussed. Overall, the dissection of the mechanisms regulating the CSC/CIC-TME interaction is warranted to understand the plasticity and immunoregulatory properties of stem-like tumor cells and to achieve complete eradications of tumors through the optimization of immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shilpa Ravindran
- Research Department, Sidra Medicine, Al Luqta Street, PO Box 26999, Doha, Qatar
| | - Saad Rasool
- Research Department, Sidra Medicine, Al Luqta Street, PO Box 26999, Doha, Qatar
| | - Cristina Maccalli
- Research Department, Sidra Medicine, Al Luqta Street, PO Box 26999, Doha, Qatar.
| |
Collapse
|
25
|
Kochin V, Nishikawa H. <Editors' Choice> Meddling with meddlers: curbing regulatory T cells and augmenting antitumor immunity. NAGOYA JOURNAL OF MEDICAL SCIENCE 2019; 81:1-18. [PMID: 30962651 PMCID: PMC6433633 DOI: 10.18999/nagjms.81.1.1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
CD4+ regulatory T cells (Tregs) expressing the transcription factor forkhead
box P3 (FoxP3) play an important role in self-tolerance and immune homeostasis. Tregs have
evolved to protect the host from aberrant immune responses against self-components and
collateral damages occurring in the process of defense against invading pathogens by
softening immune responses. However, they turned to be a scourge in malignant tumors by
not only allowing and promoting tumor growth but also suppressing effective antitumor
actions, both inherent (host’s immune surveillance) and extrinsic (anticancer therapy). An
increase in the number of Tregs infiltrating into tumor sites and a concomitant decrease
in the number of CD8+ cytotoxic T lymphocytes are associated with a poor
prognosis for various types of cancers, marking Tregs as notorious meddlers with an
effective antitumor response. Various cancer immunotherapy approaches are often dampened
by meddling Tregs, making them one of the major targets in the treatment of cancer. The
recent success of immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs) that target immune checkpoint
molecules expressed by Tregs or effector T cells implies, that “meddling with meddlers”
represents an effective strategy in cancer immunotherapy. However, clinical responses to
ICIs are effective and durable only in some patients with cancer, whereas more than half
of them do not show significant clinical improvement. This implies that a therapeutic
approach based on the use of a single ICI, or targeting Tregs alone, is insufficient,
highlighting the need for combinatorial approaches. With regard to antitumor immune
stimulation, several approaches, such as vaccination with peptides (or the corresponding
DNA) to stimulate antigen-presenting CD8+ T cells with tumor-specific
neoantigens, cancer/testis antigens, or cancer stem cell antigens, that eventually boost
effective cytotoxic antitumor responses are being tested. This review describes the
immunosuppressive physiology of Tregs and their meddling with the host’s antitumor
immunity; current and prospective approaches to curb Tregs; and approaches to augment
antitumor immunity.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Vitaly Kochin
- Department of Immunology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Hiroyoshi Nishikawa
- Department of Immunology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.,Division of Cancer Immunology, Research Institute/Exploratory Oncology Research & Clinical Trial Center (EPOC), National Cancer Center, Tokyo / Chiba, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
26
|
Cancer stemness, intratumoral heterogeneity, and immune response across cancers. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2019; 116:9020-9029. [PMID: 30996127 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1818210116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 321] [Impact Index Per Article: 64.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Regulatory programs that control the function of stem cells are active in cancer and confer properties that promote progression and therapy resistance. However, the impact of a stem cell-like tumor phenotype ("stemness") on the immunological properties of cancer has not been systematically explored. Using gene-expression-based metrics, we evaluated the association of stemness with immune cell infiltration and genomic, transcriptomic, and clinical parameters across 21 solid cancers. We found pervasive negative associations between cancer stemness and anticancer immunity. This occurred despite high stemness cancers exhibiting increased mutation load, cancer-testis antigen expression, and intratumoral heterogeneity. Stemness was also strongly associated with cell-intrinsic suppression of endogenous retroviruses and type I IFN signaling, and increased expression of multiple therapeutically accessible immunosuppressive pathways. Thus, stemness is not only a fundamental process in cancer progression but may provide a mechanistic link between antigenicity, intratumoral heterogeneity, and immune suppression across cancers.
Collapse
|
27
|
Soltanian S, Dehghani H. BORIS: a key regulator of cancer stemness. Cancer Cell Int 2018; 18:154. [PMID: 30323717 PMCID: PMC6173857 DOI: 10.1186/s12935-018-0650-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2018] [Accepted: 09/27/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
BORIS (CTCFL) is a DNA binding protein which is involved in tumorigenesis. Although, there are different opinions on the level of gene expression and function of BORIS in normal and cancer tissues, the results of many studies have classified BORIS as a protein belonging to cancer/testis (CT) genes, which are identified as a group of genes that are expressed normally in testis, and abnormally in various types of cancers. In testis, BORIS induces the expression of some male germ cell/testis specific genes, and plays crucial roles during spermatogenesis and production of sperm. In tumorigenesis, the role of BORIS in the expression induction of some CT genes and oncogenes, as well as increasing proliferation/viability of cancer cells has been demonstrated in many researches. In addition to cancer cells, some believe that BORIS is also expressed in normal conditions and plays a universal function in cell division and regulation of genes. The following is a comprehensive review on contradictory views on the expression pattern and biological function of BORIS in normal, as well as cancer cells/tissues, and presents some evidence that support the expression of BORIS in cancer stem cells (CSCs) and advanced stage/poorer differentiation grade of cancers. Boris is involved in the regulation of CSC cellular and molecular features such as self-renewal, chemo-resistance, tumorigenicity, sphere-forming ability, and migration capacity. Finally, the role of BORIS in regulating two important signaling pathways including Wnt/β-catenin and Notch in CSCs, and its ability in recruiting transcription factors or chromatin-remodeling proteins to induce tumorigenesis is discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Sara Soltanian
