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Lu P, Ruan D, Huang M, Tian M, Zhu K, Gan Z, Xiao Z. Harnessing the potential of hydrogels for advanced therapeutic applications: current achievements and future directions. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2024; 9:166. [PMID: 38945949 PMCID: PMC11214942 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-024-01852-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2024] [Accepted: 04/28/2024] [Indexed: 07/02/2024] Open
Abstract
The applications of hydrogels have expanded significantly due to their versatile, highly tunable properties and breakthroughs in biomaterial technologies. In this review, we cover the major achievements and the potential of hydrogels in therapeutic applications, focusing primarily on two areas: emerging cell-based therapies and promising non-cell therapeutic modalities. Within the context of cell therapy, we discuss the capacity of hydrogels to overcome the existing translational challenges faced by mainstream cell therapy paradigms, provide a detailed discussion on the advantages and principal design considerations of hydrogels for boosting the efficacy of cell therapy, as well as list specific examples of their applications in different disease scenarios. We then explore the potential of hydrogels in drug delivery, physical intervention therapies, and other non-cell therapeutic areas (e.g., bioadhesives, artificial tissues, and biosensors), emphasizing their utility beyond mere delivery vehicles. Additionally, we complement our discussion on the latest progress and challenges in the clinical application of hydrogels and outline future research directions, particularly in terms of integration with advanced biomanufacturing technologies. This review aims to present a comprehensive view and critical insights into the design and selection of hydrogels for both cell therapy and non-cell therapies, tailored to meet the therapeutic requirements of diverse diseases and situations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peilin Lu
- Nanomedicine Research Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510630, PR China
- Department of Minimally Invasive Interventional Radiology, and Laboratory of Interventional Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510260, PR China
| | - Dongxue Ruan
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Disease, National Center for Respiratory Medicine, Department of Respiratory and Critical Care Medicine, Guangzhou Institute for Respiratory Health, The First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510120, PR China
| | - Meiqi Huang
- Department of Minimally Invasive Interventional Radiology, and Laboratory of Interventional Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510260, PR China
| | - Mi Tian
- Department of Stomatology, Chengdu Second People's Hospital, Chengdu, 610021, PR China
| | - Kangshun Zhu
- Department of Minimally Invasive Interventional Radiology, and Laboratory of Interventional Radiology, The Second Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 510260, PR China.
| | - Ziqi Gan
- Hospital of Stomatology, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Stomatology, Guanghua School of Stomatology, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510055, PR China.
| | - Zecong Xiao
- Nanomedicine Research Center, The Third Affiliated Hospital of Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510630, PR China.
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2
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Sánchez-Moreno I, Lasarte-Cia A, Martín-Otal C, Casares N, Navarro F, Gorraiz M, Sarrión P, Hervas-Stubbs S, Jordana L, Rodriguez-Madoz JR, San Miguel J, Prosper F, Lasarte JJ, Lozano T. Tethered IL15-IL15Rα augments antitumor activity of CD19 CAR-T cells but displays long-term toxicity in an immunocompetent lymphoma mouse model. J Immunother Cancer 2024; 12:e008572. [PMID: 38955421 PMCID: PMC11218034 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2023-008572] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 06/10/2024] [Indexed: 07/04/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Adoptive cell therapy using genetically modified T cells to express chimeric antigen receptors (CAR-T) has shown encouraging results, particularly in certain blood cancers. Nevertheless, over 40% of B cell malignancy patients experience a relapse after CAR-T therapy, likely due to inadequate persistence of the modified T cells in the body. IL15, known for its pro-survival and proliferative properties, has been suggested for incorporation into the fourth generation of CAR-T cells to enhance their persistence. However, the potential systemic toxicity associated with this cytokine warrants further evaluation. METHODS We analyzed the persistence, antitumor efficacy and potential toxicity of anti-mouse CD19 CAR-T cells which express a membrane-bound IL15-IL15Rα chimeric protein (CD19/mbIL15q CAR-T), in BALB/c mice challenged with A20 tumor cells as well as in NSG mice. RESULTS Conventional CD19 CAR-T cells showed low persistence and poor efficacy in BALB/c mice treated with mild lymphodepletion regimens (total body irradiation (TBI) of 1 Gy). CD19/mbIL15q CAR-T exhibits prolonged persistence and enhanced in vivo efficacy, effectively eliminating established A20 B cell lymphoma. However, this CD19/mbIL15q CAR-T displays important long-term toxicities, with marked splenomegaly, weight loss, transaminase elevations, and significant inflammatory findings in some tissues. Mice survival is highly compromised after CD19/mbIL15q CAR-T cell transfer, particularly if a high TBI regimen is applied before CAR-T cell transfer. CONCLUSION Tethered IL15-IL15Rα augments the antitumor activity of CD19 CAR-T cells but displays long-term toxicity in immunocompetent mice. Inducible systems to regulate IL15-IL15Rα expression could be considered to control this toxicity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Inés Sánchez-Moreno
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Aritz Lasarte-Cia
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Celia Martín-Otal
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Noelia Casares
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Flor Navarro
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Marta Gorraiz
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Patricia Sarrión
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Sandra Hervas-Stubbs
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Lorea Jordana
- Hemato-Oncology Program, Centre for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdiSNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Juan Roberto Rodriguez-Madoz
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
- Hemato-Oncology Program, Centre for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdiSNA, Pamplona, Spain
| | - Jesús San Miguel
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
- Hematology and Cell Therapy Department, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, (CUN), Pamplona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Felipe Prosper
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
- Hemato-Oncology Program, Centre for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdiSNA, Pamplona, Spain
- Hematology and Cell Therapy Department, Clínica Universidad de Navarra, (CUN), Pamplona, Spain
- Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Cáncer (CIBERONC), Madrid, Spain
| | - Juan Jose Lasarte
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
| | - Teresa Lozano
- Immunology and Immunotherapy Program, Center for Applied Medical Research (CIMA), University of Navarra, IdISNA, Pamplona, Spain
- Cancer Center Universidad de Navarra (CCUN), Pamplona, Spain
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3
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Song HW, Prochazkova M, Shao L, Traynor R, Underwood S, Black M, Fellowes V, Shi R, Pouzolles M, Chou HC, Cheuk AT, Taylor N, Jin P, Somerville RP, Stroncek DF, Khan J, Highfill SL. CAR-T cell expansion platforms yield distinct T cell differentiation states. Cytotherapy 2024; 26:757-768. [PMID: 38625071 DOI: 10.1016/j.jcyt.2024.03.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2023] [Revised: 02/18/2024] [Accepted: 03/06/2024] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
With investigators looking to expand engineered T cell therapies such as CAR-T to new tumor targets and patient populations, a variety of cell manufacturing platforms have been developed to scale manufacturing capacity using closed and/or automated systems. Such platforms are particularly useful for solid tumor targets, which typically require higher CAR-T cell doses. Although T cell phenotype and function are key attributes that often correlate with therapeutic efficacy, how manufacturing platforms influence the final CAR-T cell product is currently unknown. We compared 4 commonly used T cell manufacturing platforms (CliniMACS Prodigy, Xuri W25 rocking platform, G-Rex gas-permeable bioreactor, static bag culture) using identical media, stimulation, culture length, and donor starting material. Selected CD4+CD8+ cells were transduced with lentiviral vector incorporating a CAR targeting FGFR4, a promising target for pediatric sarcoma. We observed significant differences in overall expansion over the 14-day culture; bag cultures had the highest capacity for expansion while the Prodigy had the lowest (481-fold versus 84-fold, respectively). Strikingly, we also observed considerable differences in the phenotype of the final product, with the Prodigy significantly enriched for CCR7+CD45RA+ naïve/stem central memory (Tn/scm)-like cells at 46% compared to bag and G-Rex with 16% and 13%, respectively. Gene expression analysis also showed that Prodigy CAR-Ts are more naïve, less cytotoxic and less exhausted than bag, G-Rex, and Xuri CAR-Ts, and pointed to differences in cell metabolism that were confirmed via metabolic assays. We hypothesized that dissolved oxygen level, which decreased substantially during the final 3 days of the Prodigy culture, may contribute to the observed differences in T cell phenotype. By culturing bag and G-Rex cultures in 1% O2 from day 5 onward, we could generate >60% Tn/scm-like cells, with longer time in hypoxia correlating with a higher percentage of Tn/scm-like cells. Intriguingly, our results suggest that oxygenation is responsible, at least in part, for observed differences in T cell phenotype among bioreactors and suggest hypoxic culture as a potential strategy prevent T cell differentiation during expansion. Ultimately, our study demonstrates that selection of bioreactor system may have profound effects not only on the capacity for expansion, but also on the differentiation state of the resulting CAR-T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah W Song
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Michaela Prochazkova
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Lipei Shao
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Roshini Traynor
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Sarah Underwood
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Mary Black
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Vicki Fellowes
- Center for Immuno-Oncology, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Rongye Shi
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Marie Pouzolles
- Pediatric Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Hsien-Chao Chou
- Genomics Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Adam T Cheuk
- Genomics Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Naomi Taylor
- Pediatric Oncology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Ping Jin
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Robert P Somerville
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - David F Stroncek
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Javed Khan
- Genomics Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Steven L Highfill
- Department of Transfusion Medicine, Center for Cellular Engineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, USA.
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4
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Takayanagi SI, Chuganji S, Tanaka M, Wang B, Hasegawa S, Fukumoto K, Wasano N, Kakitani M, Ochiai N, Kawai Y, Ueda T, Ishikawa A, Kurimoto Y, Fukui A, Kamibayashi S, Imai E, Kunisato A, Nozawa H, Kaneko S. A culture method with berbamine, a plant alkaloid, enhances CAR-T cell efficacy through modulating cellular metabolism. Commun Biol 2024; 7:685. [PMID: 38834758 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-024-06297-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Accepted: 05/07/2024] [Indexed: 06/06/2024] Open
Abstract
Memory T cells demonstrate superior in vivo persistence and antitumor efficacy. However, methods for manufacturing less differentiated T cells are not yet well-established. Here, we show that producing chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cells using berbamine (BBM), a natural compound found in the Chinese herbal medicine Berberis amurensis, enhances the antitumor efficacy of CAR-T cells. BBM is identified through cell-based screening of chemical compounds using induced pluripotent stem cell-derived T cells, leading to improved viability with a memory T cell phenotype. Transcriptomics and metabolomics using stem cell memory T cells reveal that BBM broadly enhances lipid metabolism. Furthermore, the addition of BBM downregulates the phosphorylation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase and enhanced mitochondrial respiration. CD19-CAR-T cells cultured with BBM also extend the survival of leukaemia mouse models due to their superior in vivo persistence. This technology offers a straightforward approach to enhancing the antitumor efficacy of CAR-T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin-Ichiro Takayanagi
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan.
