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Schendel DJ. Evolution by innovation as a driving force to improve TCR-T therapies. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1216829. [PMID: 37810959 PMCID: PMC10552759 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1216829] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 10/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapies continually evolve through science-based innovation. Specialized innovations for TCR-T therapies are described here that are embedded in an End-to-End Platform for TCR-T Therapy Development which aims to provide solutions for key unmet patient needs by addressing challenges of TCR-T therapy, including selection of target antigens and suitable T cell receptors, generation of TCR-T therapies that provide long term, durable efficacy and safety and development of efficient and scalable production of patient-specific (personalized) TCR-T therapy for solid tumors. Multiple, combinable, innovative technologies are used in a systematic and sequential manner in the development of TCR-T therapies. One group of technologies encompasses product enhancements that enable TCR-T therapies to be safer, more specific and more effective. The second group of technologies addresses development optimization that supports discovery and development processes for TCR-T therapies to be performed more quickly, with higher quality and greater efficiency. Each module incorporates innovations layered onto basic technologies common to the field of immunology. An active approach of "evolution by innovation" supports the overall goal to develop best-in-class TCR-T therapies for treatment of patients with solid cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dolores J. Schendel
- Medigene Immunotherapies GmbH, Planegg, Germany
- Medigene AG, Planegg, Germany
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2
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Foldvari Z, Knetter C, Yang W, Gjerdingen TJ, Bollineni RC, Tran TT, Lund-Johansen F, Kolstad A, Drousch K, Klopfleisch R, Leisegang M, Olweus J. A systematic safety pipeline for selection of T-cell receptors to enter clinical use. NPJ Vaccines 2023; 8:126. [PMID: 37607971 PMCID: PMC10444760 DOI: 10.1038/s41541-023-00713-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 08/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy using T cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-Ts) represents a promising treatment option. However, technologies for pre-clinical safety assessment are incomplete or inaccessible to most laboratories. Here, TCR-T off-target reactivity was assessed in five steps: (1) Mapping target amino acids necessary for TCR-T recognition, followed by (2) a computational search for, and (3) reactivity screening against, candidate cross-reactive peptides in the human proteome. Natural processing and presentation of recognized peptides was evaluated using (4) short mRNAs, and (5) full-length proteins. TCR-Ts were screened for recognition of unintended HLA alleles, and as proxy for off-target reactivity in vivo, a syngeneic, HLA-A*02:01-transgenic mouse model was used. Validation demonstrated importance of studying recognition of full-length candidate off-targets, and that the clinically applied 1G4 TCR has a hitherto unknown reactivity to unintended HLA alleles, relevant for patient selection. This widely applicable strategy should facilitate evaluation of candidate therapeutic TCRs and inform clinical decision-making.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zsofia Foldvari
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Cathrine Knetter
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Weiwen Yang
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Thea Johanne Gjerdingen
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Ravi Chand Bollineni
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
| | - Trung The Tran
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Immunology, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Fridtjof Lund-Johansen
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway
- Department of Immunology, University of Oslo and Oslo University Hospital, Oslo, Norway
| | - Arne Kolstad
- Department of Oncology, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway
| | - Kimberley Drousch
- Institute of Immunology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Robert Klopfleisch
- Institute of Veterinary Pathology, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Matthias Leisegang
- Institute of Immunology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
- David and Etta Jonas Center for Cellular Therapy, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), partner site Berlin, and German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany.
| | - Johanna Olweus
- Department of Cancer Immunology, Institute for Cancer Research, Oslo University Hospital Radiumhospitalet, Oslo, Norway.
- Precision Immunotherapy Alliance, University of Oslo, Oslo, Norway.
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3
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Koyande NP, Srivastava R, Padmakumar A, Rengan AK. Advances in Nanotechnology for Cancer Immunoprevention and Immunotherapy: A Review. Vaccines (Basel) 2022; 10:1727. [PMID: 36298592 PMCID: PMC9610880 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines10101727] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/14/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
One of the most effective cancer therapies, cancer immunotherapy has produced outstanding outcomes in the field of cancer treatment. However, the cost is excessive, which limits its applicability. A smart way to address this issue would be to apply the knowledge gained through immunotherapy to develop strategies for the immunoprevention of cancer. The use of cancer vaccines is one of the most popular methods of immunoprevention. This paper reviews the technologies and processes that support the advantages of cancer immunoprevention over traditional cancer immunotherapies. Nanoparticle drug delivery systems and nanoparticle-based nano-vaccines have been employed in the past for cancer immunotherapy. This paper outlines numerous immunoprevention strategies and how nanotechnology can be applied in immunoprevention. To comprehend the non-clinical and clinical evaluation of these cancer vaccines through clinical studies is essential for acceptance of the vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Aravind Kumar Rengan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad, Kandi, Sangareddy 502285, India
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4
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Isolation of Neoantigen-Specific Human T Cell Receptors from Different Human and Murine Repertoires. Cancers (Basel) 2022; 14:cancers14071842. [PMID: 35406613 PMCID: PMC8998067 DOI: 10.3390/cancers14071842] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2022] [Revised: 03/29/2022] [Accepted: 03/31/2022] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary T cell-based immunotherapy has achieved remarkable clinical responses in patients with cancer. Neoepitope-specific T cells can specifically recognize mutated tumor cells and have led to tumor regression in mouse models and clinical studies. However, isolating neoepitope-specific T cell receptors (TCRs) from the patients’ own repertoire has shown limited success. Sourcing T cell repertoires, other than the patients’ own, has certain advantages: the availability of larger amounts of blood from healthy donors, circumventing tumor-related immunosuppression in patients, and including different donors to broaden the pool of specific T cells. Here, for the first time, a side-by-side comparison of three different TCR donor repertoires, including patients and HLA-matched allogenic healthy human repertoires, as well as repertoires of transgenic mice, is performed. Our results support recent studies that using not only healthy donor T cell repertoires, but also transgenic mice might be a viable strategy for isolating TCRs with known specificity directed against neoantigens for adoptive T cell therapy. Abstract (1) Background: Mutation-specific T cell receptor (TCR)-based adoptive T cell therapy represents a truly tumor-specific immunotherapeutic strategy. However, isolating neoepitope-specific TCRs remains a challenge. (2) Methods: We investigated, side by side, different TCR repertoires—patients’ peripheral lymphocytes (PBLs) and tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes (TILs), PBLs of healthy donors, and a humanized mouse model—to isolate neoepitope-specific TCRs against eight neoepitope candidates from a colon cancer and an ovarian cancer patient. Neoepitope candidates were used to stimulate T cells from different repertoires in vitro to generate neoepitope-specific T cells and isolate the specific TCRs. (3) Results: We isolated six TCRs from healthy donors, directed against four neoepitope candidates and one TCR from the murine T cell repertoire. Endogenous processing of one neoepitope, for which we isolated one TCR from both human and mouse-derived repertoires, could be shown. No neoepitope-specific TCR could be generated from the patients’ own repertoire. (4) Conclusion: Our data indicate that successful isolation of neoepitope-specific TCRs depends on various factors such as the heathy donor’s TCR repertoire or the presence of a tumor microenvironment allowing neoepitope-specific immune responses of the host. We show the advantage and feasibility of using healthy donor repertoires and humanized mouse TCR repertoires to generate mutation-specific TCRs with different specificities, especially in a setting when the availability of patient material is limited.