- Department of Biology, Faculty of Sciences, Shahid Bahonar University of Kerman, Kerman, Iran
| | - Hesam Dehghani
- Department of Basic Sciences, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Azadi Square, Mashhad, 91775-1793 Iran
- Division of Biotechnology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
- Stem Cells and Regenerative Medicine Research Group, Research Institute of Biotechnology, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad, Iran
| |
Collapse
|
28
|
Gordeeva O. Cancer-testis antigens: Unique cancer stem cell biomarkers and targets for cancer therapy. Semin Cancer Biol 2018; 53:75-89. [PMID: 30171980 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcancer.2018.08.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2018] [Revised: 08/15/2018] [Accepted: 08/17/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Cancer-testis antigens (CTAs) are considered as unique and promising cancer biomarkers and targets for cancer therapy. CTAs are multifunctional protein group with specific expression patterns in normal embryonic and adult cells and various types of cancer cells. CTAs are involved in regulating of the basic cellular processes during development, stem cell differentiation and carcinogenesis though the biological roles and cell functions of CTA families remain largely unclear. Analysis of CTA expression patterns in embryonic germ and somatic cells, pluripotent and multipotent stem cells, cancer stem cells and their cell descendants indicates that rearrangements of characteristic CTA profiles (aberrant expression) could be associated with cancer transformation and failure of the developmental program of cell lineage specification and germ line restriction. Therefore, aberrant CTA profiles can be used as panels of biomarkers for diagnoses and the selection of cancer treatment strategies. Moreover, immunogenic CTAs are prospective targets for cancer immunotherapy. Clinical trials testing broad range of cancer therapeutic vaccines against antigens of MAGEA and NY-ESO-1 families for treating various cancers have shown mixed clinical efficiency, safety and tolerability, suggesting the requirement of in-depth research of CTA expression in normal and cancer stem cells and extensive clinical trials for improving cancer immunotherapy technologies. This review focuses on recent advancement in study of CTAs in normal and cancer cells, particularly in normal and cancer stem cells, and provides a new insight into CTA expression patterns during normal and cancer stem cell lineage development. Additionally, new approaches in development of effective CTA-based therapies exclusively targeting cancer stem cells will be discussed.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Olga Gordeeva
- Laboratory of Cell and Molecular Mechanisms of Histogenesis, Kol'tsov Institute of Developmental Biology, Russian Academy of Sciences, 26 Vavilov Street, Moscow, 119334, Russia.
| |
Collapse
|
29
|
Jin S, Cao S, Li J, Meng Q, Wang C, Yao L, Lang Y, Cao J, Shen J, Pan B, Hu J, Yu Y. Cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) expression in resected lung cancer. Onco Targets Ther 2018; 11:4491-4499. [PMID: 30122941 PMCID: PMC6078192 DOI: 10.2147/ott.s159491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Increasing evidence shows cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) play a key role in oncogenesis. Our pre-study finds that MAGEA1, MAGEA10, MAGEB2, KK-LC-1, and CTAG1A/B have high expression frequencies at the protein level. We aim to explore their prognostic role and correlations with clinical characteristics in resected lung cancer at the mRNA level. Methods Thirty-eight surgical lung cancer samples were included. Validation study was performed based on The Cancer Genome Atlas database. The prognostic roles of CTAs were evaluated by Kaplan–Meier and multivariate analysis. Results High expression of MAGEA1 (16.7% vs 65.0%, P=0.004), MAGEA10 (61.1% vs 95.0%, P=0.016), MAGEB2 (55.6% vs 95.0%, P=0.007), and KK-LC-1 (16.7% vs 55.0%, P=0.020) was closely correlated with lymph node metastasis at diagnosis. Patients with TNM stage II or III had a higher expression of MAGEA10 (57.1% vs 91.7%, P=0.034) and KK-LC-1 (14.3% vs 50.0%, P=0.039) compared with patients in TNM stage I. High CTAG1A/B expression showed unfavorable prognosis in all cases (P<0.05). Subgroup analysis showed high CTAG1A/B expression was a negative prognostic factor of survival (P=0.031) in patients with TNM stage II or III. Although no statistical significance was reached, high CTAG1A/B also showed a similar prognostic trend in lung adenocarcinoma (ADC) and squamous cell carcinoma. The Cancer Genome Atlas database showed the negative prognostic role of CTAG1A/B was mainly induced by CTAG1B (NY-ESO-1, P=0.047) and high CTAG1B expression (hazard ratio =2.733, 95% CI: 1.348–5.541, P=0.005) was an independent negative prognostic factor of lung ADC. Conclusion CTAs represent potential candidate targets for immunotherapy and their expression was closely correlated with tumor stage. High CTAG1B expression was an independent negative prognostic factor of lung ADC.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Shi Jin
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Shoubo Cao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China, .,Department of Medical Oncology, Linyi People's Hospital, Linyi, China
| | - Jianhua Li
- Department of Neurosurgery, The Fourth Affiliated Hospital of Harbin Medical University, Harbin, China
| | - Qingwei Meng
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Chunyan Wang
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China, .,Department of Medical Oncology, Linyi People's Hospital, Linyi, China
| | - Lei Yao
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China
| | - Yaoguo Lang
- Department of Thoracic Surgery, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China
| | - Jingyan Cao
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Jing Shen
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Bo Pan
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Jing Hu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| | - Yan Yu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Harbin Medical University Cancer Hospital, Harbin, China,
| |
Collapse
|
30
|
Mahmoud AM. Cancer testis antigens as immunogenic and oncogenic targets in breast cancer. Immunotherapy 2018; 10:769-778. [PMID: 29926750 PMCID: PMC6462849 DOI: 10.2217/imt-2017-0179] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2017] [Accepted: 03/16/2018] [Indexed: 01/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Breast cancer cells frequently express tumor-associated antigens that can elicit immune responses to eradicate cancer. Cancer-testis antigens (CTAs) are a group of tumor-associated antigens that might serve as ideal targets for cancer immunotherapy because of their cancer-restricted expression and robust immunogenicity. Previous clinical studies reported that CTAs are associated with negative hormonal status, aggressive tumor behavior and poor survival. Furthermore, experimental studies have shown the ability of CTAs to induce both cellular and humoral immune responses. They also demonstrated the implication of CTAs in promoting cancer cell growth, inhibiting apoptosis and inducing cancer cell invasion and migration. In the current review, we attempt to address the immunogenic and oncogenic potential of CTAs and their current utilization in therapeutic interventions for breast cancer.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Abeer M Mahmoud