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan.
- Biomedical Science Research Laboratories 2, Research Division, Kyowa Kirin Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan.
| | - Sayaka Chuganji
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Masahiro Tanaka
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Bo Wang
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Saki Hasegawa
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Ken Fukumoto
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Nariaki Wasano
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Makoto Kakitani
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Nakaba Ochiai
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Yohei Kawai
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Tatsuki Ueda
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Akihiro Ishikawa
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Yuko Kurimoto
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Asami Fukui
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Sanae Kamibayashi
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Eri Imai
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan
| | - Atsushi Kunisato
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Hajime Nozawa
- Kirin Central Research Institute, Kirin Holdings Company, Ltd., 26-1, Muraoka-Higashi 2, Fujisawa, Kanagawa, 251-8555, Japan
| | - Shin Kaneko
- Shin Kaneko Laboratory, Department of Cell Growth and Differentiation, Center for iPS Cell Research and Application (CiRA), Kyoto University, 53 Kawahara-cho, Shogoin, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto, 606-8507, Japan.
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5
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Lin HK, Uricoli B, Freeman RM, Hossian AKMN, He Z, Anderson JYL, Neffling M, Legier JM, Blake DA, Doxie DB, Nair R, Koff JL, Dhodapkar KM, Shanmugam M, Dreaden EC, Rafiq S. Engineering Improved CAR T Cell Products with A Multi-Cytokine Particle Platform for Hematologic and Solid Tumors. Adv Healthc Mater 2024; 13:e2302425. [PMID: 38245855 PMCID: PMC11144092 DOI: 10.1002/adhm.202302425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Revised: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 01/22/2024]
Abstract
Despite the remarkable clinical efficacy of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells in hematological malignancies, only a subset of patients achieves a durable complete response (dCR). DCR has been correlated with CAR T cell products enriched with T cells memory phenotypes. Therefore, reagents that consistently promote memory phenotypes during the manufacturing of CAR T cells have the potential to significantly improve clinical outcomes. A novel modular multi-cytokine particle (MCP) platform is developed that combines the signals necessary for activation, costimulation, and cytokine support into a single "all-in-one" stimulation reagent for CAR T cell manufacturing. This platform allows for the assembly and screening of compositionally diverse MCP libraries to identify formulations tailored to promote specific phenotypes with a high degree of flexibility. The approach is leveraged to identify unique MCP formulations that manufacture CAR T cell products from diffuse large B cell patients with increased proportions of memory-like phenotypes MCP-manufactured CAR T cells demonstrate superior anti-tumor efficacy in mouse models of lymphoma and ovarian cancer through enhanced persistence. These findings serve as a proof-of-principle of the powerful utility of the MCP platform to identify "all-in-one" stimulation reagents that can improve the effectiveness of cell therapy products through optimal manufacturing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Heather K. Lin
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Biaggio Uricoli
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Ruby M. Freeman
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - AKM Nawshad Hossian
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Zhulin He
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | | | - Jonathan M. Legier
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Dejah A. Blake
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Deon B. Doxie
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Remya Nair
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jean L. Koff
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Kavita M. Dhodapkar
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Aflac Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Mala Shanmugam
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Erik C. Dreaden
- Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering at Emory University and Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Sarwish Rafiq
- Department of Hematology and Medical Oncology, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Winship Cancer Institute, Atlanta, GA, USA
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6
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Pavlovic K, Carmona-Luque MD, Corsi GI, Maldonado-Pérez N, Molina-Estevez FJ, Peralbo-Santaella E, Cortijo-Gutiérrez M, Justicia-Lirio P, Tristán-Manzano M, Ronco-Díaz V, Ballesteros-Ribelles A, Millán-López A, Heredia-Velázquez P, Fuster-García C, Cathomen T, Seemann SE, Gorodkin J, Martin F, Herrera C, Benabdellah K. Generating universal anti-CD19 CAR T cells with a defined memory phenotype by CRISPR/Cas9 editing and safety evaluation of the transcriptome. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1401683. [PMID: 38868778 PMCID: PMC11167079 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1401683] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 05/07/2024] [Indexed: 06/14/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Chimeric antigen receptor-expressing T cells (CAR T cells) have revolutionized cancer treatment, particularly in B cell malignancies. However, the use of autologous T cells for CAR T therapy presents several limitations, including high costs, variable efficacy, and adverse effects linked to cell phenotype. Methods To overcome these challenges, we developed a strategy to generate universal and safe anti-CD19 CAR T cells with a defined memory phenotype. Our approach utilizes CRISPR/Cas9 technology to target and eliminate the B2M and TRAC genes, reducing graft-versus-host and host-versus-graft responses. Additionally, we selected less differentiated T cells to improve the stability and persistence of the universal CAR T cells. The safety of this method was assessed using our CRISPRroots transcriptome analysis pipeline, which ensures successful gene knockout and the absence of unintended off-target effects on gene expression or transcriptome sequence. Results In vitro experiments demonstrated the successful generation of functional universal CAR T cells. These cells exhibited potent lytic activity against tumor cells and a reduced cytokine secretion profile. The CRISPRroots analysis confirmed effective gene knockout and no unintended off-target effects, validating it as a pioneering tool for on/off-target and transcriptome analysis in genome editing experiments. Discussion Our findings establish a robust pipeline for manufacturing safe, universal CAR T cells with a favorable memory phenotype. This approach has the potential to address the current limitations of autologous CAR T cell therapy, offering a more stable and persistent treatment option with reduced adverse effects. The use of CRISPRroots enhances the reliability and safety of gene editing in the development of CAR T cell therapies. Conclusion We have developed a potent and reliable method for producing universal CAR T cells with a defined memory phenotype, demonstrating both efficacy and safety in vitro. This innovative approach could significantly improve the therapeutic landscape for patients with B cell malignancies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina Pavlovic
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
- Cell Therapy Group, Maimonides Institute of Biomedical Research in Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
| | - MDolores Carmona-Luque
- Cell Therapy Group, Maimonides Institute of Biomedical Research in Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
| | - Giulia I. Corsi
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Center for non-coding RNA in Technology and Health, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej, Denmark
| | - Noelia Maldonado-Pérez
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | - Francisco J. Molina-Estevez
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | - Esther Peralbo-Santaella
- Flow Cytometry Unit, Maimonides Biomedical Research Institute of Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
| | - Marina Cortijo-Gutiérrez
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | - Pedro Justicia-Lirio
- LentiStem Biotech, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | - María Tristán-Manzano
- LentiStem Biotech, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | - Víctor Ronco-Díaz
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
| | | | - Alejandro Millán-López
- Cell Therapy Group, Maimonides Institute of Biomedical Research in Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
| | - Paula Heredia-Velázquez
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
- Department of Human Anatomy and Embryology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Carla Fuster-García
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Gene Therapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI), Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Toni Cathomen
- Institute for Transfusion Medicine and Gene Therapy, Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Center for Chronic Immunodeficiency (CCI), Medical Center - University of Freiburg, Faculty of Medicine, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany
| | - Stefan E. Seemann
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Center for non-coding RNA in Technology and Health, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej, Denmark
| | - Jan Gorodkin
- Department of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, Center for non-coding RNA in Technology and Health, University of Copenhagen, Thorvaldsensvej, Denmark
| | - Francisco Martin
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology III and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Biosanitary Research Institute of Granada (ibs.GRANADA), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Concha Herrera
- Cell Therapy Group, Maimonides Institute of Biomedical Research in Cordoba (IMIBIC), Cordoba, Spain
- Department of Hematology, Reina Sofia University Hospital, Cordoba, Spain
- Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, School of Medicine, University of Cordoba, Cordoba, Spain
| | - Karim Benabdellah
- Department of Genomic Medicine, Pfizer-University of Granada-Andalusian Regional Government Centre for Genomics and Oncological Research (GENYO), Granada, Spain
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7
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Schnell A. Stem-like T cells in cancer and autoimmunity. Immunol Rev 2024. [PMID: 38804499 DOI: 10.1111/imr.13356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/29/2024]
Abstract
Stem-like T cells are characterized by their ability to self-renew, survive long-term, and give rise to a heterogeneous pool of effector and memory T cells. Recent advances in single-cell RNA-sequencing (scRNA-seq) and lineage tracing technologies revealed an important role for stem-like T cells in both autoimmunity and cancer. In cancer, stem-like T cells constitute an important arm of the anti-tumor immune response by giving rise to effector T cells that mediate tumor control. In contrast, in autoimmunity stem-like T cells perform an unfavorable role by forming a reservoir of long-lived autoreactive cells that replenish the pathogenic, effector T-cell pool and thereby driving disease pathology. This review provides background on the discovery of stem-like T cells and their function in cancer and autoimmunity. Moreover, the influence of the microbiota and metabolism on the stem-like T-cell pool is summarized. Lastly, the implications of our knowledge about stem-like T cells for clinical treatment strategies for cancer and autoimmunity will be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Schnell
- Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
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8
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Zhu W, Zhang Z, Chen J, Chen X, Huang L, Zhang X, Huang X, Ma N, Xu W, Yi X, Lu X, Fu X, Li S, Mo G, Wang Y, Yuan G, Zang M, Li Q, Jiang X, He Y, Wu S, He Y, Li Y, Hou J. A novel engineered IL-21 receptor arms T-cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T cells) against hepatocellular carcinoma. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2024; 9:101. [PMID: 38643203 PMCID: PMC11032311 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-024-01792-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Strategies to improve T cell therapy efficacy in solid tumors such as hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) are urgently needed. The common cytokine receptor γ chain (γc) family cytokines such as IL-2, IL-7, IL-15 and IL-21 play fundamental roles in T cell development, differentiation and effector phases. This study aims to determine the combination effects of IL-21 in T cell therapy against HCC and investigate optimized strategies to utilize the effect of IL-21 signal in T cell therapy. The antitumor function of AFP-specific T cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T) was augmented by exogenous IL-21 in vitro and in vivo. IL-21 enhanced proliferation capacity, promoted memory differentiation, downregulated PD-1 expression and alleviated apoptosis in TCR-T after activation. A novel engineered IL-21 receptor was established, and TCR-T armed with the novel engineered IL-21 receptors (IL-21R-TCR-T) showed upregulated phosphorylated STAT3 expression without exogenous IL-21 ligand. IL-21R-TCR-T showed better proliferation upon activation and superior antitumor function in vitro and in vivo. IL-21R-TCR-T exhibited a less differentiated, exhausted and apoptotic phenotype than conventional TCR-T upon repetitive tumor antigen stimulation. The novel IL-21 receptor in our study programs powerful TCR-T and can avoid side effects induced by IL-21 systemic utilization. The novel IL-21 receptor creates new opportunities for next-generation TCR-T against HCC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Zhu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Zhiming Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Jinzhang Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaolan Chen
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Lei Huang
- Institute of Cellular Medicine, Newcastle University Medical School, Newcastle, UK
| | - Xiaoyong Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xuan Huang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Na Ma
- Department of Pathology, The First People's Hospital of Foshan, Foshan, China
| | - Weikang Xu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xuan Yi
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- Dermatology Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xinyu Lu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xin Fu
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Siwei Li
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guoheng Mo
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yiyue Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Guosheng Yuan
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Mengya Zang
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Qi Li
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Xiaotao Jiang
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yajing He
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
| | - Sha Wu
- Department of Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- Microbiome Medicine Center, Department of Laboratory Medicine, Zhujiang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China
- Key Laboratory of Proteomics of Guangdong Province, Demonstration Center for Experimental Education of Basic Medical Sciences of China, Guangzhou, China
| | - Yukai He
- Medical College of Georgia, Augusta University, 1120 15th Street, Augusta, GA, USA
| | - Yongyin Li
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
| | - Jinlin Hou
- State Key Laboratory of Organ Failure Research, Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Viral Hepatitis Research, Department of Infectious Diseases, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China.