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5
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Therapeutic Vaccines against Hepatocellular Carcinoma in the Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Era: Time for Neoantigens? Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23042022. [PMID: 35216137 PMCID: PMC8875127 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23042022] [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: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 02/07/2022] [Accepted: 02/10/2022] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICI) have been used as immunotherapy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) with promising but still limited results. Identification of immune elements in the tumor microenvironment of individual HCC patients may help to understand the correlations of responses, as well as to design personalized therapies for non-responder patients. Immune-enhancing strategies, such as vaccination, would complement ICI in those individuals with poorly infiltrated tumors. The prominent role of responses against mutated tumor antigens (neoAgs) in ICI-based therapies suggests that boosting responses against these epitopes may specifically target tumor cells. In this review we summarize clinical vaccination trials carried out in HCC, the available information on potentially immunogenic neoAgs in HCC patients, and the most recent results of neoAg-based vaccines in other tumors. Despite the low/intermediate mutational burden observed in HCC, data obtained from neoAg-based vaccines in other tumors indicate that vaccines directed against these tumor-specific antigens would complement ICI in a subset of HCC patients.
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Lee MY, Jeon JW, Sievers C, Allen CT. Antigen processing and presentation in cancer immunotherapy. J Immunother Cancer 2021; 8:jitc-2020-001111. [PMID: 32859742 PMCID: PMC7454179 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2020-001111] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 07/19/2020] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Knowledge about and identification of T cell tumor antigens may inform the development of T cell receptor-engineered adoptive cell transfer or personalized cancer vaccine immunotherapy. Here, we review antigen processing and presentation and discuss limitations in tumor antigen prediction approaches. Methods Original articles covering antigen processing and presentation, epitope discovery, and in silico T cell epitope prediction were reviewed. Results Natural processing and presentation of antigens is a complex process that involves proteasomal proteolysis of parental proteins, transportation of digested peptides into the endoplasmic reticulum, loading of peptides onto major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I molecules, and shuttling of peptide:MHC complexes to the cell surface. A number of T cell tumor antigens have been experimentally validated in patients with cancer. Assessment of predicted MHC class I binding and total score for these validated T cell antigens demonstrated a wide range of values, with nearly one-third of validated antigens carrying an IC50 of greater than 500 nM. Conclusions Antigen processing and presentation is a complex, multistep process. In silico epitope prediction techniques can be a useful tool, but comprehensive experimental testing and validation on a patient-by-patient basis may be required to reliably identify T cell tumor antigens.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maxwell Y Lee
- NIDCD, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Jun W Jeon
- NIDCD, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Cem Sievers
- NIDCD, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
| | - Clint T Allen
- NIDCD, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Maryland, USA
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7
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Weeder BR, Wood MA, Li E, Nellore A, Thompson RF. pepsickle rapidly and accurately predicts proteasomal cleavage sites for improved neoantigen identification. Bioinformatics 2021; 37:3723-3733. [PMID: 34478497 DOI: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btab628] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Revised: 07/21/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
MOTIVATION Proteasomal cleavage is a key component in protein turnover, as well as antigen processing and presentation. Although tools for proteasomal cleavage prediction are available, they vary widely in their performance, options, and availability. RESULTS Herein we present pepsickle, an open-source tool for proteasomal cleavage prediction with better in vivo prediction performance (AUC) and computational speed than current models available in the field and with the ability to predict sites based on both constitutive and immunoproteasome profiles. Post-hoc filtering of predicted patient neoepitopes using pepsickle significantly enriches for immune-responsive epitopes and may improve current epitope prediction and vaccine development pipelines. AVAILABILITY pepsickle is open source and available at https://github.com/pdxgx/pepsickle. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin R Weeder
- Computational Biology Program, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA
| | | | - Ellysia Li
- Pacific University, Forest Grove, OR, USA
| | - Abhinav Nellore
- Computational Biology Program, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Surgery, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA
| | - Reid F Thompson
- Computational Biology Program, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Biomedical Engineering, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Radiation Medicine, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Department of Medical Informatics and Clinical Epidemiology, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, Oregon, USA.,Division of Hospital and Specialty Medicine, VA Portland Healthcare System, Portland, Oregon, USA
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8
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Morgan MA, Galla M, Grez M, Fehse B, Schambach A. Retroviral gene therapy in Germany with a view on previous experience and future perspectives. Gene Ther 2021; 28:494-512. [PMID: 33753908 PMCID: PMC8455336 DOI: 10.1038/s41434-021-00237-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2020] [Revised: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Gene therapy can be used to restore cell function in monogenic disorders or to endow cells with new capabilities, such as improved killing of cancer cells, expression of suicide genes for controlled elimination of cell populations, or protection against chemotherapy or viral infection. While gene therapies were originally most often used to treat monogenic diseases and to improve hematopoietic stem cell transplantation outcome, the advent of genetically modified immune cell therapies, such as chimeric antigen receptor modified T cells, has contributed to the increased numbers of patients treated with gene and cell therapies. The advancement of gene therapy with integrating retroviral vectors continues to depend upon world-wide efforts. As the topic of this special issue is "Spotlight on Germany," the goal of this review is to provide an overview of contributions to this field made by German clinical and research institutions. Research groups in Germany made, and continue to make, important contributions to the development of gene therapy, including design of vectors and transduction protocols for improved cell modification, methods to assess gene therapy vector efficacy and safety (e.g., clonal imbalance, insertion sites), as well as in the design and conduction of clinical gene therapy trials.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael A Morgan
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- REBIRTH Research Center for Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Melanie Galla
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
- REBIRTH Research Center for Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Manuel Grez
- Institute for Tumor Biology and Experimental Therapy, Georg-Speyer-Haus, Frankfurt, Germany
| | - Boris Fehse
- Research Department Cell and Gene Therapy, Department of Stem Cell Transplantation, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, Hamburg, Germany
| | - Axel Schambach
- Institute of Experimental Hematology, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
- REBIRTH Research Center for Translational Regenerative Medicine, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany.
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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9
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Dudaniec K, Westendorf K, Nössner E, Uckert W. Generation of Epstein-Barr Virus Antigen-Specific T Cell Receptors Recognizing Immunodominant Epitopes of LMP1, LMP2A, and EBNA3C for Immunotherapy. Hum Gene Ther 2021; 32:919-935. [PMID: 33798008 DOI: 10.1089/hum.2020.283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infections in healthy individuals are usually cleared by immune cells, wherein CD8+ T lymphocytes play the most important role. However, in some immunocompromised individuals, EBV infections can lead to the development of cancer in B, T, natural killer (NK) cells and epithelial cells. Most EBV-associated cancers express a limited number of virus-specific antigens such as latent membrane proteins (LMP1 and LMP2) and nuclear proteins (EBNA1, -2, EBNA3A, -B, -C, and EBNA-LP). These antigens represent true tumor-specific antigens and can be considered useful targets for T cell receptor (TCR) gene therapy to treat EBV-associated diseases. We used a TCR isolation platform based on a single major histocompatibility complex class I (MHC I) K562 cell library for the detection, isolation, and re-expression of TCRs targeting immunodominant peptide MHC (pMHC). Mature dendritic cells (mDCs) were pulsed with in vitro-transcribed (ivt) RNA encoding for the selected antigen to stimulate autologous T cells. The procedure allowed the mDCs to select an immunogenic epitope of the antigen for processing and presentation on the cell surface in combination with the most suitable MHC I molecule. We isolated eight EBV-specific TCRs. They recognize various pMHCs of EBV antigens LMP1, LMP2A, and EBNA3C, some of them described previously and some newly identified in this study. The TCR genes were molecularly cloned into retroviral vectors and the resultant TCR-engineered T cells secreted interferon-γ after antigen contact and were able to lyse tumor cells. The EBV-specific TCRs can be used as a basis for the generation of a TCR library, which provides a valuable source of TCRs for the production of EBV-specific T cells to treat EBV-associated diseases in patients with different MHC I types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Krystyna Dudaniec
- Molecular Cell Biology and Gene Therapy, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
| | - Kerstin Westendorf
- Molecular Cell Biology and Gene Therapy, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Wolfgang Uckert
- Molecular Cell Biology and Gene Therapy, Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
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10
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Willimsky G, Beier C, Immisch L, Papafotiou G, Scheuplein V, Goede A, Holzhütter HG, Blankenstein T, Kloetzel PM. In vitro proteasome processing of neo-splicetopes does not predict their presentation in vivo. eLife 2021; 10:e62019. [PMID: 33875134 PMCID: PMC8154032 DOI: 10.7554/elife.62019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2020] [Accepted: 04/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
Proteasome-catalyzed peptide splicing (PCPS) of cancer-driving antigens could generate attractive neoepitopes to be targeted by T cell receptor (TCR)-based adoptive T cell therapy. Based on a spliced peptide prediction algorithm, TCRs were generated against putative KRASG12V- and RAC2P29L-derived neo-splicetopes with high HLA-A*02:01 binding affinity. TCRs generated in mice with a diverse human TCR repertoire specifically recognized the respective target peptides with high efficacy. However, we failed to detect any neo-splicetope-specific T cell response when testing the in vivo neo-splicetope generation and obtained no experimental evidence that the putative KRASG12V- and RAC2P29L-derived neo-splicetopes were naturally processed and presented. Furthermore, only the putative RAC2P29L-derived neo-splicetopes was generated by in vitro PCPS. The experiments pose severe questions on the notion that available algorithms or the in vitro PCPS reaction reliably simulate in vivo splicing and argue against the general applicability of an algorithm-driven 'reverse immunology' pipeline for the identification of cancer-specific neo-splicetopes.