- Department of Physical Therapy, College of Applied Health Sciences, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, IL 60612, USA
- Department of Pathology, South Egypt Cancer Institute, Assiut University, Assiut 71111, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|
31
|
Pan J, Yu H, Guo Z, Liu Q, Ding M, Xu K, Mao L. Emerging role of sperm-associated antigen 9 in tumorigenesis. Biomed Pharmacother 2018; 103:1212-1216. [DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2018.04.168] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2018] [Revised: 04/23/2018] [Accepted: 04/23/2018] [Indexed: 11/15/2022] Open
|
32
|
Zhang D, Tang DG, Rycaj K. Cancer stem cells: Regulation programs, immunological properties and immunotherapy. Semin Cancer Biol 2018; 52:94-106. [PMID: 29752993 DOI: 10.1016/j.semcancer.2018.05.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 79] [Impact Index Per Article: 13.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2018] [Revised: 05/04/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
It is becoming increasingly clear that virtually all types of human cancers harbor a small population of stem-like cancer cells (i.e., cancer stem cells, CSCs). These CSCs preexist in primary tumors, can self-renew and are more tolerant of standard treatments, such as antimitotic and molecularly targeted agents, most of which preferentially eliminate differentiated and proliferating cancer cells. CSCs are therefore postulated as the root of therapy resistance, relapse and metastasis. Aside from surgery, radiation, and chemotherapy, immunotherapy is now established as the fourth pillar in the therapeutic armamentarium for patients with cancer, especially late-stage and advanced cancers. A better understanding of CSC immunological properties should lead to development of novel immunologic approaches targeting CSCs, which, in turn, may help prevent tumor recurrence and eliminate residual diseases. Here, with a focus on CSCs in solid tumors, we review CSC regulation programs and recent transcriptomics-based immunological profiling data specific to CSCs. By highlighting CSC antigens that could potentially be immunogenic, we further discuss how CSCs can be targeted immunologically.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Dingxiao Zhang
- Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA; Key Lab of Agricultural Animal Genetics, Breeding & Reproduction of Ministry of Education, College of Animal Science and Technology, Huazhong Agricultural University, Wuhan, 430070, China.
| | - Dean G Tang
- Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA; Cancer Stem Cell Institute, Research Center for Translational Medicine, East Hospital, Tongji University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200120, China.
| | - Kiera Rycaj
- Department of Pharmacology & Therapeutics, Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, Buffalo, NY, 14263, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
33
|
Codd AS, Kanaseki T, Torigo T, Tabi Z. Cancer stem cells as targets for immunotherapy. Immunology 2017; 153:304-314. [PMID: 29150846 DOI: 10.1111/imm.12866] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2017] [Revised: 11/01/2017] [Accepted: 11/02/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Current cancer therapies target the bulk of the tumour, while a population of highly resistant tumour cells may be able to repopulate the tumour and metastasize to new sites. Cancer cells with such stem cell-like characteristics can be identified based on their phenotypical and/or functional features which may open up ways for their targeted elimination. In this review we discuss potential off-target effects of inhibiting cancer stem-cell self-renewal pathways on immune cells, and summarize some recent immunological studies specifically targeting cancer stem cells based on their unique antigen expression.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Amy S Codd
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | | | - Toshihiko Torigo
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Zsuzsanna Tabi
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| |
Collapse
|
34
|
Asano T, Hirohashi Y, Torigoe T, Mariya T, Horibe R, Kuroda T, Tabuchi Y, Saijo H, Yasuda K, Mizuuchi M, Takahashi A, Asanuma H, Hasegawa T, Saito T, Sato N. Brother of the regulator of the imprinted site (BORIS) variant subfamily 6 is involved in cervical cancer stemness and can be a target of immunotherapy. Oncotarget 2017; 7:11223-37. [PMID: 26849232 PMCID: PMC4905468 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.7165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2015] [Accepted: 01/19/2016] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Cervical cancer is a major cause of cancer death in females worldwide. Cervical cancer stem-like cells (CSCs)/cancer-initiating cells (CICs) are resistant to conventional radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and CSCs/CICs are thought to be responsible for recurrence. Eradication of CSCs/CICs is thus essential to cure cervical cancer. In this study, we isolated cervical CSCs/CICs by sphere culture, and we identified a cancer testis (CT) antigen, CTCFL/BORIS, that is expressed in cervical CSCs/CICs. BORIS has 23 mRNA isoform variants classified by 6 subfamilies (sfs), and they encode 17 different BORIS peptides. BORIS sf1 and sf4 are expressed in both CSCs/CICs and non-CSCs/CICs, whereas BORIS sf6 is expressed only in CSCs/CICs. Overexpression of BORIS sf6 in cervical cancer cells increased sphere formation and tumor-initiating ability compared with those in control cells, whereas overexpression of BORIS sf1 and BORIS sf4 resulted in only slight increases. Thus, BORIS sf6 is a cervical CSC/CIC-specific subfamily and has a role in the maintenance of cervical CSCs/CICs. BORIS sf6 contains a specific c-terminal domain (C34), and we identified a human leukocyte antigen (HLA)-A2-restricted antigenic peptide, BORIS C34_24(9) encoded by BORIS sf6. A BORIS C34_24(9)-specific cytotoxic T cell (CTL) clone showed cytotoxicity for BORIS sf6-overexpressing cervical cancer cells. Furthermore, the CTL clone significantly suppressed sphere formation of CaSki cells. Taken together, the results indicate that the CT antigen BORIS sf6 is specifically expressed in cervical CSCs/CICs, that BORIS sf6 has a role in the maintenance of CSCs/CICs, and that BORIS C34_24(9) peptide is a promising candidate for cervical CSC/CIC-targeting immunotherapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Takuya Asano
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Yoshihiko Hirohashi