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9
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Lo Presti V, Meringa A, Dunnebach E, van Velzen A, Moreira AV, Stam RW, Kotecha RS, Krippner-Heidenreich A, Heidenreich OT, Plantinga M, Cornel A, Sebestyen Z, Kuball J, van Til NP, Nierkens S. Combining CRISPR-Cas9 and TCR exchange to generate a safe and efficient cord blood-derived T cell product for pediatric relapsed AML. J Immunother Cancer 2024; 12:e008174. [PMID: 38580329 PMCID: PMC11002379 DOI: 10.1136/jitc-2023-008174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is an effective treatment for pediatric patients with high-risk, refractory, or relapsed acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, a large proportion of transplanted patients eventually die due to relapse. To improve overall survival, we propose a combined strategy based on cord blood (CB)-HCT with the application of AML-specific T cell receptor (TCR)-engineered T cell therapy derived from the same CB graft. METHODS We produced CB-CD8+ T cells expressing a recombinant TCR (rTCR) against Wilms tumor 1 (WT1) while lacking endogenous TCR (eTCR) expression to avoid mispairing and competition. CRISPR-Cas9 multiplexing was used to target the constant region of the endogenous TCRα (TRAC) and TCRβ (TRBC) chains. Next, an optimized method for lentiviral transduction was used to introduce recombinant WT1-TCR. The cytotoxic and migration capacity of the product was evaluated in coculture assays for both cell lines and primary pediatric AML blasts. RESULTS The gene editing and transduction procedures achieved high efficiency, with up to 95% of cells lacking eTCR and over 70% of T cells expressing rWT1-TCR. WT1-TCR-engineered T cells lacking the expression of their eTCR (eTCR-/- WT1-TCR) showed increased cell surface expression of the rTCR and production of cytotoxic cytokines, such as granzyme A and B, perforin, interferon-γ (IFNγ), and tumor necrosis factor-α (TNFα), on antigen recognition when compared with WT1-TCR-engineered T cells still expressing their eTCR (eTCR+/+ WT1-TCR). CRISPR-Cas9 editing did not affect immunophenotypic characteristics or T cell activation and did not induce increased expression of inhibitory molecules. eTCR-/- WT1-TCR CD8+ CB-T cells showed effective migratory and killing capacity in cocultures with neoplastic cell lines and primary AML blasts, but did not show toxicity toward healthy cells. CONCLUSIONS In summary, we show the feasibility of developing a potent CB-derived CD8+ T cell product targeting WT1, providing an option for post-transplant allogeneic immune cell therapy or as an off-the-shelf product, to prevent relapse and improve the clinical outcome of children with AML.
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Affiliation(s)
- Vania Lo Presti
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Angelo Meringa
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Ester Dunnebach
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Alice van Velzen
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | | | - Ronald W Stam
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Rishi S Kotecha
- Department of Clinical Haematology, Oncology, Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Perth Children's Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
- University of Western Australia, Perth, Western Australia, Australia
| | | | | | - Maud Plantinga
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Annelisa Cornel
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Zsolt Sebestyen
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Jurgen Kuball
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Niek P van Til
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Department of Child Neurology, Amsterdam Leukodystrophy Center, Emma Children's Hospital, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and Amsterdam Neuroscience, Cellular & Molecular Mechanisms, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Department of Integrative Neurophysiology, Center for Neurogenomics and Cognitive Research, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - S Nierkens
- Princess Máxima Center for Pediatric Oncology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Center for Translational Immunology, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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10
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Isvoranu G, Chiritoiu-Butnaru M. Therapeutic potential of interleukin-21 in cancer. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1369743. [PMID: 38638431 PMCID: PMC11024325 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1369743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 03/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Interleukin-21 (IL-21) is an immunostimulatory cytokine which belongs to the common gamma-chain family of cytokines. It plays an import role in the development, differentiation, proliferation, and activation of immune cells, in particular T and natural killer (NK) cells. Since its discovery in 2000, IL-21 has been shown to regulate both adaptive and immune responses associates with key role in antiviral and antitumor responses. Recent advances indicate IL-21 as a promising target for cancer treatment and encouraging results were obtained in preclinical studies which investigated the potency of IL-21 alone or in combination with other therapies, including monoclonal antibodies, checkpoint inhibitory molecules, oncolytic virotherapy, and adoptive cell transfer. Furthermore, IL-21 showed antitumor effects in the treatment of patients with advanced cancer, with minimal side effects in several clinical trials. In the present review, we will outline the recent progress in IL-21 research, highlighting the potential of IL-21 based therapy as single agent or in combination with other drugs to enhance cancer treatment efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gheorghita Isvoranu
- Department of Animal Husbandry,” Victor Babeș” National Institute of Pathology, Bucharest, Romania
| | - Marioara Chiritoiu-Butnaru
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, Institute of Biochemistry of the Romanian Academy, Bucharest, Romania
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11
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Carrillo MA, Zhen A, Mu W, Rezek V, Martin H, Peterson CW, Kiem HP, Kitchen SG. Stem cell-derived CAR T cells show greater persistence, trafficking, and viral control compared to ex vivo transduced CAR T cells. Mol Ther 2024; 32:1000-1015. [PMID: 38414243 PMCID: PMC11163220 DOI: 10.1016/j.ymthe.2024.02.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/20/2023] [Revised: 01/19/2024] [Accepted: 02/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy (ACT) using T cells expressing chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) is an area of intense investigation in the treatment of malignancies and chronic viral infections. One of the limitations of ACT-based CAR therapy is the lack of in vivo persistence and maintenance of optimal cell function. Therefore, alternative strategies that increase the function and maintenance of CAR-expressing T cells are needed. In our studies using the humanized bone marrow/liver/thymus (BLT) mouse model and nonhuman primate (NHP) model of HIV infection, we evaluated two CAR-based gene therapy approaches. In the ACT approach, we used cytokine enhancement and preconditioning to generate greater persistence of anti-HIV CAR+ T cells. We observed limited persistence and expansion of anti-HIV CAR T cells, which led to minimal control of the virus. In our stem cell-based approach, we modified hematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) with anti-HIV CAR to generate anti-HIV CAR T cells in vivo. We observed CAR-expressing T cell expansion, which led to better plasma viral load suppression. HSPC-derived CAR cells in infected NHPs showed superior trafficking and persistence in multiple tissues. Our results suggest that a stem cell-based CAR T cell approach may be superior in generating long-term persistence and functional antiviral responses against HIV infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mayra A Carrillo
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Anjie Zhen
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Wenli Mu
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Valerie Rezek
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Heather Martin
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Christopher W Peterson
- Stem Cell and Gene Therapy Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Hans-Peter Kiem
- Stem Cell and Gene Therapy Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA, USA; Department of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Scott G Kitchen
- Department of Medicine, Division of Hematology and Oncology, and UCLA AIDS Institute, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA, USA; Broad Stem Cell Research Center, Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, and Molecular Biology Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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12
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Jang JH, Zhou M, Makita K, Sun R, El-Hajjar M, Fonseca G, Lauzon AM, Martin JG. Induction of a memory-like CD4 + T-cell phenotype by airway smooth muscle cells. Eur J Immunol 2024; 54:e2249800. [PMID: 38334162 DOI: 10.1002/eji.202249800] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2022] [Revised: 01/27/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/10/2024]
Abstract
In asthma, CD4+ T-cell interaction with airway smooth muscle (ASM) may enhance its contractile properties and promote its proliferation. However, less is known about the effects of this interaction on T cells. To explore the consequences of interaction of CD4+ T cells with ASM we placed the cells in co-culture and analyzed the phenotypic and functional changes in the T cells. Effector status as well as cytokine expression was assessed by flow cytometry. An increase in CD45RA-CD45RO+ memory T cells was observed after co-culture; however, these cells were not more responsive to CD3/28 restimulation. A reduction in mitochondrial coupling and an increase in the production of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species by CD4+ T cells post-restimulation suggested altered mitochondrial metabolism after co-culture. RNA sequencing analysis of the T cells revealed characteristic downregulation of effector T-cell-associated genes, but a lack of upregulation of memory T-cell-associated genes. The results of this study demonstrate that ASM cells can induce a phenotypic shift in CD4+ T cells into memory-like T cells but with reduced capacity for activation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joyce H Jang
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Michael Zhou
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Kosuke Makita
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Rui Sun
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Mikal El-Hajjar
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Gregory Fonseca
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - Anne-Marie Lauzon
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
| | - James G Martin
- Meakins-Christie Laboratories, McGill University Health Centre, Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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13
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He J, Niu J, Wang L, Zhang W, He X, Zhang X, Hu W, Tang Y, Yang H, Sun J, Cui W, Shi Q. An injectable hydrogel microsphere-integrated training court to inspire tumor-infiltrating T lymphocyte potential. Biomaterials 2024; 306:122475. [PMID: 38306733 DOI: 10.1016/j.biomaterials.2024.122475] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2023] [Revised: 12/14/2023] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
Although tumor-infiltrating T lymphocytes (TIL-Ts) play a crucial role in solid tumor immunotherapy, their clinical application has been limited because of the immunosuppressive microenvironment. Herein, we developed an injectable hydrogel microsphere-integrated training court (MS-ITC) to inspire the function of TIL-Ts and amplify TIL-Ts, through grafting with anti-CD3 and anti-CD28 antibodies and bovine serum albumin nanoparticles encapsulated with IL-7 and IL-15. MS-ITC provided the T-cell receptor and co-stimulatory signals required for TIL-Ts activation and IL-7/IL-15 signals for TIL-Ts expansion. Afterward, the MS-ITC was injected locally into the osteosarcoma tumor tissue in mice. MS-ITC suppressed the growth of primary osteosarcoma by more than 95 %, accompanied with primed and expanded TIL-Ts in the tumor tissues, compromising significantly increased CD8+ T and memory T cells, thereby enhancing the anti-tumor effect. Together, this work provides an injectable hydrogel microsphere-integrated training platform capable of inspiring TIL-Ts potential for a range of solid tumor immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiachen He
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Junjie Niu
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Lin Wang
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Wen Zhang
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Xu He
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Xiongjinfu Zhang
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Wei Hu
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Yunkai Tang
- Department of Orthopaedics, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Prevention and Treatment of Bone and Joint Diseases, Shanghai Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedics, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 197 Ruijin 2nd Road, Shanghai, 200025, PR China
| | - Huilin Yang
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China
| | - Jie Sun
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China.
| | - Wenguo Cui
- Department of Orthopaedics, Shanghai Key Laboratory for Prevention and Treatment of Bone and Joint Diseases, Shanghai Institute of Traumatology and Orthopaedics, Ruijin Hospital, Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine, 197 Ruijin 2nd Road, Shanghai, 200025, PR China.
| | - Qin Shi
- Department of Orthopedics, National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, the First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou Medical College of Soochow University, 899 Pinghai Road, Suzhou, Jiangsu, 215031, PR China.