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MESH Headings
- Animals
- Antigen Presentation
- Antigens, Neoplasm/genetics
- Antigens, Neoplasm/immunology
- Antigens, Neoplasm/metabolism
- CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/immunology
- CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes/metabolism
- Epitopes
- HEK293 Cells
- HLA-A2 Antigen/immunology
- HLA-A2 Antigen/metabolism
- Humans
- K562 Cells
- Mice
- Mice, Transgenic
- Mutation
- Neoplasms/genetics
- Neoplasms/immunology
- Neoplasms/metabolism
- Proof of Concept Study
- Proteasome Endopeptidase Complex/metabolism
- Protein Processing, Post-Translational
- Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/genetics
- Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/immunology
- Proto-Oncogene Proteins p21(ras)/metabolism
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/genetics
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/immunology
- Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell/metabolism
- rac GTP-Binding Proteins/genetics
- rac GTP-Binding Proteins/immunology
- rac GTP-Binding Proteins/metabolism
- RAC2 GTP-Binding Protein
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Affiliation(s)
- Gerald Willimsky
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium, partner site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Christin Beier
- Institute of Biochemistry, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Lena Immisch
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium, partner site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - George Papafotiou
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- German Cancer Research Center, Heidelberg, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium, partner site Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Vivian Scheuplein
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
| | - Andrean Goede
- Institute of Physiology, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Hermann-Georg Holzhütter
- Institute of Biochemistry, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Thomas Blankenstein
- Institute of Immunology, Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine in Helmholtz Association, Berlin, Germany
- Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin, Germany
| | - Peter M Kloetzel
- Institute of Biochemistry, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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11
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Keshavarz-Fathi M, Rezaei N. Cancer Immunoprevention: Current Status and Future Directions. Arch Immunol Ther Exp (Warsz) 2021; 69:3. [PMID: 33638703 DOI: 10.1007/s00005-021-00604-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2019] [Accepted: 02/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Cancer is one of the most serious diseases affecting health and the second leading cause of death worldwide. Despite the development of various therapeutic modalities to deal with cancer, limited improvement in overall survival of patients has been yielded. Since there is no certain cure for cancer, detection of premalignant lesions, and prevention of their progression are vital to the decline of high morbidity and mortality of cancer. Among approaches to cancer prevention, immunoprevention has gained further attention in recent years. Deep understanding of the tumor/immune system interplay and successful prevention of virally-induced malignancies by vaccines have paved the way toward broadening cancer immunoprevention application. The identification of tumor antigens in premalignant lesions was the turning point in cancer immunoprevention that led to designing preventive vaccines for various malignancies including multiple myeloma, colorectal, and breast cancer. In addition to vaccines, immune checkpoint inhibitors are also being tested for the prevention of oral squamous cell carcinoma (SCC), and imiquimod which is an established drug for the prevention of skin SCC, is a non-specific immunomodulator. Herein, to provide a bench-to-bedside understanding of cancer immunoprevention, we will review the role of the immune system in suppression and promotion of tumors, immunoprevention of virally-induced cancers, identification of tumor antigens in premalignant lesions, and clinical advances of cancer immunoprevention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mahsa Keshavarz-Fathi
- School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Cancer Immunology Project (CIP), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran.
- Research Center for Immunodeficiencies, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Dr. Qarib St, Keshavarz Blvd, 14194, Tehran, Iran.
| | - Nima Rezaei
- Research Center for Immunodeficiencies, Children's Medical Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Dr. Qarib St, Keshavarz Blvd, 14194, Tehran, Iran.
- Department of Immunology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
- Cancer Immunology Project (CIP), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Stockholm, Sweden.
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12
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Biernacki MA, Foster KA, Woodward KB, Coon ME, Cummings C, Cunningham TM, Dossa RG, Brault M, Stokke J, Olsen TM, Gardner K, Estey E, Meshinchi S, Rongvaux A, Bleakley M. CBFB-MYH11 fusion neoantigen enables T cell recognition and killing of acute myeloid leukemia. J Clin Invest 2020; 130:5127-5141. [PMID: 32831296 PMCID: PMC7524498 DOI: 10.1172/jci137723] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2020] [Accepted: 06/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Proteins created from recurrent fusion genes like CBFB-MYH11 are prevalent in acute myeloid leukemia (AML), often necessary for leukemogenesis, persistent throughout the disease course, and highly leukemia specific, making them attractive neoantigen targets for immunotherapy. A nonameric peptide derived from a prevalent CBFB-MYH11 fusion protein was found to be immunogenic in HLA-B*40:01+ donors. High-avidity CD8+ T cell clones isolated from healthy donors killed CBFB-MYH11+ HLA-B*40:01+ AML cell lines and primary human AML samples in vitro. CBFB-MYH11-specific T cells also controlled CBFB-MYH11+ HLA-B*40:01+ AML in vivo in a patient-derived murine xenograft model. High-avidity CBFB-MYH11 epitope-specific T cell receptors (TCRs) transduced into CD8+ T cells conferred antileukemic activity in vitro. Our data indicate that the CBFB-MYH11 fusion neoantigen is naturally presented on AML blasts and enables T cell recognition and killing of AML. We provide proof of principle for immunologically targeting AML-initiating fusions and demonstrate that targeting neoantigens has clinical relevance even in low-mutational frequency cancers like fusion-driven AML. This work also represents a first critical step toward the development of TCR T cell immunotherapy targeting fusion gene-driven AML.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda A. Biernacki
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Medicine
| | - Kimberly A. Foster
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Kyle B. Woodward
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Michael E. Coon
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Carrie Cummings
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Tanya M. Cunningham
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Robson G. Dossa
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Michelle Brault
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Jamie Stokke
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, and
| | - Tayla M. Olsen
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | | | - Elihu Estey
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Medicine
| | - Soheil Meshinchi
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, and
| | - Anthony Rongvaux
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Marie Bleakley
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, and
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13
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Apavaloaei A, Hardy MP, Thibault P, Perreault C. The Origin and Immune Recognition of Tumor-Specific Antigens. Cancers (Basel) 2020; 12:E2607. [PMID: 32932620 PMCID: PMC7565792 DOI: 10.3390/cancers12092607] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2020] [Revised: 09/09/2020] [Accepted: 09/11/2020] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The dominant paradigm holds that spontaneous and therapeutically induced anti-tumor responses are mediated mainly by CD8 T cells and directed against tumor-specific antigens (TSAs). The presence of specific TSAs on cancer cells can only be proven by mass spectrometry analyses. Bioinformatic predictions and reverse immunology studies cannot provide this type of conclusive evidence. Most TSAs are coded by unmutated non-canonical transcripts that arise from cancer-specific epigenetic and splicing aberrations. When searching for TSAs, it is therefore important to perform mass spectrometry analyses that interrogate not only the canonical reading frame of annotated exome but all reading frames of the entire translatome. The majority of aberrantly expressed TSAs (aeTSAs) derive from unstable short-lived proteins that are good substrates for direct major histocompatibility complex (MHC) I presentation but poor substrates for cross-presentation. This is an important caveat, because cancer cells are poor antigen-presenting cells, and the immune system, therefore, depends on cross-presentation by dendritic cells (DCs) to detect the presence of TSAs. We, therefore, postulate that, in the untreated host, most aeTSAs are undetected by the immune system. We present evidence suggesting that vaccines inducing direct aeTSA presentation by DCs may represent an attractive strategy for cancer treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Pierre Thibault
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada; (A.A.); (M.-P.H.)