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Toshihiko Torigoe
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Tasuku Mariya
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Ryota Horibe
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Takafumi Kuroda
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Yuta Tabuchi
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Saijo
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Kazuyo Yasuda
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Masahito Mizuuchi
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.,Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Akari Takahashi
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Hiroko Asanuma
- Surgical Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Tadashi Hasegawa
- Surgical Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Saito
- Obsterics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Noriyuki Sato
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan
| |
Collapse
|
35
|
Wei Y, Wang Y, Gong J, Rao L, Wu Z, Nie T, Shi D, Zhang L. High expression of MAGE-A9 contributes to stemness and malignancy of human hepatocellular carcinoma. Int J Oncol 2017; 52:219-230. [PMID: 29138811 DOI: 10.3892/ijo.2017.4198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2017] [Accepted: 10/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
MAGE-A9, a well-characterized cancer testis antigen (CTA), belongs to a member of melanoma antigen gene (MAGE) family. In human malignancies, aberrant expression of MAGE genes correlated with poor clinical prognosis, increased tumor growth, metastases, and enrichment in stem cell populations of certain cancers. Cancer stem cells (CSCs) have been proposed to contribute to the major malignant phenotypes of liver cancer, including recurrence, metastasis and chemoresistance. However, expression and potential role of MAGE-A9 in liver cancer stem cells (LCSCs) still remain unclear. In the present study, we first analyzed the expression profiling of MAGE family genes in EpCAM+ and EpCAM- human hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), based on public Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. Among these examined MAGE members, MAGE-A9 is the only one with significantly higher expression in EpCAM+ HCC specimens as compared with EpCAM- HCC. Quantitative PCR analysis further confirmed that MAGE-A9 expression significantly elevated in a subtype of HCC patients that had features of hepatic stem/progenitor cells with high-level expression of EpCAM and α-fetoprotein (AFP). Moreover, MAGE-A9 displayed remarkably enriched expression in EpCAM+ HCC cells that were sorted by fluorescence-activated cell sorting and cultured HCC cell spheroids with characteristics of stem/progenitor cells. Functional experiments further revealed that MAGE-A9 overexpression promoted cell proliferation, colony formation, migration, chemoresistance, and tumorigenicity in the context of EpCAM+ HCC cells, whereas MAGE-A9 knockdown significantly inhibited anchorage-dependent and spheroid colony formation and in vivo tumorigenicity. Collectively, these data demonstrate that MAGE-A9 functions as an important regulator of LCSCs, and MAGE-A9 may serve as a potential therapeutic target against HCC stem/progenitor cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Youping Wei
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Yanqin Wang
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Jing Gong
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Lihua Rao
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Zhiwei Wu
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Teng Nie
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Dongling Shi
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| | - Liming Zhang
- Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Nanchang, Jiangxi 330003, P.R. China
| |
Collapse
|
36
|
Identification of genes and critical control proteins associated with inflammatory breast cancer using network controllability. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0186353. [PMID: 29108005 PMCID: PMC5673205 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0186353] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2017] [Accepted: 10/01/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the most aggressive forms of breast cancer is inflammatory breast cancer (IBC), whose lack of tumour mass also makes a prompt diagnosis difficult. Moreover, genomic differences between common breast cancers and IBC have not been completely assessed, thus substantially limiting the identification of biomarkers unique to IBC. Here, we developed a novel statistical analysis of gene expression profiles corresponding to microdissected IBC, non-IBC (nIBC) and normal samples that enabled us to identify a set of genes significantly associated with a specific disease state. Second, by using advanced methods based on controllability network theory, we identified a set of critical control proteins that uniquely and structurally control the entire proteome. By mapping high change variance genes in protein interaction networks, we found that a large statistically significant fraction of genes whose variance changed significantly between normal and IBC and nIBC disease states were among the set of critical control proteins. Moreover, this analysis identified the overlapping genes with the highest statistical significance; these genes may assist in developing future biomarkers and determining drug targets to disrupt the molecular pathways driving carcinogenesis in IBC.
Collapse
|
37
|
Identification of antigenic peptides from novel renal cancer stem-like cell antigen, DNAJB8. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2017; 494:693-699. [PMID: 29107688 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2017.10.146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2017] [Accepted: 10/27/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To identify antigenic peptides of cancer stem-like cells (CSCs) antigen, DNAJB8, and establish a mouse CSCs-targeting immunotherapy model. MATERIALS AND METHODS To induce DNAJB8-specific immune reaction, we stimulated human CD8+ lymphocytes with antigen-presenting cells pulsed with a cocktail of three candidate HLA-A*24:02 restricted peptides and assessed peptide specific human cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) induction. One of the antigenic peptides showed identical amino acid sequence as corresponding mouse DNAJB8. We evaluated CTL induction with the peptide immunization in mouse model. RESULTS We confirmed peptide-specific interferon-γ secretions and cytotoxic activities of induced human CTLs. In vivo immunization with the peptide to mice, peptide-specific CTL response could be observed in mouse CD8+ T cells. Furthermore, immunization with the peptide showed significant anti-tumor effects compared with negative controls. CONCLUSION DNAJB8-derived peptide is a novel candidate for CSCs-targeting immunotherapy, and mouse models can be used to evaluate CSCs-targeting immunotherapy.