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14
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Fiuza-Luces C, Valenzuela PL, Gálvez BG, Ramírez M, López-Soto A, Simpson RJ, Lucia A. The effect of physical exercise on anticancer immunity. Nat Rev Immunol 2024; 24:282-293. [PMID: 37794239 DOI: 10.1038/s41577-023-00943-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 10/06/2023]
Abstract
Regular physical activity is associated with lower cancer incidence and mortality, as well as with a lower rate of tumour recurrence. The epidemiological evidence is supported by preclinical studies in animal models showing that regular exercise delays the progression of cancer, including highly aggressive malignancies. Although the mechanisms underlying the antitumorigenic effects of exercise remain to be defined, an improvement in cancer immunosurveillance is likely important, with different immune cell subtypes stimulated by exercise to infiltrate tumours. There is also evidence that immune cells from blood collected after an exercise bout could be used as adoptive cell therapy for cancer. In this Perspective, we address the importance of muscular activity for maintaining a healthy immune system and discuss the effects of a single bout of exercise (that is, 'acute' exercise) and those of 'regular' exercise (that is, repeated bouts) on anticancer immunity, including tumour infiltrates. We also address the postulated mechanisms and the clinical implications of this emerging area of research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmen Fiuza-Luces
- Physical Activity and Health Research Group ('PaHerg'), Research Institute of the Hospital 12 de Octubre ('imas12'), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Pedro L Valenzuela
- Physical Activity and Health Research Group ('PaHerg'), Research Institute of the Hospital 12 de Octubre ('imas12'), Madrid, Spain
- Systems Biology Department, Universidad de Alcalá, Alcalá de Henares, Spain
| | - Beatriz G Gálvez
- Physical Activity and Health Research Group ('PaHerg'), Research Institute of the Hospital 12 de Octubre ('imas12'), Madrid, Spain
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel Ramírez
- Oncohematology Unit, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Biomedical Research Foundation, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- La Princesa Institute of Heah, Madrid, Spain
| | - Alejandro López-Soto
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Oviedo, Oviedo, Spain.
- Instituto Universitario de Oncología del Principado de Asturias (IUOPA), Asturias, Spain.
- Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria del Principado de Asturias (ISPA), Asturias, Spain.
| | - Richard J Simpson
- School of Nutritional Sciences and Wellness, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Paediatrics, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
- Department of Immunobiology, The University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Alejandro Lucia
- CIBER of Frailty and Healthy Aging (CIBERFES), Madrid, Spain.
- Faculty of Sport Sciences, Universidad Europea, Madrid, Spain.
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García-García L, G. Sánchez E, Ivanova M, Pastora K, Alcántara-Sánchez C, García-Martínez J, Martín-Antonio B, Ramírez M, González-Murillo Á. Choosing T-cell sources determines CAR-T cell activity in neuroblastoma. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1375833. [PMID: 38601159 PMCID: PMC11004344 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1375833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/24/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction The clinical success of chimeric antigen receptor-modified T cells (CAR-T cells) for hematological malignancies has not been reproduced for solid tumors, partly due to the lack of cancer-type specific antigens. In this work, we used a novel combinatorial approach consisting of a versatile anti-FITC CAR-T effector cells plus an FITC-conjugated neuroblastoma (NB)-targeting linker, an FITC-conjugated monoclonal antibody (Dinutuximab) that recognizes GD2. Methods We compared cord blood (CB), and CD45RA-enriched peripheral blood leukapheresis product (45RA) as allogeneic sources of T cells, using peripheral blood (PB) as a control to choose the best condition for anti-FITC CAR-T production. Cells were manufactured under two cytokine conditions (IL-2 versus IL-7+IL-15+IL-21) with or without CD3/CD28 stimulation. Immune phenotype, vector copy number, and genomic integrity of the final products were determined for cell characterization and quality control assessment. Functionality and antitumor capacity of CB/45RA-derived anti-FITC CAR-T cells were analyzed in co-culture with different anti-GD2-FITC labeled NB cell lines. Results The IL-7+IL-15+IL-21 cocktail, in addition to co-stimulation signals, resulted in a favorable cell proliferation rate and maintained less differentiated immune phenotypes in both CB and 45RA T cells. Therefore, it was used for CAR-T cell manufacturing and further characterization. CB and CD45RA-derived anti-FITC CAR-T cells cultured with IL-7+IL-15+IL-21 retained a predominantly naïve phenotype compared with controls. In the presence of the NB-FITC targeting, CD4+ CB-derived anti-FITC CAR-T cells showed the highest values of co-stimulatory receptors OX40 and 4-1BB, and CD8+ CAR-T cells exhibited high levels of PD-1 and 4-1BB and low levels of TIM3 and OX40, compared with CAR-T cells form the other sources studied. CB-derived anti-FITC CAR-T cells released the highest amounts of cytokines (IFN-γ and TNF-α) into co-culture supernatants. The viability of NB target cells decreased to 30% when co-cultured with CB-derived CAR-T cells during 48h. Conclusion CB and 45RA-derived T cells may be used as allogeneic sources of T cells to produce CAR-T cells. Moreover, ex vivo culture with IL-7+IL-15+IL-21 could favor CAR-T products with a longer persistence in the host. Our strategy may complement the current use of Dinutuximab in treating NB through its combination with a targeted CAR-T cell approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorena García-García
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Elena G. Sánchez
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Mariya Ivanova
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Keren Pastora
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Cristina Alcántara-Sánchez
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
| | - Jorge García-Martínez
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Progenitor and Cell Therapy Research Group, La Princesa Institute of Health Research, Madrid, Spain
| | - Beatriz Martín-Antonio
- Department of Experimental Hematology, Instituto de Investigación Sanitaria-Fundación Jiménez Díaz, Madrid, Spain
| | - Manuel Ramírez
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Progenitor and Cell Therapy Research Group, La Princesa Institute of Health Research, Madrid, Spain
| | - África González-Murillo
- Department of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Advanced Therapies Unit, Fundación Investigación Biomédica Hospital Infantil Universitario Niño Jesús, Madrid, Spain
- Department of Progenitor and Cell Therapy Research Group, La Princesa Institute of Health Research, Madrid, Spain
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Pan YG, Bartolo L, Xu R, Patel B, Zarnitsyna V, Su L. Differentiation marker-negative CD4 + T cells persist after yellow fever virus vaccination and contribute to durable memory. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.03.11.584523. [PMID: 38559113 PMCID: PMC10979963 DOI: 10.1101/2024.03.11.584523] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
Factors that contribute to durable immunological memory remain incompletely understood. In our longitudinal analyses of CD4+ T cell responses to the yellow fever virus (YFV) vaccine by peptide-MHC tetramers, we unexpectedly found naïve phenotype virus-specific CD4+ T cells that persisted months to years after immunization. These Marker negative T cells (TMN) lacked CD95, CXCR3, CD11a, and CD49d surface protein expression, distinguishing them from previously discovered stem-cell memory T cells. Functionally, they resembled genuine naïve T cells upon in vitro stimulation. Single-cell TCR sequencing detected expanded clonotypes within the TMN subset and identified a shared repertoire with memory and effector T cells. T cells expressing TMN-associated TCRs were rare before vaccination, suggesting their expansion following vaccination. Longitudinal tracking of YFV-specific responses over the subsequent years revealed superior stability of the TMN subset and their association with the longevity of the overall population. The identification of these long-lived, antigen-experienced T cells may inform the design of durable T cell-based vaccines and engineered T cell therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yi-Gen Pan
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Perelman School of Medicine, Institute for Immunology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Laurent Bartolo
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Perelman School of Medicine, Institute for Immunology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Ruozhang Xu
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Perelman School of Medicine, Institute for Immunology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Corporal Michael J Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Bijal Patel
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Perelman School of Medicine, Institute for Immunology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Corporal Michael J Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Veronika Zarnitsyna
- Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Laura Su
- Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Perelman School of Medicine, Institute for Immunology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
- Corporal Michael J Crescenz VA Medical Center, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
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17
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Chen T, Deng J, Zhang Y, Liu B, Liu R, Zhu Y, Zhou M, Lin Y, Xia B, Lin K, Ma X, Zhang H. The construction of modular universal chimeric antigen receptor T (MU-CAR-T) cells by covalent linkage of allogeneic T cells and various antibody fragments. Mol Cancer 2024; 23:53. [PMID: 38468291 PMCID: PMC10926606 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-024-01938-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/09/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Chimeric antigen receptor-T (CAR-T) cells therapy is one of the novel immunotherapeutic approaches with significant clinical success. However, their applications are limited because of long preparation time, high cost, and interpersonal variations. Although the manufacture of universal CAR-T (U-CAR-T) cells have significantly improved, they are still not a stable and unified cell bank. METHODS Here, we tried to further improve the convenience and flexibility of U-CAR-T cells by constructing novel modular universal CAR-T (MU-CAR-T) cells. For this purpose, we initially screened healthy donors and cultured their T cells to obtain a higher proportion of stem cell-like memory T (TSCM) cells, which exhibit robust self-renewal capacity, sustainability and cytotoxicity. To reduce the alloreactivity, the T cells were further edited by double knockout of the T cell receptor (TCR) and class I human leukocyte antigen (HLA-I) genes utilizing the CRISPR/Cas9 system. The well-growing and genetically stable universal cells carrying the CAR-moiety were then stored as a stable and unified cell bank. Subsequently, the SDcatcher/GVoptiTag system, which generate an isopeptide bond, was used to covalently connect the purified scFvs of antibody targeting different antigens to the recovered CAR-T cells. RESULTS The resulting CAR-T cells can perform different functions by specifically targeting various cells, such as the eradication of human immunodeficiency virus type 1 (HIV-1)-latenly-infected cells or elimination of T lymphoma cells, with similar efficiency as the traditional CAR-T cells did. CONCLUSION Taken together, our strategy allows the production of CAR-T cells more modularization, and makes the quality control and pharmaceutic manufacture of CAR-T cells more feasible.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tao Chen
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
- Guangzhou National Laboratory, Guangzhou International Bio-Island, Guangzhou, 510005, China
| | - Jieyi Deng
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Yongli Zhang
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Bingfeng Liu
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Ruxin Liu
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Yiqiang Zhu
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
- Guangzhou National Laboratory, Guangzhou International Bio-Island, Guangzhou, 510005, China
| | - Mo Zhou
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Yingtong Lin
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Baijin Xia
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Keming Lin
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Xiancai Ma
- Guangzhou National Laboratory, Guangzhou International Bio-Island, Guangzhou, 510005, China.