| | - Claude Perreault
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montréal, QC H3T 1J4, Canada; (A.A.); (M.-P.H.)
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14
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Penter L, Wu CJ. Personal tumor antigens in blood malignancies: genomics-directed identification and targeting. J Clin Invest 2020; 130:1595-1607. [PMID: 31985488 PMCID: PMC7108890 DOI: 10.1172/jci129209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Hematological malignancies have long been at the forefront of the development of novel immune-based treatment strategies. The earliest successful efforts originated from the extensive body of work in the field of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. These efforts laid the foundation for the recent exciting era of cancer immunotherapy, which includes immune checkpoint blockade, personal neoantigen vaccines, and adoptive T cell transfer. At the heart of the specificity of these novel strategies is the recognition of target antigens presented by malignant cells to T cells. Here, we review the advances in systematic identification of minor histocompatibility antigens and neoantigens arising from personal somatic alterations or recurrent driver mutations. These exciting efforts pave the path for the implementation of personalized combinatorial cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Livius Penter
- Department of Hematology, Oncology, and Tumor Immunology, Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (CVK), Berlin, Germany
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Catherine J. Wu
- Department of Medical Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Broad Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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15
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Biernacki MA, Bleakley M. Neoantigens in Hematologic Malignancies. Front Immunol 2020; 11:121. [PMID: 32117272 PMCID: PMC7033457 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.00121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2019] [Accepted: 01/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
T cell cancer neoantigens are created from peptides derived from cancer-specific aberrant proteins, such as mutated and fusion proteins, presented in complex with human leukocyte antigens on the cancer cell surface. Because expression of the aberrant target protein is exclusive to malignant cells, immunotherapy directed against neoantigens should avoid “on-target, off-tumor” toxicity. The efficacy of neoantigen vaccines in melanoma and glioblastoma and of adoptive transfer of neoantigen-specific T cells in epithelial tumors indicates that neoantigens are valid therapeutic targets. Improvements in sequencing technology and innovations in antigen discovery approaches have facilitated the identification of neoantigens. In comparison to many solid tumors, hematologic malignancies have few mutations and thus fewer potential neoantigens. Despite this, neoantigens have been identified in a wide variety of hematologic malignancies. These include mutated nucleophosmin1 and PML-RARA in acute myeloid leukemia, ETV6-RUNX1 fusions and other mutated proteins in acute lymphoblastic leukemia, BCR-ABL1 fusions in chronic myeloid leukemia, driver mutations in myeloproliferative neoplasms, immunoglobulins in lymphomas, and proteins derived from patient-specific mutations in chronic lymphoid leukemias. We will review advances in the field of neoantigen discovery, describe the spectrum of identified neoantigens in hematologic malignancies, and discuss the potential of these neoantigens for clinical translation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melinda A Biernacki
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, United States.,Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Marie Bleakley
- Clinical Research Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, United States.,Department of Pediatrics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
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16
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Zhao Q, Laverdure JP, Lanoix J, Durette C, Côté C, Bonneil É, Laumont CM, Gendron P, Vincent K, Courcelles M, Lemieux S, Millar DG, Ohashi PS, Thibault P, Perreault C. Proteogenomics Uncovers a Vast Repertoire of Shared Tumor-Specific Antigens in Ovarian Cancer. Cancer Immunol Res 2020; 8:544-555. [PMID: 32047025 DOI: 10.1158/2326-6066.cir-19-0541] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/12/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 02/07/2020] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
High-grade serous ovarian cancer (HGSC), the principal cause of death from gynecologic malignancies in the world, has not significantly benefited from advances in cancer immunotherapy. Although HGSC infiltration by lymphocytes correlates with superior survival, the nature of antigens that can elicit anti-HGSC immune responses is unknown. The goal of this study was to establish the global landscape of HGSC tumor-specific antigens (TSA) using a mass spectrometry pipeline that interrogated all reading frames of all genomic regions. In 23 HGSC tumors, we identified 103 TSAs. Classic TSA discovery approaches focusing only on mutated exonic sequences would have uncovered only three of these TSAs. Other mutated TSAs resulted from out-of-frame exonic translation (n = 2) or from noncoding sequences (n = 7). One group of TSAs (n = 91) derived from aberrantly expressed unmutated genomic sequences, which were not expressed in normal tissues. These aberrantly expressed TSAs (aeTSA) originated primarily from nonexonic sequences, in particular intronic (29%) and intergenic (22%) sequences. Their expression was regulated at the transcriptional level by variations in gene copy number and DNA methylation. Although mutated TSAs were unique to individual tumors, aeTSAs were shared by a large proportion of HGSCs. Taking into account the frequency of aeTSA expression and HLA allele frequencies, we calculated that, in Caucasians, the median number of aeTSAs per tumor would be five. We conclude that, in view of their number and the fact that they are shared by many tumors, aeTSAs may be the most attractive targets for HGSC immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qingchuan Zhao
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Jean-Philippe Laverdure
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Joël Lanoix
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Chantal Durette
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Caroline Côté
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Éric Bonneil
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Céline M Laumont
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Patrick Gendron
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Krystel Vincent
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Mathieu Courcelles
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Sébastien Lemieux
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada.,Department of Computer Science and Operations Research, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Douglas G Millar
- Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Pamela S Ohashi
- Campbell Family Institute for Breast Cancer Research, Princess Margaret Cancer Centre, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.,Department of Medical Biophysics and Immunology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Pierre Thibault
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. .,Department of Chemistry, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Claude Perreault
- Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada. .,Department of Medicine, Université de Montréal, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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17
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Hardy MP, Vincent K, Perreault C. The Genomic Landscape of Antigenic Targets for T Cell-Based Leukemia Immunotherapy. Front Immunol 2019; 10:2934. [PMID: 31921187 PMCID: PMC6933603 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2019.02934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2019] [Accepted: 11/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Intensive fundamental and clinical research in cancer immunotherapy has led to the emergence and evolution of two parallel universes with surprisingly little interactions: the realm of hematologic malignancies and that of solid tumors. Treatment of hematologic cancers using allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (AHCT) serendipitously led to the discovery that T cells specific for minor histocompatibility antigens (MiHAs) could cure hematopoietic cancers. Besides, studies based on treatment of solid tumor with ex vivo-expanded tumor infiltrating lymphocytes or immune checkpoint therapy demonstrated that anti-tumor responses could be achieved by targeting tumor-specific antigens (TSAs). It is our contention that much insight can be gained by sharing the tremendous amount of data generated in the two-abovementioned universes. Our perspective article has two specific goals. First, to discuss the value of methods currently used for MiHA and TSA discovery and to explain the key role of mass spectrometry analyses in this process. Second, to demonstrate the importance of broadening the scope of TSA discovery efforts beyond classic annotated protein-coding genomic sequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-Pierre Hardy
- Department of Immunobiology, Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Krystel Vincent
- Department of Immunobiology, Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Montreal, QC, Canada
| | - Claude Perreault
- Department of Immunobiology, Institute for Research in Immunology and Cancer, Montreal, QC, Canada
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18
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Endometrial Stromal Sarcomas: A Revision of Their Potential as Targets for Immunotherapy. Vaccines (Basel) 2018; 6:vaccines6030056. [PMID: 30149610 PMCID: PMC6161160 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines6030056] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2018] [Revised: 08/17/2018] [Accepted: 08/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Endometrial stromal sarcomas are a subtype of uterine sarcomas that are characterized by recurrent chromosomal translocations, resulting in the expression of tumor-specific fusion proteins that contribute to their tumorigenicity. These characteristics make the translocation breakpoints promising targets for immunotherapeutic approaches. In this review, we first describe the current knowledge about the classification of endometrial stromal sarcomas, and their molecular and genetic characteristics. Next, we summarize the available data on the use of translocation breakpoints as immunotherapeutic targets. Finally, we propose a roadmap to evaluate the feasibility of immunologic targeting of the endometrial stromal sarcoma-specific translocations in patients with recurrent disease.