Collapse
|
38
|
Jiao Y, Ding L, Chu M, Wang T, Kang J, Zhao X, Li H, Chen X, Gao Z, Gao L, Wang Y. Effects of cancer-testis antigen, TFDP3, on cell cycle regulation and its mechanism in L-02 and HepG2 cell lines in vitro. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0182781. [PMID: 28797103 PMCID: PMC5552311 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0182781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2017] [Accepted: 07/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
TFDP3, also be known as HCA661, was one of the cancer-testis antigens, which only expressed in human tissues. The recent researches about TFDP3 mostly focused on its ability to control the drug resistance and apoptosis of tumor cells. However, the role of TFDP3 in the progress of the cell cycle is rarely involved. In this study, we examined the expression of TFDP3 in human liver tissues firstly. After that, we detect the expression of TFDP3 at the RNA level and protein level in L-02 cell line and HepG2 cell line, and the location of TFDP3 was defined by immunofluorescence technique. Furthermore, we synchronized the cells to G1 phase, S phase and G2 phase, and arrested cell mitosis. The localization of TFDP3 and co-localization with E2F1 molecules in different phases of hepatocyte lines. Finally, TFDP3 gene knockout was performed on L-02 and HepG2 cell lines, and detected the new cell cycles by flow cytometry. The result showed that the expression of TFDP3 molecule is negative in normal liver tissue, but positive in immortalized human hepatocyte cell line, and the expression level is lower than in hepatocellular carcinoma cell line. The expression level of TFDP3 was in the dynamic change of L-02 and HepG2 cell lines, and was related to the phase transition. TFDP3 can bind to E2F1 molecule to form E2F/TFDP3 complex; and the localizations of TFDP3 and E2F1 molecules and the co-localization were different in different phases of cell cycle in the nucleus and cytoplasm, which indicated that the E2F/TFDP3 complex involved in the process of regulating the cell cycle. By knocking down the TFDP3 expression level in L-02 and HepG2 cell lines, the cell cycle would be arrested in S phase, which confirmed that TFDP3 can be a potential target for tumor therapy.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yunshen Jiao
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Ministry of Health, Beijing, China
| | - Lingyu Ding
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Ministry of Health, Beijing, China
| | - Ming Chu
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Ministry of Health, Beijing, China
- * E-mail: (MC); (YDW)
| | - Tieshan Wang
- Beijing Research Institute of Chinese Medicine, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China
| | - Jiarui Kang
- Department of Pathology, the First Affiliated Hospital of General Hospital of Chinese People’s Liberation Army, Beijing, China
| | - Xiaofan Zhao
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Huanhuan Li
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Ministry of Health, Beijing, China
| | - Xi Chen
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Zirui Gao
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Likai Gao
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
| | - Yuedan Wang
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Science, Peking University, Beijing, China
- Key Laboratory of Medical Immunology, Ministry of Health, Beijing, China
- * E-mail: (MC); (YDW)
| |
Collapse
|
39
|
Melanoma antigen A12 regulates cell cycle via tumor suppressor p21 expression. Oncotarget 2017; 8:68448-68459. [PMID: 28978129 PMCID: PMC5620269 DOI: 10.18632/oncotarget.19497] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/09/2017] [Accepted: 06/08/2017] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Melanoma-associated antigen family A (MAGE-A) is a family of cancer/testis antigens that are expressed in malignant tumors but not in normal tissues other than the testes. MAGE-A12 is a MAGE-A family gene whose tumorigenic function in cancer cells remains unclear. Searches of the Oncomine and NextBio databases revealed that malignant tumors show up-regulation of MAGE-A12 mRNA relative to corresponding normal tissue. In PPC1 primary prostatic carcinoma cells and in HCT116 colorectal cancer cells (wild type and p53-depleted), MAGE-A12 gene knockdown using siRNA or shRNA diminishes cancer cell proliferation as assessed by cellular ATP levels, cell counting, and clonogenic assays. FACS analyses of annexin V-PI staining and DNA content show that MAGE-A12 knockdown causes G2/M arrest and apoptosis. In tumor xenografts of HCT116 cells, conditional knockdown of MAGE-A12 suppresses tumor growth. The depletion of MAGE-A12 leads to the accumulation of tumor suppressor p21 in PPC1, HCT116, and p53-depleted HCT116 cells. Conversely, CDKN1A knockdown partially rescues the viability of PPC1 cells transfected with siRNA targeting MAGE-A12, while p21 overexpression leads to proliferation arrest in PPC-1 cells. Furthermore, exogenous MAGE-A12 expression promotes the ubiquitination of p21. Our findings reveal that MAGE-A12 plays crucial roles in p21 stability and tumor growth, suggesting that MAGE-A12 could provide a novel target for cancer treatment.
Collapse
|
40
|
McLoughlin KC, Kaufman AS, Schrump DS. Targeting the epigenome in malignant pleural mesothelioma. Transl Lung Cancer Res 2017; 6:350-365. [PMID: 28713680 DOI: 10.21037/tlcr.2017.06.06] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
Malignant pleural mesotheliomas (MPM) are notoriously refractory to conventional treatment modalities. Recent insights regarding epigenetic alterations in MPM provide the preclinical rationale for the evaluation of novel combinatorial regimens targeting the epigenome in these neoplasms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Kaitlin C McLoughlin
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic and GI Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Andrew S Kaufman
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic and GI Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - David S Schrump
- Thoracic Epigenetics Section, Thoracic and GI Oncology Branch, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA
| |
Collapse
|
41
|
Mantere T, Tervasmäki A, Nurmi A, Rapakko K, Kauppila S, Tang J, Schleutker J, Kallioniemi A, Hartikainen JM, Mannermaa A, Nieminen P, Hanhisalo R, Lehto S, Suvanto M, Grip M, Jukkola-Vuorinen A, Tengström M, Auvinen P, Kvist A, Borg Å, Blomqvist C, Aittomäki K, Greenberg RA, Winqvist R, Nevanlinna H, Pylkäs K. Case-control analysis of truncating mutations in DNA damage response genes connects TEX15 and FANCD2 with hereditary breast cancer susceptibility. Sci Rep 2017; 7:681. [PMID: 28386063 PMCID: PMC5429682 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-017-00766-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2017] [Accepted: 03/13/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Several known breast cancer susceptibility genes encode proteins involved in DNA damage response (DDR) and are characterized by rare loss-of-function mutations. However, these explain less than half of the familial cases. To identify novel susceptibility factors, 39 rare truncating mutations, identified in 189 Northern Finnish hereditary breast cancer patients in parallel sequencing of 796 DDR genes, were studied for disease association. Mutation screening was performed for Northern Finnish breast cancer cases (n = 578–1565) and controls (n = 337–1228). Mutations showing potential cancer association were analyzed in additional Finnish cohorts. c.7253dupT in TEX15, encoding a DDR factor important in meiosis, associated with hereditary breast cancer (p = 0.018) and likely represents a Northern Finnish founder mutation. A deleterious c.2715 + 1G > A mutation in the Fanconi anemia gene, FANCD2, was over two times more common in the combined Finnish hereditary cohort compared to controls. A deletion (c.640_644del5) in RNF168, causative for recessive RIDDLE syndrome, had high prevalence in majority of the analyzed cohorts, but did not associate with breast cancer. In conclusion, truncating variants in TEX15 and FANCD2 are potential breast cancer risk factors, warranting further investigations in other populations. Furthermore, high frequency of RNF168 c.640_644del5 indicates the need for its testing in Finnish patients with RIDDLE syndrome symptoms.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Tuomo Mantere