- State Key Laboratory of Respiratory Disease, National Clinical Research Center for Respiratory Disease, Guangzhou Institute of Respiratory Health, the First Affiliated Hospital of Guangzhou Medical University, Guangzhou, 511400, China.
| | - Hui Zhang
- Institute of Human Virology, Department of Pathogen Biology and Biosecurity, Key Laboratory of Tropical Disease Control of Ministry Education, Guangdong Engineering Research Center for Antimicrobial Agent and Immunotechnology, Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China.
- Guangzhou National Laboratory, Guangzhou International Bio-Island, Guangzhou, 510005, China.
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18
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Hasani-Sadrabadi MM, Majedi FS, Zarubova J, Thauland TJ, Arumugaswami V, Hsiai TK, Bouchard LS, Butte MJ, Li S. Harnessing Biomaterials to Amplify Immunity in Aged Mice through T Memory Stem Cells. ACS NANO 2024; 18:6908-6926. [PMID: 38381620 DOI: 10.1021/acsnano.3c08559] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
The durability of a protective immune response generated by a vaccine depends on its ability to induce long-term T cell immunity, which tends to decline in aging populations. The longest protection appears to arise from T memory stem cells (TMSCs) that confer high expandability and effector functions when challenged. Here we engineered artificial antigen presenting cells (aAPC) with optimized size, stiffness and activation signals to induce human and mouse CD8+ TMSCs in vitro. This platform was optimized as a vaccine booster of TMSCs (Vax-T) with prolonged release of small-molecule blockade of the glycogen synthase kinase-3β together with target antigens. By using SARS-CoV-2 antigen as a model, we show that a single injection of Vax-T induces durable antigen-specific CD8+ TMSCs in young and aged mice, and generates humoral responses at a level stronger than or similar to soluble vaccines. This Vax-T approach can boost long-term immunity to fight infectious diseases, cancer, and other diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Fatemeh S Majedi
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Jana Zarubova
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Timothy J Thauland
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Immunology, Allergy, and Rheumatology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Vaithilingaraja Arumugaswami
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Department of Molecular and Medical Pharmacology, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Tzung K Hsiai
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Louis-S Bouchard
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- The Molecular Biology Institute, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Manish J Butte
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Immunology, Allergy, and Rheumatology, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Department of Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
| | - Song Li
- Department of Bioengineering, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Department of Medicine, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
- Eli and Edythe Broad Center of Regenerative Medicine and Stem Cell Research, University of California Los Angeles; Los Angeles, California 90095 United States
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19
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Hughes EP, Syage AR, Tantin D. Durable CD4 + T cell immunity: cherchez la stem. Trends Immunol 2024; 45:158-166. [PMID: 38388231 PMCID: PMC10947858 DOI: 10.1016/j.it.2024.01.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/19/2023] [Revised: 01/28/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Mammalian stem cells govern development, tissue homeostasis, and regeneration. Following years of study, their functions have been delineated with increasing precision. The past decade has witnessed heightened widespread use of stem cell terminology in association with durable T cell responses to infection, antitumor immunity, and autoimmunity. Interpreting this literature is complicated by the fact that descriptions are diverse and criteria for labeling 'stem-like' T cells are evolving. Working under the hypothesis that conceptual frameworks developed for actual stem cells can be used to better evaluate and organize T cells described to have stem-like features, we outline widely accepted properties of stem cells and compare these to different 'stem-like' CD4+ T cell populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erik P Hughes
- Department of Pathology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Amber R Syage
- Department of Pathology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Dean Tantin
- Department of Pathology, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA; Huntsman Cancer Institute, University of Utah School of Medicine, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
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20
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Cianciotti BC, Magnani ZI, Ugolini A, Camisa B, Merelli I, Vavassori V, Potenza A, Imparato A, Manfredi F, Abbati D, Perani L, Spinelli A, Shifrut E, Ciceri F, Vago L, Di Micco R, Naldini L, Genovese P, Ruggiero E, Bonini C. TIM-3, LAG-3, or 2B4 gene disruptions increase the anti-tumor response of engineered T cells. Front Immunol 2024; 15:1315283. [PMID: 38510235 PMCID: PMC10953820 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2024.1315283] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Background In adoptive T cell therapy, the long term therapeutic benefits in patients treated with engineered tumor specific T cells are limited by the lack of long term persistence of the infused cellular products and by the immunosuppressive mechanisms active in the tumor microenvironment. Exhausted T cells infiltrating the tumor are characterized by loss of effector functions triggered by multiple inhibitory receptors (IRs). In patients, IR blockade reverts T cell exhaustion but has low selectivity, potentially unleashing autoreactive clones and resulting in clinical autoimmune side effects. Furthermore, loss of long term protective immunity in cell therapy has been ascribed to the effector memory phenotype of the infused cells. Methods We simultaneously redirected T cell specificity towards the NY-ESO-1 antigen via TCR gene editing (TCRED) and permanently disrupted LAG3, TIM-3 or 2B4 genes (IRKO) via CRISPR/Cas9 in a protocol to expand early differentiated long-living memory stem T cells. The effector functions of the TCRED-IRKO and IR competent (TCRED-IRCOMP) cells were tested in short-term co-culture assays and under a chronic stimulation setting in vitro. Finally, the therapeutic efficacy of the developed cellular products were evaluated in multiple myeloma xenograft models. Results We show that upon chronic stimulation, TCRED-IRKO cells are superior to TCRED-IRCOMP cells in resisting functional exhaustion through different mechanisms and efficiently eliminate cancer cells upon tumor re-challenge in vivo. Our data indicate that TIM-3 and 2B4-disruption preserve T-cell degranulation capacity, while LAG-3 disruption prevents the upregulation of additional inhibitory receptors in T cells. Conclusion These results highlight that TIM-3, LAG-3, and 2B4 disruptions increase the therapeutic benefit of tumor specific cellular products and suggest distinct, non-redundant roles for IRs in anti-tumor responses.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zulma Irene Magnani
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessia Ugolini
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Barbara Camisa
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Ivan Merelli
- Institute for Biomedical Technologies, National Research Council, Segrate, Italy
| | - Valentina Vavassori
- Gene Transfer Technologies and New Gene Therapy Strategies Unit, San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-TIGET), IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Alessia Potenza
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Antonio Imparato
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Francesco Manfredi
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Danilo Abbati
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Laura Perani
- Experimental Imaging Centre, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Antonello Spinelli
- Experimental Imaging Centre, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Eric Shifrut
- The School of Neurobiology, Biochemistry and Biophysics, The George S. Wise Faculty of Life Sciences, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Department of Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
- Dotan Center for Advanced Therapies, Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Center, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Fabio Ciceri
- Hematology and Bone Marrow Transplantation Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Luca Vago
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
- Unit of Immunogenetics, Leukemia Genomics and Immunobiology, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Raffaella Di Micco
- San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-Tiget), IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Luigi Naldini
- Gene Transfer Technologies and New Gene Therapy Strategies Unit, San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-TIGET), IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
| | - Pietro Genovese
- Gene Transfer Technologies and New Gene Therapy Strategies Unit, San Raffaele Telethon Institute for Gene Therapy (SR-TIGET), IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Gene Therapy Program, Dana-Farber/Boston Children’s Cancer and Blood Disorders Center, Department of Pediatric Oncology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Eliana Ruggiero
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Bonini
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Università Vita-Salute San Raffaele, Milan, Italy
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21
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Li X, Wirtz T, Weber T, Lebedin M, Lowenstein ED, Sommermann T, Zach A, Yasuda T, de la Rosa K, Chu VT, Schulte JH, Müller I, Kocks C, Rajewsky K. Precise CRISPR-Cas9 gene repair in autologous memory T cells to treat familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis. Sci Immunol 2024; 9:eadi0042. [PMID: 38306418 DOI: 10.1126/sciimmunol.adi0042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2023] [Accepted: 01/11/2024] [Indexed: 02/04/2024]
Abstract
Familial hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis (FHL) is an inherited, often fatal immune deficiency characterized by severe systemic hyperinflammation. Although allogeneic bone marrow transplantation can be curative, more effective therapies are urgently needed. FHL is caused by inactivating mutations in proteins that regulate cellular immunity. Here, we used an adeno-associated virus-based CRISPR-Cas9 system with an inhibitor of nonhomologous end joining to repair such mutations in potentially long-lived T cells ex vivo. Repaired CD8 memory T cells efficiently cured lethal hyperinflammation in a mouse model of Epstein-Barr virus-triggered FHL2, a subtype caused by perforin-1 (Prf1) deficiency. Furthermore, repair of PRF1 and Munc13-4 (UNC13D)-whose deficiency causes the FHL subtype FHL3-in mutant memory T cells from two critically ill patients with FHL restored T cell cytotoxicity. These results provide a starting point for the treatment of genetic T cell immune dysregulation syndromes with repaired autologous T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xun Li
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Tristan Wirtz
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Timm Weber
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Mikhail Lebedin
- Immune Mechanisms and Human Antibodies, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Elijah D Lowenstein
- Developmental Biology/Signal Transduction, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Thomas Sommermann
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Andreas Zach
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Tomoharu Yasuda
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Kathrin de la Rosa
- Immune Mechanisms and Human Antibodies, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Center of Biological Design, Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) at Charité, 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Van Trung Chu
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Genome Engineering & Disease Models, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Johannes H Schulte
- Department of Pediatric Hematology, Oncology and Stem Cell Transplantation, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and Berlin Institute of Health (BIH), 10117 Berlin, Germany
| | - Ingo Müller
- Division of Pediatric Stem Cell Transplantation and Immunology, Clinic of Pediatric Hematology and Oncology, University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf, 20246 Hamburg, Germany
| | - Christine Kocks
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
- Developmental Biology/Signal Transduction, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
| | - Klaus Rajewsky
- Immune Regulation and Cancer, Max-Delbrück-Center for Molecular Medicine in the Helmholtz Association (MDC), 13125 Berlin, Germany
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22
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Eugene-Norbert M, Cuffel A, Riou G, Jean L, Blondel C, Dehayes J, Bisson A, Giverne C, Brotin E, Denoyelle C, Poulain L, Boyer O, Martinet J, Latouche JB. Development of optimized cytotoxicity assays for assessing the antitumor potential of CAR-T cells. J Immunol Methods 2024; 525:113603. [PMID: 38147898 DOI: 10.1016/j.jim.2023.113603] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2023] [Revised: 11/01/2023] [Accepted: 12/09/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