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19
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Beyar-Katz O, Gill S. Novel Approaches to Acute Myeloid Leukemia Immunotherapy. Clin Cancer Res 2018; 24:5502-5515. [PMID: 29903894 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-17-3016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2018] [Revised: 05/12/2018] [Accepted: 06/12/2018] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a rapidly progressive, poor-prognosis malignancy arising from hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells. The long history of successful use of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (alloHCT) in AML indicates that this disease is immunoresponsive, leading to optimism that novel immunotherapies such as bispecific antibodies, chimeric antigen receptor T cells, and immune checkpoint inhibitors will generate meaningful disease control. However, emerging data on the immunoevasive tactics employed by AML blasts at diagnosis and at relapse indicate that optimism must be tempered by an understanding of this essential paradox. Furthermore, AML has a low mutational burden, thus presenting few neoantigens for attack by autologous T cells, even after attempted reversal of inhibitory receptor/ligand interactions. In this review, we outline the known AML targets, explore immune evasion mechanisms, and describe recent data and current clinical trials of single and combination immunotherapies. Clin Cancer Res; 24(22); 5502-15. ©2018 AACR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ofrat Beyar-Katz
- Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation. Rambam Health Care Campus, Haifa, Israel
| | - Saar Gill
- Division of Hematology-Oncology and Center for Cellular Immunotherapies, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
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20
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Bräunlein E, Krackhardt AM. Identification and Characterization of Neoantigens As Well As Respective Immune Responses in Cancer Patients. Front Immunol 2017; 8:1702. [PMID: 29250075 PMCID: PMC5714868 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2017.01702] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2017] [Accepted: 11/17/2017] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Cancer immunotherapy has recently emerged as a powerful tool for the treatment of diverse advanced malignancies. In particular, therapeutic application of immune checkpoint modulators, such as anti-CTLA4 or anti-PD-1/PD-L1 antibodies, have shown efficacy in a broad range of malignant diseases. Although pharmacodynamics of these immune modulators are complex, recent studies strongly support the notion that altered peptide ligands presented on tumor cells representing neoantigens may play an essential role in tumor rejection by T cells activated by anti-CTLA4 and anti-PD-1 antibodies. Neoantigens may have diverse sources as viral and mutated proteins. Moreover, posttranslational modifications and altered antigen processing may also contribute to the neoantigenic peptide ligand landscape. Different approaches of target identification are currently applied in combination with subsequent characterization of autologous and non-self T-cell responses against such neoantigens. Additional efforts are required to elucidate key characteristics and interdependences of neoantigens, immunodominance, respective T-cell responses, and the tumor microenvironment in order to define decisive determinants involved in effective T-cell-mediated tumor rejection. This review focuses on our current knowledge of identification and characterization of such neoantigens as well as respective T-cell responses. It closes with challenges to be addressed in future relevant for further improvement of immunotherapeutic strategies in malignant diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eva Bräunlein
- Medizinische Klinik III, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Angela M Krackhardt
- Medizinische Klinik III, Klinikum rechts der Isar, Technische Universität München, Munich, Germany.,German Cancer Consortium of Translational Cancer Research (DKTK), German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
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21
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Schietinger A, Philip M, Krisnawan VE, Chiu EY, Delrow JJ, Basom RS, Lauer P, Brockstedt DG, Knoblaugh SE, Hämmerling GJ, Schell TD, Garbi N, Greenberg PD. Tumor-Specific T Cell Dysfunction Is a Dynamic Antigen-Driven Differentiation Program Initiated Early during Tumorigenesis. Immunity 2016; 45:389-401. [PMID: 27521269 DOI: 10.1016/j.immuni.2016.07.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 458] [Impact Index Per Article: 57.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2015] [Revised: 01/22/2016] [Accepted: 05/05/2016] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
CD8(+) T cells recognizing tumor-specific antigens are detected in cancer patients but are dysfunctional. Here we developed a tamoxifen-inducible liver cancer mouse model with a defined oncogenic driver antigen (SV40 large T-antigen) to follow the activation and differentiation of naive tumor-specific CD8(+) T (TST) cells after tumor initiation. Early during the pre-malignant phase of tumorigenesis, TST cells became dysfunctional, exhibiting phenotypic, functional, and transcriptional features similar to dysfunctional T cells isolated from late-stage human tumors. Thus, T cell dysfunction seen in advanced human cancers may already be established early during tumorigenesis. Although the TST cell dysfunctional state was initially therapeutically reversible, it ultimately evolved into a fixed state. Persistent antigen exposure rather than factors associated with the tumor microenvironment drove dysfunction. Moreover, the TST cell differentiation and dysfunction program exhibited features distinct from T cell exhaustion in chronic infections. Strategies to overcome this antigen-driven, cell-intrinsic dysfunction may be required to improve cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Schietinger
- Immunology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA; Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Program of Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
| | - Mary Philip
- Immunology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA; Division of Hematology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Varintra E Krisnawan
- Immunology Program, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, New York, NY 10065, USA; Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Edison Y Chiu
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Jeffrey J Delrow
- Genomics and Bioinformatics Shared Resources, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Ryan S Basom
- Genomics and Bioinformatics Shared Resources, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Peter Lauer
- Aduro BioTech, Inc., Berkeley, CA 94710, USA
| | | | - Sue E Knoblaugh
- Comparative Medicine Shared Resource, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Günter J Hämmerling
- Divisions of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, DKFZ, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Todd D Schell
- Department of Microbiology & Immunology, Penn State Hershey College of Medicine, Hershey, PA 17033, USA
| | - Natalio Garbi
- Divisions of Cellular and Molecular Immunology, DKFZ, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany; Institutes of Molecular Medicine and Experimental Immunology, University of Bonn, 53127 Bonn, Germany
| | - Philip D Greenberg
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Program of Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA.