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics and Tumor Biology, Cancer and Translational Medicine Research Unit and Biocenter Oulu, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre Nordlab Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Anna Tervasmäki
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics and Tumor Biology, Cancer and Translational Medicine Research Unit and Biocenter Oulu, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre Nordlab Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Anna Nurmi
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Katrin Rapakko
- Laboratory of Genetics, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre NordLab Oulu, Oulu, Finland.,Cancer Genetic Unit, Service and Central Laboratory of Haematology, CHUV, Lausanne University Hospital, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Saila Kauppila
- Department of Pathology, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Jiangbo Tang
- Departments of Cancer Biology and Pathology, Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Basser Research Center for BRCA, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Johanna Schleutker
- Medical Biochemistry and Genetics Institute of Biomedicine, University of Turku, Turku, Finland.,Microbiology and Genetics, Department of Medical Genetics, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland
| | - Anne Kallioniemi
- BioMediTech and FimLab Laboratories, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland
| | - Jaana M Hartikainen
- School of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, Pathology and Forensic Medicine, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Cancer Center of Eastern Finland, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Imaging Center, Department of Clinical Pathology, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Arto Mannermaa
- School of Medicine, Institute of Clinical Medicine, Pathology and Forensic Medicine, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Cancer Center of Eastern Finland, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Imaging Center, Department of Clinical Pathology, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Pentti Nieminen
- Medical Informatics and Statistics Research Group, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Riitta Hanhisalo
- Laboratory of Genetics, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre NordLab Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Sini Lehto
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Maija Suvanto
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Mervi Grip
- Department of Surgery, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Arja Jukkola-Vuorinen
- Department of Oncology, Oulu University Hospital and University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Maria Tengström
- Cancer Center of Eastern Finland, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Cancer Center, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Päivi Auvinen
- Cancer Center of Eastern Finland, University of Eastern Finland, Kuopio, Finland.,Cancer Center, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland
| | - Anders Kvist
- Department of Oncology and Pathology, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Medicon Village, Lund, Sweden
| | - Åke Borg
- Department of Oncology and Pathology, Department of Clinical Sciences Lund, Lund University, Medicon Village, Lund, Sweden
| | - Carl Blomqvist
- Department of Oncology, Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland.,Department of Oncology, University of Örebro, Örebro, Sweden
| | - Kristiina Aittomäki
- Department of Clinical Genetics, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Roger A Greenberg
- Departments of Cancer Biology and Pathology, Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute, Basser Research Center for BRCA, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, USA
| | - Robert Winqvist
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics and Tumor Biology, Cancer and Translational Medicine Research Unit and Biocenter Oulu, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre Nordlab Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
| | - Heli Nevanlinna
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Helsinki and Helsinki University Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
| | - Katri Pylkäs
- Laboratory of Cancer Genetics and Tumor Biology, Cancer and Translational Medicine Research Unit and Biocenter Oulu, Northern Finland Laboratory Centre Nordlab Oulu, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland.
| |
Collapse
|
42
|
Takeda R, Hirohashi Y, Shen M, Wang L, Ogawa T, Murai A, Yamamoto E, Kubo T, Nakatsugawa M, Kanaseki T, Tsukahara T, Nishidate T, Okita K, Kutomi G, Sato N, Takemasa I, Torigoe T. Identification and functional analysis of variants of a cancer/testis antigen LEMD1 in colorectal cancer stem-like cells. Biochem Biophys Res Commun 2017; 485:651-657. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbrc.2017.02.081] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2017] [Accepted: 02/15/2017] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
|
43
|
Lee AK, Potts PR. A Comprehensive Guide to the MAGE Family of Ubiquitin Ligases. J Mol Biol 2017; 429:1114-1142. [PMID: 28300603 DOI: 10.1016/j.jmb.2017.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 82] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/27/2016] [Revised: 03/07/2017] [Accepted: 03/07/2017] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Melanoma antigen (MAGE) genes are conserved in all eukaryotes and encode for proteins sharing a common MAGE homology domain. Although only a single MAGE gene exists in lower eukaryotes, the MAGE family rapidly expanded in eutherians and consists of more than 50 highly conserved genes in humans. A subset of MAGEs initially garnered interest as cancer biomarkers and immunotherapeutic targets due to their antigenic properties and unique expression pattern that is primary restricted to germ cells and aberrantly reactivated in various cancers. However, further investigation revealed that MAGEs not only drive tumorigenesis but also regulate pathways essential for diverse cellular and developmental processes. Therefore, MAGEs are implicated in a broad range of diseases including neurodevelopmental, renal, and lung disorders, and cancer. Recent biochemical and biophysical studies indicate that MAGEs assemble with E3 RING ubiquitin ligases to form MAGE-RING ligases (MRLs) and act as regulators of ubiquitination by modulating ligase activity, substrate specification, and subcellular localization. Here, we present a comprehensive guide to MAGEs highlighting the molecular mechanisms of MRLs and their physiological roles in germ cell and neural development, oncogenic functions in cancer, and potential as therapeutic targets in disease.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Anna K Lee
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105-3678, USA
| | - Patrick Ryan Potts
- Department of Cell and Molecular Biology, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, Memphis, TN 38105-3678, USA.