CAR-T cells are T cells expressing a chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) rendering them capable of killing tumor cells after recognition of a target antigen. CD19 CAR-T cells have revolutionized the treatment of hematological malignancies. Their function is typically assessed by cytotoxicity assays using human allogeneic cell lines expressing the target antigen CD19 such as Nalm-6. However, an alloreactive reaction is observed with these cells, leading to a CD19-independent killing. To address this issue, we developed a fluorescence microscopy-based potency assay using murine target cells to provide an optimized cytotoxicity assay with enhanced specificity towards CD19. Murine NIH/3T3 (3T3) fibroblast-derived cell line and EL4 T-cell lymphoma-derived cell line were used as targets (no xenoreactivity was observed after coculture with human T cells). 3T3 and EL4 cells were engineered to express eGFP (enhanced Green Fluorescent Protein) and CD19 or CD22 using retroviral vectors. CD19 CAR-T cells and non-transduced (NT) control T cells were produced from several donors. After 4 h or 24 h, alloreactive cytotoxicity against CD19+ Nalm-6-GFP cells and CD19- Jurkat-GFP cells was observed with NT or CAR-T cells. In the same conditions, CAR-T but not NT cells specifically killed CD19+ but not CD19- 3T3-GFP or EL4-GFP cells. Both microscope- and flow cytometry-based assays revealed as sensitive as impedance-based assay. Using flow cytometry, we could further determine that CAR-T cells had mostly a stem cell-like memory phenotype after contact with EL4 target cells. Therefore, CD19+ 3T3-GFP or EL4-GFP cells and fluorescence microscopy- or flow cytometry-based assays provide convenient, sensitive and specific tools to evaluate CAR-T cell function with no alloreactivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Misa Eugene-Norbert
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Alexis Cuffel
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France; Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Gaetan Riou
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Laetitia Jean
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Clara Blondel
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Justine Dehayes
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Aurélie Bisson
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Camille Giverne
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Emilie Brotin
- Université de Caen Normandie, Unité de Service PLATON, ImpedanCELL Core Facility, Caen F-14000, France
| | - Christophe Denoyelle
- Université de Caen Normandie, Unité de Service PLATON, ImpedanCELL Core Facility, Caen F-14000, France; Université de Caen Normandie, Inserm, ANTICIPE UMR (1086), Structure Fédérative 4207 Normandie Oncologie, Normandie Univ, Caen F-14000, France; Comprehensive Cancer Center F. Baclesse, Unicancer, Caen F-14000, France
| | - Laurent Poulain
- Université de Caen Normandie, Inserm, ANTICIPE UMR (1086), Structure Fédérative 4207 Normandie Oncologie, Normandie Univ, Caen F-14000, France; Comprehensive Cancer Center F. Baclesse, Unicancer, Caen F-14000, France
| | - Olivier Boyer
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France; Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
| | - Jérémie Martinet
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France; Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France.
| | - Jean-Baptiste Latouche
- Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Rouen F-76000, France; Univ Rouen Normandie, Inserm UMR1234, FOCIS Center of Excellence PAn'THER, Department of Immunology and Biotherapy, Rouen University Hospital, Rouen F-76000, France
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23
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Ong SY, Chen Y, Tan MSY, Ho AYL, Hwang WYK, Lim FLWI. Current perspectives on resistance to chimeric antigen receptor T-cell therapy and strategies to improve efficacy in B-cell lymphoma. Eur J Haematol 2024; 112:144-152. [PMID: 36987995 DOI: 10.1111/ejh.13964] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2022] [Revised: 03/11/2023] [Accepted: 03/16/2023] [Indexed: 03/30/2023]
Abstract
Although chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy has demonstrated remarkable efficacy in patients with chemo-refractory B-cell lymphoma, a significant portion is refractory or relapse. Resistance is a major barrier to improving treatment efficacy and long-term survival in CAR T-cell therapy, and clinicians have very limited tools to discriminate a priori patients who will or will not respond to treatment. While CD19-negative relapses due to loss of target antigen is well described, it accounts for only about 30% of cases with treatment failure. Recent efforts have shed light on mechanisms of CD19-positive relapse due to tumor intrinsic resistance, T-cell quality/manufacturing, or CAR T-cell exhaustion mediated by hostile tumor microenvironment. Here, we review the latest updates of preclinical and clinical trials to investigate the mechanisms of resistance and relapse post CAR T-cell therapy in B cell lymphoma and discuss novel treatment strategies to overcome resistance as well as advances that are useful for a CAR T therapist to optimize and personalize CAR T-cell therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin Yeu Ong
- Department of Haematology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Yunxin Chen
- Department of Haematology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Melinda Si Yun Tan
- Department of Haematology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - William Ying Khee Hwang
- Department of Haematology, Singapore General Hospital, Singapore, Singapore
- Division of Medical Oncology, National Cancer Centre, Singapore, Singapore
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24
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Hou D, Wan H, Katz JL, Wang S, Castro BA, Vazquez-Cervantes GI, Arrieta VA, Dhiantravan S, Najem H, Rashidi A, Chia TY, Arjmandi T, Collado J, Billingham L, Lopez-Rosas A, Han Y, Sonabend AM, Heimberger AB, Zhang P, Miska J, Lee-Chang C. Antigen-presenting B cells promote TCF-1 + PD1 - stem-like CD8 + T-cell proliferation in glioblastoma. Front Immunol 2024; 14:1295218. [PMID: 38268923 PMCID: PMC10806106 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1295218] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2023] [Accepted: 11/27/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Understanding the spatial relationship and functional interaction of immune cells in glioblastoma (GBM) is critical for developing new therapeutics that overcome the highly immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment. Our study showed that B and T cells form clusters within the GBM microenvironment within a 15-μm radius, suggesting that B and T cells could form immune synapses within the GBM. However, GBM-infiltrating B cells suppress the activation of CD8+ T cells. To overcome this immunosuppression, we leveraged B-cell functions by activating them with CD40 agonism, IFNγ, and BAFF to generate a potent antigen-presenting B cells named BVax. BVax had improved antigen cross-presentation potential compared to naïve B cells and were primed to use the IL15-IL15Ra mechanism to enhance T cell activation. Compared to naïve B cells, BVax could improve CD8 T cell activation and proliferation. Compared to dendritic cells (DCs), which are the current gold standard professional antigen-presenting cell, BVax promoted highly proliferative T cells in-vitro that had a stem-like memory T cell phenotype characterized by CD62L+CD44- expression, high TCF-1 expression, and low PD-1 and granzyme B expression. Adoptive transfer of BVax-activated CD8+ T cells into tumor-bearing brains led to T cell reactivation with higher TCF-1 expression and elevated granzyme B production compared to DC-activated CD8+ T cells. Adoptive transfer of BVax into an irradiated immunocompetent tumor-bearing host promoted more CD8+ T cell proliferation than adoptive transfer of DCs. Moreover, highly proliferative CD8+ T cells in the BVax group had less PD-1 expression than those highly proliferative CD8+ T cells in the DC group. The findings of this study suggest that BVax and DC could generate distinctive CD8+ T cells, which potentially serve multiple purposes in cellular vaccine development.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Hou
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Hanxiao Wan
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Joshua L. Katz
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Si Wang
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Brandyn A. Castro
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Department of Neurological Surgery, University of Illinois Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Gustavo I. Vazquez-Cervantes
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Victor A. Arrieta
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Silpol Dhiantravan
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Hinda Najem
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Aida Rashidi
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Tzu-yi Chia
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Tarlan Arjmandi
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Department of Biotechnology, McCormick School of Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, United States
| | - Jimena Collado
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Leah Billingham
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Aurora Lopez-Rosas
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Yu Han
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Adam M. Sonabend
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Lou and Jean Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Amy B. Heimberger
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Lou and Jean Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Peng Zhang
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Lou and Jean Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Jason Miska
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Lou and Jean Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
| | - Catalina Lee-Chang
- Department of Neurological Surgery, Feinberg School of Medicine, Northwestern University, Chicago, IL, United States
- Lou and Jean Malnati Brain Tumor Institute, Chicago, IL, United States
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25
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Mølgaard K, Kielsen K, Ifversen M, Met Ö, Svane IM, Müller K. Reduced mitochondrial respiration in peripheral T cells after paediatric heamatopoietic stem cell transplantation. Front Immunol 2024; 14:1327977. [PMID: 38268913 PMCID: PMC10806108 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1327977] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2023] [Accepted: 12/15/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2024] Open
Abstract
Background Recovery and functional differentiation of T-cell subsets are central for the development of immune function and complications after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), but little is known about the cellular respiration and factors influencing T-cell metabolic fitness during immune maturation after HSCT. Method We included 20 HSCT patients and analysed mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation and mitochondrial fitness in peripheral blood mononuclear cell samples collected at days +90 and +180 after HSCT. Results Phenotypic analysis revealed lower overall T-cell counts, lower CD4+/CD8+ ratio and a skewed distribution of early T-cell subsets at day +90, gradually recovering by day +180. Although ATP turnover in HSCT patients was similar to healthy controls, the spare respiratory capacity (SRC) of T cells, reflecting the available energy reserve, was significantly reduced at day +90 and +180 compared to healthy controls. This reduction in SRC was not correlated with the occurrence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD), the intensity of conditioning regimens and markers of T-cell exhaustion. Conclusion We found significantly depressed SRC until six months post-HSCT, but we were not able to identify transplant-related risk factors or associations with the clinical outcome.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kasper Mølgaard
- National Center for Cancer Immune Therapy, Department of Oncology, Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Katrine Kielsen
- Institute of Inflammatory Research, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Marianne Ifversen
- Hematopietic Stem Cell Transplantation and Primary Immune Deficiency, Department of Paediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Özcan Met
- National Center for Cancer Immune Therapy, Department of Oncology, Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Inge Marie Svane
- National Center for Cancer Immune Therapy, Department of Oncology, Herlev Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Klaus Müller
- Institute of Inflammatory Research, Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Hematopietic Stem Cell Transplantation and Primary Immune Deficiency, Department of Paediatric and Adolescent Medicine, Copenhagen University Hospital Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, Denmark
- Institute of Clinical Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
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26