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22
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Leisegang M, Engels B, Schreiber K, Yew PY, Kiyotani K, Idel C, Arina A, Duraiswamy J, Weichselbaum RR, Uckert W, Nakamura Y, Schreiber H. Eradication of Large Solid Tumors by Gene Therapy with a T-Cell Receptor Targeting a Single Cancer-Specific Point Mutation. Clin Cancer Res 2015; 22:2734-43. [PMID: 26667491 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-15-2361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 58] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/05/2015] [Accepted: 12/07/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Cancers usually contain multiple unique tumor-specific antigens produced by single amino acid substitutions (AAS) and encoded by somatic nonsynonymous single nucleotide substitutions. We determined whether adoptively transferred T cells can reject large, well-established solid tumors when engineered to express a single type of T-cell receptor (TCR) that is specific for a single AAS. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN By exome and RNA sequencing of an UV-induced tumor, we identified an AAS in p68 (mp68), a co-activator of p53. This AAS seemed to be an ideal tumor-specific neoepitope because it is encoded by a trunk mutation in the primary autochthonous cancer and binds with highest affinity to the MHC. A high-avidity mp68-specific TCR was used to genetically engineer T cells as well as to generate TCR-transgenic mice for adoptive therapy. RESULTS When the neoepitope was expressed at high levels and by all cancer cells, their direct recognition sufficed to destroy intratumor vessels and eradicate large, long-established solid tumors. When the neoepitope was targeted as autochthonous antigen, T cells caused cancer regression followed by escape of antigen-negative variants. Escape could be thwarted by expressing the antigen at increased levels in all cancer cells or by combining T-cell therapy with local irradiation. Therapeutic efficacies of TCR-transduced and TCR-transgenic T cells were similar. CONCLUSIONS Gene therapy with a single TCR targeting a single AAS can eradicate large established cancer, but a uniform expression and/or sufficient levels of the targeted neoepitope or additional therapy are required to overcome tumor escape. Clin Cancer Res; 22(11); 2734-43. ©2015 AACRSee related commentary by Liu, p. 2602.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Boris Engels
- Department of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | - Karin Schreiber
- Department of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | - Poh Yin Yew
- Department of Medicine, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | | | - Christian Idel
- Department of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | - Ainhoa Arina
- Department of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | | | - Ralph R Weichselbaum
- Department of Radiation and Cellular Oncology, The Ludwig Center for Metastasis Research, The University of Chicago, Illinois
| | - Wolfgang Uckert
- Molecular Cell Biology and Gene Therapy, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine, Berlin, Germany. Institute of Biology, Humboldt University Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | | | - Hans Schreiber
- Institute of Immunology, Charité, Campus Buch, Berlin, Germany. Department of Pathology, The University of Chicago, Illinois
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23
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Schmitt TM, Stromnes IM, Chapuis AG, Greenberg PD. New Strategies in Engineering T-cell Receptor Gene-Modified T cells to More Effectively Target Malignancies. Clin Cancer Res 2015; 21:5191-7. [PMID: 26463711 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-15-0860] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2015] [Accepted: 09/12/2015] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
The immune system, T cells in particular, have the ability to target and destroy malignant cells. However, antitumor immune responses induced from the endogenous T-cell repertoire are often insufficient for the eradication of established tumors, as illustrated by the failure of cancer vaccination strategies or checkpoint blockade for most tumors. Genetic modification of T cells to express a defined T-cell receptor (TCR) can provide the means to rapidly generate large numbers of tumor-reactive T cells capable of targeting tumor cells in vivo. However, cell-intrinsic factors as well as immunosuppressive factors in the tumor microenvironment can limit the function of such gene-modified T cells. New strategies currently being developed are refining and enhancing this approach, resulting in cellular therapies that more effectively target tumors and that are less susceptible to tumor immune evasion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thomas M Schmitt
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington
| | - Ingunn M Stromnes
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington. Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Aude G Chapuis
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington
| | - Philip D Greenberg
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, Washington. Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington. Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, Washington.
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24
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Targeting cancer-specific mutations by T cell receptor gene therapy. Curr Opin Immunol 2015; 33:112-9. [PMID: 25728991 DOI: 10.1016/j.coi.2015.02.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/02/2015] [Revised: 01/22/2015] [Accepted: 02/10/2015] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
The ease of sequencing the cancer genome, identifying all somatic mutations and grafting mutation-specific T cell receptor (TCR) genes into T cells for adoptive transfer allow, for the first time, a truly tumor-specific and effective therapy. Mutation-specific TCR gene therapy might achieve optimal efficacy with least possible toxicity. Recent clinical data confirm the long-standing evidence from experimental cancer models that antigens encoded by the tumor-specific somatic mutations are potentially the best targets for adoptive T cell therapy. Open questions are, how many somatic mutations create suitable epitopes, whether only individual-specific or also recurrent somatic mutations qualify as suitable epitopes and how neoantigen-specific TCRs are most efficiently obtained. Tumor heterogeneity needs to be considered; therefore, it will be important to identify immunogenic driver mutations that occurred early, are essential for cancer cell survival and present in all cancer cells.
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Hombrink P, Hassan C, Kester MGD, Jahn L, Pont MJ, de Ru AH, van Bergen CAM, Griffioen M, Falkenburg JHF, van Veelen PA, Heemskerk MHM. Identification of Biological Relevant Minor Histocompatibility Antigens within the B-lymphocyte-Derived HLA-Ligandome Using a Reverse Immunology Approach. Clin Cancer Res 2015; 21:2177-86. [PMID: 25589627 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-14-2188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2014] [Accepted: 12/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE T-cell recognition of minor histocompatibility antigens (MiHA) not only plays an important role in the beneficial graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect of allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) but also mediates serious GVH complications associated with allo-SCT. Using a reverse immunology approach, we aim to develop a method enabling the identification of T-cell responses directed against predefined antigens, with the goal to select those MiHAs that can be used clinically in combination with allo-SCT. EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN In this study, we used a recently developed MiHA selection algorithm to select candidate MiHAs within the HLA-presented ligandome of transformed B cells. From the HLA-presented ligandome that predominantly consisted of monomorphic peptides, 25 polymorphic peptides with a clinically relevant allele frequency were selected. By high-throughput screening, the availability of high-avidity T cells specific for these MiHA candidates in different healthy donors was analyzed. RESULTS With the use of MHC multimer enrichment, analyses of expanded T cells by combinatorial coding MHC multimer flow cytometry, and subsequent single-cell cloning, positive T-cell clones directed to two new MiHA: LB-CLYBL-1Y and LB-TEP1-1S could be demonstrated, indicating the immunogenicity of these two MiHAs. CONCLUSIONS The biologic relevance of MiHA LB-CLYBL-1Y was demonstrated by the detection of LB-CLYBL-1Y-specific T cells in a patient suffering from acute myeloid leukemia (AML) that experienced an anti-leukemic response after treatment with allo-SCT.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pleun Hombrink
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Chopie Hassan
- Department of Immunohematology and Blood Transfusion, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Michel G D Kester
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Lorenz Jahn
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Margot J Pont
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Arnoud H de Ru
- Department of Immunohematology and Blood Transfusion, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | | | - Marieke Griffioen
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | | | - Peter A van Veelen
- Department of Immunohematology and Blood Transfusion, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands
| | - Mirjam H M Heemskerk
- Department of Hematology, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, the Netherlands.