| |
Collapse
|
44
|
Li Y, Li J, Wang Y, Zhang Y, Chu J, Sun C, Fu Z, Huang Y, Zhang H, Yuan H, Yin Y. Roles of cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) in breast cancer. Cancer Lett 2017; 399:64-73. [PMID: 28274891 DOI: 10.1016/j.canlet.2017.02.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2016] [Revised: 02/22/2017] [Accepted: 02/24/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Breast cancer is the most common cancer diagnosed and is the second leading cause of cancer death among women in the US. For breast cancer, early diagnosis and efficient therapy remains a significant clinical challenge. Therefore, it is necessary to identify novel tumor associated molecules to target for biomarker development and immunotherapy. In this regard, cancer testis antigens (CTAs) have emerged as a potential clinical biomarker targeting immunotherapy for various malignancies due to the nature of its characteristics. CTAs are a group of tumor associated antigens (TAAs) that display normal expression in immune-privileged organs, but display aberrant expression in several types of cancers, particularly in advanced cancers. Investigation of CTAs for the clinical management of breast malignancies indicates that these TAAs have potential roles as novel biomarkers, with increased specificity and sensitivity compared to those currently used in the clinic. Moreover, TAAs could be therapeutic targets for cancer immunotherapy. This review is an attempt to address the promising CTAs in breast cancer and their possible clinical implications as biomarkers and immunotherapeutic targets with particular focus on challenges and future interventions.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yongfei Li
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Jun Li
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Yifan Wang
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Yanhong Zhang
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Jiahui Chu
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Chunxiao Sun
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Ziyi Fu
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China; Nanjing Maternity and Child Health Medical Institute, Affiliated Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital, Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing 210004, China
| | - Yi Huang
- Department of Pharmacology and Chemical Biology, Magee Women's Research Institute, University of Pittsburgh Cancer Institute, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Hansheng Zhang
- School of Public Health, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
| | - Hongyan Yuan
- Department of Oncology and Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center, Georgetown University Medical Center, Washington, DC, USA
| | - Yongmei Yin
- Department of Oncology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Nanjing Medical University. Nanjing 210004, China.
| |
Collapse
|
45
|
Horibe R, Hirohashi Y, Asano T, Mariya T, Suzuki T, Takaya A, Saijo H, Shionoya Y, Kubo T, Nakatsugawa M, Kanaseki T, Tsukahara T, Watanabe K, Atsuyama E, Toji S, Hirano H, Hasegawa T, Takahashi H, Sato N, Torigoe T. Brother of the regulator of the imprinted site (BORIS) variant subfamily 6 is a novel target of lung cancer stem-like cell immunotherapy. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0171460. [PMID: 28248963 PMCID: PMC5332062 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0171460] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2016] [Accepted: 01/21/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Lung cancer is one of the most common malignancies with a high rate of mortality. Lung cancer stem-like cells (CSCs)/ cancer-initiating cells (CICs) play major role in resistance to treatments, recurrence and distant metastasis and eradication of CSCs/CICs is crucial to improve recent therapy. Cytotoxic T lymphocytes (CTLs) are major effectors of cancer immunotherapy, and CTLs recognize antigenic peptides derived from antigens that are presented by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules. In this study, we analyzed the potency of a cancer-testis (CT) antigen, brother of the regulator of the imprinted site variant subfamily 6 (BORIS sf6), in lung CSC/CIC immunotherapy. BORIS sf6 mRNA was expressed in lung carcinoma cells (9/19), especially in sphere-cultured lung cancer stem-like cells, and in primary lung carcinoma tissues (4/9) by RT-PCR. Immunohistochemical staining using BORIS sf6-specific antibody revealed that high expression of BORIS sf6 is related to poorer prognosis. CTLs could be induced by using a human leukocyte antigen, (HLA)-A2 restricted antigenic peptide (BORIS C34_24(9)), from all of 3 HLA-A2-positive individuals, and CTL clone cells specific for BORIS C34_24(9) peptide could recognize BORIS sf6-positive, HLA-A2-positive lung carcinoma cells. These results indicate that BORIS sf6 is a novel target of lung cancer immunotherapy that might be useful for targeting treatment-resistant lung cancer stem-like cells.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Ryota Horibe
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Yoshihiko Hirohashi
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- * E-mail: (TT); (YH)
| | - Takuya Asano
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Tasuku Mariya
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Takeshi Suzuki
- Department of Biology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Akari Takaya
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Saijo
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Yosuke Shionoya
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Terufumi Kubo
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | | | - Takayuki Kanaseki
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Tomohide Tsukahara
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Kazue Watanabe
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- MEDICAL and BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES CO., LTD., Japan
| | - Eri Atsuyama
- MEDICAL and BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES CO., LTD., Japan
| | - Shingo Toji
- MEDICAL and BIOLOGICAL LABORATORIES CO., LTD., Japan
| | - Hiroshi Hirano
- Department of Surgical Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Tadashi Hasegawa
- Department of Surgical Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Hiroki Takahashi
- Department of Respiratory Medicine and Allergology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Noriyuki Sato
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
| | - Toshihiko Torigoe
- Department of Pathology, Sapporo Medical University School of Medicine, Japan
- * E-mail: (TT); (YH)
| |
Collapse
|
46
|
Taherian-Esfahani Z, Abedin-Do A, Nikpayam E, Tasharofi B, Ghahghaei Nezamabadi A, Ghafouri-Fard S. Cancer-Testis Antigens: A Novel Group of Tumor Biomarkers in Ovarian Cancers. IRANIAN JOURNAL OF CANCER PREVENTION 2016. [DOI: 10.17795/ijcp-4993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
|
47
|
Codd AS, Al-Taei S, Tabi Z. Cross-talk between cancer-initiating cells and immune cells: considerations for combination therapies. ANNALS OF TRANSLATIONAL MEDICINE 2016; 4:S56. [PMID: 27868024 DOI: 10.21037/atm.2016.10.30] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Amy S Codd
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF14 2TL, UK
| | - Saly Al-Taei
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF14 2TL, UK
| | - Zsuzsanna Tabi
- Division of Cancer and Genetics, School of Medicine, Cardiff University, Cardiff, CF14 2TL, UK
| |
Collapse
|
48
|
Lei Y, Xie Y, Tan YS, Prince ME, Moyer JS, Nör J, Wolf GT. Telltale tumor infiltrating lymphocytes (TIL) in oral, head & neck cancer. Oral Oncol 2016; 61:159-65. [PMID: 27553942 DOI: 10.1016/j.oraloncology.2016.08.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/29/2016] [Revised: 07/11/2016] [Accepted: 08/15/2016] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Evidence gleaned from recent studies on the role of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs) suggests that cancer is not only a genetic disease but also an immunologic disease. Head and Neck Squamous Cell Carcinoma (HNSCC) has been a significant model to study cancer cell-immune cell interactions. First, immune cell infiltration is an important feature of these tumors. Second, HNSCC frequently develops resistance to immunogenic cytotoxicity, which provides a window to decipher how tumors engage the immune system to establish immune tolerance. Finally, chemoradiation therapy, as a central modality for HNSCC treatment, has been shown to elicit immune activation. The presence of effector immune cells in the tumor microenvironment is often associated with superior clinical response to adjuvant therapy. On the other hand, an activated immune system, in addition to limiting tumor initiation and progression, could also exert selective pressure to promote the growth of less immunogenic tumors, as a pivotal immunoediting process. But it remains unclear how cancer cell signaling regulates tumor immunogenicity and how to mitigate HNSCC-potentiated TIL suppression. In this review, we will revisit the prognostic role of TILs in HNSCC, and collectively discuss how cancer cell machinery impacts upon the plasticity of TILs.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
- Yu Lei
- Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Translational Oncology Program, U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Graduate Program in Immunology, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States.