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Lyu DW. Immunomodulatory effects of exercise in cancer prevention and adjuvant therapy: a narrative review. Front Physiol 2024; 14:1292580. [PMID: 38239881 PMCID: PMC10794543 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2023.1292580] [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: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 12/11/2023] [Indexed: 01/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Successful application of cancer immunotherapy has rekindled hope in cancer patients. However, a number of patients are unresponsive to immunotherapy and related treatments. This unresponsiveness in cancer patients toward different treatment regimens can be mainly attributed to severe immune dysfunction in such patients. Several reports indicate that physical exercise can significantly lead to improved cancer patient outcomes. Since exercise gets immense response from the immune system, it can be utilized to improve immune function. Leukocytes with enhanced functions are substantially mobilized into the circulation by a single bout of intense physical exercise. Chronic physical exercise results in greater muscle endurance and strength and improved cardiorespiratory function. This exercise regime is also useful in improving T-cell abundance and reducing dysfunctional T cells. The current available data strongly justify for future clinical trials to investigate physical exercise use as an adjuvant in cancer therapy; however, optimal parameters using exercise for a defined outcome are yet to be established. The components of the immune system associate with almost every tumorigenesis step. The inter-relationship between inflammation, cancer, and innate immunity has recently gained acceptance; however, the underlying cellular and molecular mechanisms behind this relationship are yet to be solved. Several studies suggest physical exercise-mediated induction of immune cells to elicit anti-tumorigenic effects. This indicates the potential of exercising in modulating the behavior of immune cells to inhibit tumor progression. However, further mechanistic details behind physical exercise-driven immunomodulation and anticancer effects have to be determined. This review aims to summarize and discuss the association between physical exercise and immune function modulation and the potential of exercise as an adjuvant therapy in cancer prevention and treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Da-wei Lyu
- Physical Education and Health School, East China Jiaotong University, Nanchang, Jiangxi, China
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27
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Braverman EL, McQuaid MA, Schuler H, Qin M, Hani S, Hippen K, Monlish DA, Dobbs AK, Ramsey MJ, Kemp F, Wittmann C, Ramgopal A, Brown H, Blazar B, Byersdorfer CA. Overexpression of AMPKγ2 increases AMPK signaling to augment human T cell metabolism and function. J Biol Chem 2024; 300:105488. [PMID: 38000657 PMCID: PMC10825059 DOI: 10.1016/j.jbc.2023.105488] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2023] [Revised: 10/31/2023] [Accepted: 11/09/2023] [Indexed: 11/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Cellular therapies are currently employed to treat a variety of disease processes. For T cell-based therapies, success often relies on the metabolic fitness of the T cell product, where cells with enhanced metabolic capacity demonstrate improved in vivo efficacy. AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is a cellular energy sensor which combines environmental signals with cellular energy status to enforce efficient and flexible metabolic programming. We hypothesized that increasing AMPK activity in human T cells would augment their oxidative capacity, creating an ideal product for adoptive cellular therapies. Lentiviral transduction of the regulatory AMPKγ2 subunit stably enhanced intrinsic AMPK signaling and promoted mitochondrial respiration with increased basal oxygen consumption rates, higher maximal oxygen consumption rate, and augmented spare respiratory capacity. These changes were accompanied by increased proliferation and inflammatory cytokine production, particularly within restricted glucose environments. Introduction of AMPKγ2 into bulk CD4 T cells decreased RNA expression of canonical Th2 genes, including the cytokines interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-5, while introduction of AMPKγ2 into individual Th subsets universally favored proinflammatory cytokine production and a downregulation of IL-4 production in Th2 cells. When AMPKγ2 was overexpressed in regulatory T cells, both in vitro proliferation and suppressive capacity increased. Together, these data suggest that augmenting intrinsic AMPK signaling via overexpression of AMPKγ2 can improve the expansion and functional potential of human T cells for use in a variety of adoptive cellular therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica L Braverman
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Margaret A McQuaid
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Herbert Schuler
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Mengtao Qin
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China
| | - Sophia Hani
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Keli Hippen
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Darlene A Monlish
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Andrea K Dobbs
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Manda J Ramsey
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Felicia Kemp
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Christopher Wittmann
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Archana Ramgopal
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Harrison Brown
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Bruce Blazar
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplantation, Department of Pediatrics, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA
| | - Craig A Byersdorfer
- Division of Blood and Marrow Transplant and Cellular Therapies, Department of Pediatrics, University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.
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28
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Zhang S, Zhang X, Yang H, Liang T, Bai X. Hurdle or thruster: Glucose metabolism of T cells in anti-tumour immunity. Biochim Biophys Acta Rev Cancer 2024; 1879:189022. [PMID: 37993001 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbcan.2023.189022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Revised: 09/11/2023] [Accepted: 10/08/2023] [Indexed: 11/24/2023]
Abstract
Glucose metabolism is essential for the activation, differentiation and function of T cells and proper glucose metabolism is required to maintain effective T cell immunity. Dysregulation of glucose metabolism is a hallmark of cancer, and the tumour microenvironment (TME2) can create metabolic barriers in T cells that inhibit their anti-tumour immune function. Targeting glucose metabolism is a promising approach to improve the capacity of T cells in the TME. The efficacy of common immunotherapies, such as immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs3) and adoptive cell transfer (ACT4), can be limited by T-cell function, and the treatment itself can affect T-cell metabolism. Therefore, understanding the relationship between immunotherapy and T cell glucose metabolism helps to achieve more effective anti-tumour therapy. In this review, we provide an overview of T cell glucose metabolism and how T cell metabolic reprogramming in the TME regulates anti-tumour responses, briefly describe the metabolic patterns of T cells during ICI and ACT therapies, which suggest possible synergistic strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sirui Zhang
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang, China
| | - Xiaozhen Zhang
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang, China
| | - Hanshen Yang
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang, China
| | - Tingbo Liang
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang, China; Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, Zhejiang, China.
| | - Xueli Bai
- Department of Hepatobiliary and Pancreatic Surgery, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310003, Zhejiang, China; Zhejiang Provincial Key Laboratory of Pancreatic Disease, the First Affiliated Hospital, School of Medicine, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310009, Zhejiang, China; Cancer Center, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, Zhejiang, China.
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29
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Wu C, Jiang ML, Pang T, Zhang CJ. T Cell Subsets and Immune Homeostasis. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2782:39-63. [PMID: 38622391 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3754-8_3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/17/2024]
Abstract
T cells are a heterogeneous group of cells that can be classified into different subtypes according to different classification methods. The body's immune system has a highly complex and effective regulatory network that allows for the relative stability of immune system function. Maintaining proper T cell homeostasis is essential for promoting protective immunity and limiting autoimmunity and tumor formation. Among the T cell family members, more and more T cell subsets have gradually been characterized. In this chapter, we summarize the functions of some key T cell subsets and their impact on immune homeostasis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuyu Wu
- Department of Neurology, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Screening, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Discovery for Metabolic Diseases, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Mei-Ling Jiang
- Department of Neurology, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
| | - Tao Pang
- State Key Laboratory of Natural Medicines, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Screening, Jiangsu Key Laboratory of Drug Discovery for Metabolic Diseases, China Pharmaceutical University, Nanjing, China
| | - Cun-Jin Zhang
- Department of Neurology, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, Sichuan, China
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30
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Andreu-Saumell I, Rodriguez-Garcia A, Guedan S. Genome Editing in CAR-T Cells Using CRISPR/Cas9 Technology. Methods Mol Biol 2024; 2748:151-165. [PMID: 38070114 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-3593-3_12] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2023]
Abstract
CAR-T cell therapy is revolutionizing the treatment of hematologic malignancies. However, there are still many challenges ahead before CAR-T cells can be used effectively to treat solid tumors and certain hematologic cancers, such as T-cell malignancies. Next-generation CAR-T cells containing further genetic modifications are being developed to overcome some of the current limitations of this therapy. In this regard, genome editing is being explored to knock out or knock in genes with the goal of enhancing CAR-T cell efficacy or increasing access. In this chapter, we describe in detail a protocol to knock out genes on CAR-T cells using CRISPR-Cas9 technology. Among various gene editing protocols, due to its simplicity, versatility, and reduced toxicity, we focused on the electroporation of ribonucleoprotein complexes containing the Cas9 protein together with sgRNA. All together, these protocols allow for the design of the knockout strategy, CAR-T cell expansion and genome editing, and analysis of knockout efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Irene Andreu-Saumell
- Department of Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Alba Rodriguez-Garcia
- Department of Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Sonia Guedan
- Department of Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Clinic de Barcelona, IDIBAPS, Barcelona, Spain.
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Luo M, Gong W, Zhang Y, Li H, Ma D, Wu K, Gao Q, Fang Y. New insights into the stemness of adoptively transferred T cells by γc family cytokines. Cell Commun Signal 2023; 21:347. [PMID: 38049832 PMCID: PMC10694921 DOI: 10.1186/s12964-023-01354-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/11/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
T cell-based adoptive cell therapy (ACT) has exhibited excellent antitumoral efficacy exemplified by the clinical breakthrough of chimeric antigen receptor therapy (CAR-T) in hematologic malignancies. It relies on the pool of functional T cells to retain the developmental potential to serially kill targeted cells. However, failure in the continuous supply and persistence of functional T cells has been recognized as a critical barrier to sustainable responses. Conferring stemness on infused T cells, yielding stem cell-like memory T cells (TSCM) characterized by constant self-renewal and multilineage differentiation similar to pluripotent stem cells, is indeed necessary and promising for enhancing T cell function and sustaining antitumor immunity. Therefore, it is crucial to identify TSCM cell induction regulators and acquire more TSCM cells as resource cells during production and after infusion to improve antitumoral efficacy. Recently, four common cytokine receptor γ chain (γc) family cytokines, encompassing interleukin-2 (IL-2), IL-7, IL-15, and IL-21, have been widely used in the development of long-lived adoptively transferred TSCM in vitro. However, challenges, including their non-specific toxicities and off-target effects, have led to substantial efforts for the development of engineered versions to unleash their full potential in the induction and maintenance of T cell stemness in ACT. In this review, we summarize the roles of the four γc family cytokines in the orchestration of adoptively transferred T cell stemness, introduce their engineered versions that modulate TSCM cell formation and demonstrate the potential of their various combinations. Video Abstract.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mengshi Luo
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Wenjian Gong
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Yuewen Zhang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Huayi Li
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Ding Ma
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Kongming Wu
- Department of Oncology, Tongji Hospital of Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China
| | - Qinglei Gao
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
| | - Yong Fang
- Department of Gynecological Oncology, Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Obstetrics and Gynecology, Cancer Biology Research Center (Key Laboratory of the Ministry of Education), Tongji Hospital, Tongji Medical College, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan, China.