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Zilberberg J, Feinman R, Korngold R. Strategies for the identification of T cell-recognized tumor antigens in hematological malignancies for improved graft-versus-tumor responses after allogeneic blood and marrow transplantation. Biol Blood Marrow Transplant 2014; 21:1000-7. [PMID: 25459643 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbmt.2014.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2014] [Accepted: 11/02/2014] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Allogeneic blood and marrow transplantation (allo-BMT) is an effective immunotherapeutic treatment that can provide partial or complete remission for patients with hematological malignancies. Mature donor T cells in the donor inoculum play a central role in mediating graft-versus-tumor (GVT) responses by destroying residual tumor cells that persist after conditioning regimens. Alloreactivity towards minor histocompatibility antigens (miHA), which are varied tissue-related self-peptides presented in the context of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules on recipient cells, some of which may be shared on tumor cells, is a dominant factor for the development of GVT. Potentially, GVT can also be directed to tumor-associated antigens or tumor-specific antigens that are more specific to the tumor cells themselves. The full exploitation of allo-BMT, however, is greatly limited by the development of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), which is mediated by the donor T cell response against the miHA expressed in the recipient's cells of the intestine, skin, and liver. Because of the significance of GVT and GVHD responses in determining the clinical outcome of patients, miHA and tumor antigens have been intensively studied, and one active immunotherapeutic approach to separate these two responses has been cancer vaccination after allo-BMT. The combination of these two strategies has an advantage over vaccination of the patient without allo-BMT because his or her immune system has already been exposed and rendered unresponsive to the tumor antigens. The conditioning for allo-BMT eliminates the patient's existing immune system, including regulatory elements, and provides a more permissive environment for the newly developing donor immune compartment to selectively target the malignant cells. Utilizing recent technological advances, the identities of many human miHA and tumor antigenic peptides have been defined and are currently being evaluated in clinical and basic immunological studies for their ability to produce effective T cell responses. The first step towards this goal is the identification of targetable tumor antigens. In this review, we will highlight some of the technologies currently used to identify tumor antigens and anti-tumor T cell clones in hematological malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jenny Zilberberg
- Research Department and John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, New Jersey.
| | - Rena Feinman
- Research Department and John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, New Jersey
| | - Robert Korngold
- Research Department and John Theurer Cancer Center, Hackensack University Medical Center, Hackensack, New Jersey
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The nature of self for T cells-a systems-level perspective. Curr Opin Immunol 2014; 34:1-8. [PMID: 25466393 DOI: 10.1016/j.coi.2014.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/04/2014] [Revised: 10/16/2014] [Accepted: 10/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
T-cell development and function are regulated by MHC-associated self peptides, collectively referred to as the immunopeptidome. Large-scale mass spectrometry studies have highlighted three key features of the immunopeptidome. First, it is not a mirror of the proteome or the transcriptome, and its content cannot be predicted with currently available bioinformatic tools. Second, the immunopeptidome is more plastic than previously anticipated, and is molded by several cell-intrinsic and cell-extrinsic factors. Finally, the complexity of the immunopeptidome goes beyond the 20-amino acids alphabet encoded in the germline, and is not restricted to canonical reading frames. The large amounts of 'dark matter' in the immunopeptidome, such as polymorphic, cryptic and mutant peptides, can now be explored using novel proteogenomic approaches that combine mass spectrometry and next-generation sequencing.
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Pinto S, Sommermeyer D, Michel C, Wilde S, Schendel D, Uckert W, Blankenstein T, Kyewski B. Misinitiation of intrathymic MART-1 transcription and biased TCR usage explain the high frequency of MART-1-specific T cells. Eur J Immunol 2014; 44:2811-21. [PMID: 24846220 DOI: 10.1002/eji.201444499] [Citation(s) in RCA: 38] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2014] [Revised: 04/23/2014] [Accepted: 05/16/2014] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
Immunity to tumor differentiation antigens, such as melanoma antigen recognized by T cells 1 (MART-1), has been comprehensively studied. Intriguingly, CD8(+) T cells specific for the MART-1(26(27)-35) epitope in the context of HLA-A0201 are about 100 times more abundant compared with T cells specific for other tumor-associated antigens. Moreover, MART-1-specific CD8(+) T cells show a highly biased usage of the Vα-region gene TRAV12-2. Here, we provide independent support for this notion, by showing that the combinatorial pairing of different TCRα- and TCRβ- chains derived from HLA-A2-MART-1(26-35) -specific CD8(+) T-cell clones is unusually permissive in conferring MART-1 specificity, provided the CDR1α TRAV12-2 region is used. Whether TCR bias alone accounts for the unusual abundance of HLA-A2-MART-1(26-35) -specific CD8(+) T cells has remained conjectural. Here, we provide an alternative explanation: misinitiated transcription of the MART-1 gene resulting in truncated mRNA isoforms leads to lack of promiscuous transcription of the MART-1(26-35) epitope in human medullary thymic epithelial cells and, consequently, evasion of central self-tolerance toward this epitope. Thus, biased TCR usage and leaky central tolerance might act in an independent and additive manner to confer high frequency of MART-1(26-35) -specific CD8(+) T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sheena Pinto
- Division of Developmental Immunology, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
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29
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Impact of genomic polymorphisms on the repertoire of human MHC class I-associated peptides. Nat Commun 2014; 5:3600. [PMID: 24714562 PMCID: PMC3996541 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms4600] [Citation(s) in RCA: 77] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2013] [Accepted: 03/10/2014] [Indexed: 12/23/2022] Open
Abstract
For decades, the global impact of genomic polymorphisms on the repertoire of peptides presented by major histocompatibility complex (MHC) has remained a matter of speculation. Here we present a novel approach that enables high-throughput discovery of polymorphic MHC class I-associated peptides (MIPs), which play a major role in allorecognition. On the basis of comprehensive analyses of the genomic landscape of MIPs eluted from B lymphoblasts of two MHC-identical siblings, we show that 0.5% of non-synonymous single nucleotide variations are represented in the MIP repertoire. The 34 polymorphic MIPs found in our subjects are encoded by bi-allelic loci with dominant and recessive alleles. Our analyses show that, at the population level, 12% of the MIP-coding exome is polymorphic. Our method provides fundamental insights into the relationship between the genomic self and the immune self and accelerates the discovery of polymorphic MIPs (also known as minor histocompatibility antigens). Mass spectrometry (MS) has furthered our understanding of MHC class I-associated peptides (MIPs), but the technique is inadequate for studying MIP-associated polymorphisms. Here, the authors combine high-throughput MS with exome and transcriptome sequencing to identify polymorphic MIPs from two female siblings.