| | - Yuying Xie
- Department of Computational Mathematics, Science, and Engineering, Michigan State University, East Lansing 48824, United States
| | - Yee Sun Tan
- Department of Periodontics and Oral Medicine, University of Michigan, School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Translational Oncology Program, U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
| | - Mark E Prince
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
| | - Jeffrey S Moyer
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
| | - Jacques Nör
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Translational Oncology Program, U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Department of Cariology, Restorative Sciences, and Endodontics, University of Michigan School of Dentistry, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States
| | - Gregory T Wolf
- Department of Otolaryngology - Head and Neck Surgery, University of Michigan, School of Medicine, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States; Translational Oncology Program, U-M Comprehensive Cancer Center, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, United States.
| |
Collapse
|
49
|
Expression of Cancer Testis Antigens in Colorectal Cancer: New Prognostic and Therapeutic Implications. DISEASE MARKERS 2016; 2016:1987505. [PMID: 27635108 PMCID: PMC5007337 DOI: 10.1155/2016/1987505] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/09/2016] [Accepted: 07/28/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Background. While cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) are restricted in postnatal tissues to testes and germ line-derived cells, their role in cancer development and the clinical significance of their expression still remain to be better defined. Objective. The aim of this study was to investigate the level of CTA expression in colon samples from patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) in relation to patient clinical status. Methods. Forty-five patients with newly diagnosed colorectal cancer were included in the study. We selected a panel of 18 CTAs that were previously detected in CRC as well as some new gene candidates, and their expression was detected at the mRNA level by employing RQ-PCR. Additionally, we evaluated CTA expression in three colon cancer cell lines (CL-188, HTB-39, and HTB-37) after exposure to the DNA methylation-modifying drug 5-azacytidine. Results. We report that 6 out of 18 (33%) CTAs tested (MAGEA3, OIP5, TTK, PLU1, DKKL1, and FBXO39) were significantly (p < 0.05) overexpressed in tumor tissue compared with healthy colon samples isolated from the same patients. Conclusions. Moreover, we found that MAGEA3, PLU-1, and DKKL expression positively correlated with disease progression, evaluated according to the Dukes staging system. Finally, 5-azacytidine exposure significantly upregulated expression of CTAs on CRC cells, which indicates that this demethylation agent could be employed therapeutically to enhance the immune response against tumor cells.
Collapse
|
50
|
El-Sharkawy NM, Radwan WM, Essa ES, Kandeel EZ, Abd El-Fattah EK, Kandil SH, Kamel AM. Increased expression of brother of the regulator of imprinted sites in peripheral blood neutrophils is associated with both benign and malignant breast lesions. CYTOMETRY PART B-CLINICAL CYTOMETRY 2016; 92:355-360. [PMID: 27219508 DOI: 10.1002/cyto.b.21378] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2015] [Revised: 02/29/2016] [Accepted: 04/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND BORIS, a paralog of the multifunctional CCCTC-binding factor (CTCF) gene is restricted to testis and normally not present in females. It is aberrantly activated in various human cancers including cancer breast. Using immunohistochemistry, western blot and/or RT-PCR, significantly higher levels of BORIS expression were reported in the neutrophils of cancer breast patients. We hypothesized that Flow Cytometry might be a better technique for objective quantitative evaluation of BORIS in neutrophils and we wanted to investigate if BORIS would discriminate between benign and malignant breast lesions. METHODS The study included 85 females; 52 breast cancer, 13 benign breast lesions and 20 age-matched healthy controls. BORIS expression in the neutrophils was detected by Flow Cytometry. RESULTS High level of BORIS was detected in all malignant (64.4 ± 16.6%) and benign cases (67 ± 12.3), mean florescent intensity ratio (MFIR) of 7.2 ± 4.1 and 7 ± 3.5, median 5.8 and 6.6%; and staining index (SI) 8.3 ± 3.9 and 8.2 ± 3.4, median 7.6 and 7.9 respectively vs.13.4 ± 11.5% MFI 1.8 ± 0.7, median1.6 and SI 2.6 ± 0.69, median 2.5 for the control. BORIS level was comparable in the malignant and benign group (P = 0.934) and significantly higher than control (P = 0.0001). There was no correlation between neutrophil BORIS expression and ER/PR status, HER-2/neu expression or tumor stage or size. CONCLUSIONS Increased BORIS expression in peripheral blood neutrophils is associated with both benign and malignant breast lesions; apparently, increased proliferation of breast tissue is the determining factor. This excludes BORIS as a tumor marker but it does not jeopardize its value as a potential therapeutic target. © 2016 International Clinical Cytometry Society.
Collapse
Affiliation(s)
| | - Wafaa M Radwan
- Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebein ElKom, Menoufia, Egypt
| | - Enas S Essa
- Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebein ElKom, Menoufia, Egypt
| | - Eman Z Kandeel
- Clinical Pathology Department, NCI, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| | | | - Samia H Kandil
- Clinical Pathology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Menoufia University, Shebein ElKom, Menoufia, Egypt
| | - Azza M Kamel
- Clinical Pathology Department, NCI, Cairo University, Cairo, Egypt
| |
Collapse
|