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Stromnes IM, Schmitt TM, Chapuis AG, Hingorani SR, Greenberg PD. Re-adapting T cells for cancer therapy: from mouse models to clinical trials. Immunol Rev 2014; 257:145-64. [PMID: 24329795 PMCID: PMC4015625 DOI: 10.1111/imr.12141] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Adoptive T-cell therapy involves the isolation, expansion, and reinfusion of T lymphocytes with a defined specificity and function as a means to eradicate cancer. Our research has focused on specifying the requirements for tumor eradication with antigen-specific T cells and T cells transduced to express a defined T-cell receptor (TCR) in mouse models and then translating these strategies to clinical trials. Our design of T-cell-based therapy for cancer has reflected efforts to identify the obstacles that limit sustained effector T-cell activity in mice and humans, design approaches to enhance T-cell persistence, develop methods to increase TCR affinity/T-cell functional avidity, and pursue strategies to overcome tolerance and immunosuppression. With the advent of genetic engineering, a highly functional population of T cells can now be rapidly generated and tailored for the targeted malignancy. Preclinical studies in faithful and informative mouse models, in concert with knowledge gained from analyses of successes and limitations in clinical trials, are shaping how we continue to develop, refine, and broaden the applicability of this approach for cancer therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ingunn M. Stromnes
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Thomas M. Schmitt
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Aude G. Chapuis
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Sunil R. Hingorani
- Clinical Research Division and Public Health Sciences Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Philip D. Greenberg
- Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Medicine, Division of Medical Oncology, University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA
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31
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Engels B, Engelhard VH, Sidney J, Sette A, Binder DC, Liu RB, Kranz DM, Meredith SC, Rowley DA, Schreiber H. Relapse or eradication of cancer is predicted by peptide-major histocompatibility complex affinity. Cancer Cell 2013; 23:516-26. [PMID: 23597565 PMCID: PMC3658176 DOI: 10.1016/j.ccr.2013.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 114] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2012] [Revised: 02/21/2013] [Accepted: 03/19/2013] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Cancers often relapse after adoptive therapy, even though specific T cells kill cells from the same cancer efficiently in vitro. We found that tumor eradication by T cells required high affinities of the targeted peptides for major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I. Affinities of at least 10 nM were required for relapse-free regression. Only high-affinity peptide-MHC interactions led to efficient cross-presentation of antigen, thereby stimulating cognate T cells to secrete cytokines. These findings highlight the importance of targeting peptides with high affinity for MHC class I when designing T cell-based immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Boris Engels
- Department of Pathology, Committee on Immunology and Committee on Cancer Biology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
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32
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Hombrink P, Hassan C, Kester MGD, de Ru AH, van Bergen CAM, Nijveen H, Drijfhout JW, Falkenburg JHF, Heemskerk MHM, van Veelen PA. Discovery of T Cell Epitopes Implementing HLA-Peptidomics into a Reverse Immunology Approach. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2013; 190:3869-77. [DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1202351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Chapuis A, Ragnarsson GB, Nguyen HN, Chaney CN, Pufnock JS, Schmitt TM, Duerkopp N, Roberts IM, Pogosov GL, Ho WY, Ochsenreither S, Wölfl M, Bar M, Radich JP, Yee C, Greenberg PD. Transferred WT1-reactive CD8+ T cells can mediate antileukemic activity and persist in post-transplant patients. Sci Transl Med 2013; 5:174ra27. [PMID: 23447018 PMCID: PMC3678970 DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.3004916] [Citation(s) in RCA: 258] [Impact Index Per Article: 23.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Relapse remains a leading cause of death after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) for patients with high-risk leukemias. The potentially beneficial donor T cell-mediated graft-versus-leukemia (GVL) effect is often mitigated by concurrent graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). Providing T cells that can selectively target Wilms tumor antigen 1 (WT1), a transcription factor overexpressed in leukemias that contributes to the malignant phenotype, represents an opportunity to promote antileukemic activity without inducing GVHD. HLA-A*0201-restricted WT1-specific donor-derived CD8 cytotoxic T cell (CTL) clones were administered after HCT to 11 relapsed or high-risk leukemia patients without evidence of on-target toxicity. The last four treated patients received CTL clones generated with exposure to interleukin-21 (IL-21) to prolong in vivo CTL survival, because IL-21 can limit terminal differentiation of antigen-specific T cells generated in vitro. Transferred cells exhibited direct evidence of antileukemic activity in two patients: a transient response in one patient with advanced progressive disease and the induction of a prolonged remission in a patient with minimal residual disease (MRD). Additionally, three treated patients at high risk for relapse after HCT survive without leukemia relapse, GVHD, or additional antileukemic treatment. CTLs generated in the presence of IL-21, which were transferred in these latter three patients and the patient with MRD, all remained detectable long-term and maintained or acquired in vivo phenotypic and functional characteristics associated with long-lived memory CD8 T cells. This study supports expanding efforts to immunologically target WT1 and provides insights into the requirements necessary to establish potent persistent T cell responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- A.G. Chapuis
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - G. B. Ragnarsson
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - H. N. Nguyen
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - C. N. Chaney
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - J. S. Pufnock
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - T. M. Schmitt
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - N. Duerkopp
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - I. M. Roberts
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | | | - W. Y. Ho
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - S. Ochsenreither
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - M. Wölfl
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - M. Bar
- Clinical Research Division, FHCRC, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - J. P. Radich
- Clinical Research Division, FHCRC, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - C Yee
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
| | - P. D. Greenberg
- Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center (FHCRC), Seattle, WA, USA
- Department of Immunology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
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Anders K, Blankenstein T. Molecular pathways: comparing the effects of drugs and T cells to effectively target oncogenes. Clin Cancer Res 2012. [PMID: 23197254 DOI: 10.1158/1078-0432.ccr-12-3017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Mutant cancer-driving oncogenes are the best therapeutic targets, both with drugs like small-molecule inhibitors (SMI) and adoptive T-cell therapy (ATT), the most effective form of immunotherapy. Cancer cell survival often depends on oncogenes, which implies that they are homogeneously expressed by all cancer cells and are difficult to select against. Mutant oncogene-directed therapy is relatively selective, as it targets preferentially the oncogene-expressing cancer cells. Both SMI and ATT can be highly effective in relevant preclinical models as well as selected clinical situations, and both share the risk of therapy resistance, facilitated by the frequent genetic instability of cancer cells. Recently, both therapies were compared in the same experimental model targeting the same oncogene. It showed that the oncogene-inactivating drug selected resistant clones, leading eventually to tumor relapse, whereas ATT eradicated large established tumors completely. The mode of tumor destruction likely explained the different outcome with only ATT destroying the tumor vasculature. Elucidating the cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for tumor regression and relapse will define optimal conditions for the clinic. We argue that the ideal conditions of ATT in the experimental cancer model can be translated to individuals with cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen Anders
- Max-Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine, Robert-Rössle Strasse 10, Berlin, Germany
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Henle AM, Erskine CL, Benson LM, Clynes R, Knutson KL. Enzymatic discovery of a HER-2/neu epitope that generates cross-reactive T cells. THE JOURNAL OF IMMUNOLOGY 2012. [PMID: 23180824 DOI: 10.4049/jimmunol.1201264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/02/2023]
Abstract
Patients with HER-2/neu-expressing breast cancer remain at risk for relapse following standard therapy. Vaccines targeting HER-2/neu to prevent relapse are in various phases of clinical testing. Many vaccines incorporate the HER-2/neu HLA-A2-binding peptide p369-377 (KIFGSLAFL), because it has been shown that CTLs specific for this epitope can directly kill HER-2/neu-overexpressing breast cancer cells. Thus, understanding how tumors process this epitope may be important for identifying those patients who would benefit from immunization. Proteasome preparations were used to determine if p369-377 was processed from larger HER-2/neu-derived fragments. HPLC, mass spectrometry, cytotoxicity assays, IFN-γ ELISPOT, and human breast cancer cell lines were used to assess the proteolytic fragments. Processing of p369-377 was not detected by purified 20S proteasome and immunoproteasome, indicating that tumor cells may not be capable of processing this Ag from the HER-2/neu protein and presenting it in the context of HLA class I. Instead, we show that other extracellular domain HER-2/neu peptide sequences are consistently processed by the proteasomes. One of these sequences, p373-382 (SLAFLPESFD), bound HLA-A2 stronger than did p369-377. CTLs specific for p373-382 recognized both p373-382 and p369-377 complexed with HLA-A2. CTLs specific for p373-382 also killed human breast cancer cell lines at higher levels than did CTLs specific for p369-377. Conversely, CTLs specific for p369-377 recognized p373-382. Peptide p373-382 is a candidate epitope for breast cancer vaccines, as it is processed by proteasomes and binds HLA-A2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea M Henle
- Department of Immunology, College of Medicine, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN 55905, USA
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