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Wu M, Xu X, Hu R, Chen Q, Chen L, Yuan Y, Li J, Zhou L, Feng S, Wang L, Chen S, Gu M. A Membrane-Targeted Photosensitizer Prevents Drug Resistance and Induces Immune Response in Treating Candidiasis. ADVANCED SCIENCE (WEINHEIM, BADEN-WURTTEMBERG, GERMANY) 2023; 10:e2207736. [PMID: 37875397 PMCID: PMC10724446 DOI: 10.1002/advs.202207736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2022] [Revised: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023]
Abstract
Candida albicans (C. albicans), a ubiquitous polymorphic fungus in humans, causes different types of candidiasis, including oral candidiasis (OC) and vulvovaginal candidiasis (VVC), which are physically and mentally concerning and financially costly. Thus, developing alternative antifungals that prevent drug resistance and induce immunity to eliminate Candida biofilms is crucial. Herein, a novel membrane-targeted aggregation-induced emission (AIE) photosensitizer (PS), TBTCP-QY, is developed for highly efficient photodynamic therapy (PDT) of candidiasis. TBTCP-QY has a high molar absorption coefficient and an excellent ability to generate 1 O2 and •OH, entering the interior of biofilms due to its high permeability. Furthermore, TBTCP-QY can efficiently inhibit biofilm formation by suppressing the expression of genes related to the adhesion (ALS3, EAP1, and HWP1), invasion (SAP1 and SAP2), and drug resistance (MDR1) of C. albicans, which is also advantageous for eliminating potential fungal resistance to treat clinical infectious diseases. TBTCP-QY-mediated PDT efficiently targets OC and VVC in vivo in a mouse model, induces immune response, relieves inflammation, and accelerates the healing of mucosal defects to combat infections caused by clinically isolated fluconazole-resistant strains. Moreover, TBTCP-QY demonstrates excellent biocompatibility, suggesting its potential applications in the clinical treatment of OC and VVC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ming‐Yu Wu
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
- Sichuan Engineering Research Center for Biomimetic Synthesis of Natural DrugsSchool of Life Science and EngineeringSouthwest Jiaotong UniversityChengduSichuan610031China
| | - Xiaoyu Xu
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Rui Hu
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
- Department of Respiratory DiseasesThe Research and Application Center of Precision MedicineThe Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou450014China
| | - Qingrong Chen
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Luojia Chen
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Yuncong Yuan
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Jie Li
- Department of Medical Intensive Care UnitMaternal and Child Health Hospital of Hubei ProvinceTongji Medical CollegeHuazhong University of Science and TechnologyWuhanHubei430070China
| | - Li Zhou
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Shun Feng
- Sichuan Engineering Research Center for Biomimetic Synthesis of Natural DrugsSchool of Life Science and EngineeringSouthwest Jiaotong UniversityChengduSichuan610031China
| | - Lianrong Wang
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
- Department of Respiratory DiseasesThe Research and Application Center of Precision MedicineThe Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou450014China
| | - Shi Chen
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
| | - Meijia Gu
- Department of GastroenterologyMinistry of Education Key Laboratory of Combinatorial Biosynthesis and Drug DiscoveryTaiKang Center for Life and Medical SciencesZhongnan Hospital of Wuhan UniversitySchool of Pharmaceutical SciencesWuhan UniversityWuhan430071China
- Department of Respiratory DiseasesThe Research and Application Center of Precision MedicineThe Second Affiliated Hospital of Zhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou UniversityZhengzhou450014China
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Pang Z, Lu MM, Zhang Y, Gao Y, Bai JJ, Gu JY, Xie L, Wu WZ. Neoantigen-targeted TCR-engineered T cell immunotherapy: current advances and challenges. Biomark Res 2023; 11:104. [PMID: 38037114 PMCID: PMC10690996 DOI: 10.1186/s40364-023-00534-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/26/2023] [Accepted: 10/22/2023] [Indexed: 12/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapy using T cell receptor-engineered T cells (TCR-T) is a promising approach for cancer therapy with an expectation of no significant side effects. In the human body, mature T cells are armed with an incredible diversity of T cell receptors (TCRs) that theoretically react to the variety of random mutations generated by tumor cells. The outcomes, however, of current clinical trials using TCR-T cell therapies are not very successful especially involving solid tumors. The therapy still faces numerous challenges in the efficient screening of tumor-specific antigens and their cognate TCRs. In this review, we first introduce TCR structure-based antigen recognition and signaling, then describe recent advances in neoantigens and their specific TCR screening technologies, and finally summarize ongoing clinical trials of TCR-T therapies against neoantigens. More importantly, we also present the current challenges of TCR-T cell-based immunotherapies, e.g., the safety of viral vectors, the mismatch of T cell receptor, the impediment of suppressive tumor microenvironment. Finally, we highlight new insights and directions for personalized TCR-T therapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhi Pang
- Liver Cancer Institute, Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion, Ministry of Education, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
- Clinical Center for Biotherapy, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Man-Man Lu
- Shanghai-MOST Key Laboratory of Health and Disease Genomics, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Yu Zhang
- Shanghai-MOST Key Laboratory of Health and Disease Genomics, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Yuan Gao
- Shanghai-MOST Key Laboratory of Health and Disease Genomics, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Shanghai, 200237, China
| | - Jin-Jin Bai
- Liver Cancer Institute, Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion, Ministry of Education, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
- Clinical Center for Biotherapy, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Jian-Ying Gu
- Clinical Center for Biotherapy, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China
| | - Lu Xie
- Shanghai-MOST Key Laboratory of Health and Disease Genomics, Shanghai Institute for Biomedical and Pharmaceutical Technologies, Shanghai, 200237, China.
| | - Wei-Zhong Wu
- Liver Cancer Institute, Key Laboratory of Carcinogenesis and Cancer Invasion, Ministry of Education, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
- Clinical Center for Biotherapy, Zhongshan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, 200032, China.
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Manfredi F, Stasi L, Buonanno S, Marzuttini F, Noviello M, Mastaglio S, Abbati D, Potenza A, Balestrieri C, Cianciotti BC, Tassi E, Feola S, Toffalori C, Punta M, Magnani Z, Camisa B, Tiziano E, Lupo-Stanghellini MT, Branca RM, Lehtiö J, Sikanen TM, Haapala MJ, Cerullo V, Casucci M, Vago L, Ciceri F, Bonini C, Ruggiero E. Harnessing T cell exhaustion and trogocytosis to isolate patient-derived tumor-specific TCR. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2023; 9:eadg8014. [PMID: 38039364 PMCID: PMC10691777 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adg8014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2023] [Accepted: 11/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/03/2023]
Abstract
To study and then harness the tumor-specific T cell dynamics after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplant, we typed the frequency, phenotype, and function of lymphocytes directed against tumor-associated antigens (TAAs) in 39 consecutive transplanted patients, for 1 year after transplant. We showed that TAA-specific T cells circulated in 90% of patients but display a limited effector function associated to an exhaustion phenotype, particularly in the subgroup of patients deemed to relapse, where exhausted stem cell memory T cells accumulated. Accordingly, cancer-specific cytolytic functions were relevant only when the TAA-specific T cell receptors (TCRs) were transferred into healthy, genome-edited T cells. We then exploited trogocytosis and ligandome-on-chip technology to unveil the specificities of tumor-specific TCRs retrieved from the exhausted T cell pool. Overall, we showed that harnessing circulating TAA-specific and exhausted T cells allow to isolate TCRs against TAAs and previously not described acute myeloid leukemia antigens, potentially relevant for T cell-based cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesco Manfredi
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Lorena Stasi
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Silvia Buonanno
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Francesca Marzuttini
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Maddalena Noviello
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Sara Mastaglio
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Danilo Abbati
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Alessia Potenza
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Chiara Balestrieri
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Beatrice Claudia Cianciotti
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Elena Tassi
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Sara Feola
- University of Helsinki, ImmunoVirotherapy Lab, Yliopistonkatu 4, 00100 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Cristina Toffalori
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Unit of Immunogenetics, Leukemia Genomics and Immunobiology, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Marco Punta
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Unit of Immunogenetics, Leukemia Genomics and Immunobiology, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Zulma Magnani
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Barbara Camisa
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Elena Tiziano
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Maria Teresa Lupo-Stanghellini
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Rui Mamede Branca
- Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Karolinska Institute, 171 65 Solna, Sweden
| | - Janne Lehtiö
- Science for Life Laboratory, Department of Oncology-Pathology, Karolinska Institute, 171 65 Solna, Sweden
| | - Tiina M. Sikanen
- Drug Research Program, Faculty of Pharmacy, Division of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology, Helsinki University,, Viikinkaari 5E, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Markus J. Haapala
- Drug Research Program, Faculty of Pharmacy, Division of Pharmaceutical Chemistry and Technology, Helsinki University,, Viikinkaari 5E, 00014 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Vincenzo Cerullo
- University of Helsinki, ImmunoVirotherapy Lab, Yliopistonkatu 4, 00100 Helsinki, Finland
| | - Monica Casucci
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Luca Vago
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Unit of Immunogenetics, Leukemia Genomics and Immunobiology, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- Vita Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabio Ciceri
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Hematology and Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Chiara Bonini
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Disease, Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
| | - Eliana Ruggiero
- IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Division of Immunology, Transplantation, and Infectious Diseases, Experimental Hematology Unit, via Olgettina 60, Milan 20132, Italy
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Chen DG, Xie J, Su Y, Heath JR. T cell receptor sequences are the dominant factor contributing to the phenotype of CD8 + T cells with specificities against immunogenic viral antigens. Cell Rep 2023; 42:113279. [PMID: 37883974 PMCID: PMC10729740 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2023] [Revised: 08/23/2023] [Accepted: 09/29/2023] [Indexed: 10/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Antigen-specific CD8+ T cells mediate pathogen clearance. T cell phenotype is influenced by T cell receptor (TCR) sequences and environmental signals. Quantitative comparisons of these factors in human disease, while challenging to obtain, can provide foundational insights into basic T cell biology. Here, we investigate the phenotype kinetics of 679 CD8+ T cell clonotypes, each with specificity against one of three immunogenic viral antigens. Data were collected from a longitudinal study of 68 COVID-19 patients with antigens from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), cytomegalovirus (CMV), and influenza. Each antigen is associated with a different type of immune activation during COVID-19. We find TCR sequence to be by far the most important factor in shaping T cell phenotype and persistence for populations specific to any of these antigens. Our work demonstrates the important relationship between TCR sequence and T cell phenotype and persistence and helps explain why T cell phenotype often appears to be determined early in an infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel G Chen
- Institute of Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - Jingyi Xie
- Institute of Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Molecular Engineering & Sciences Institute, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA
| | - Yapeng Su
- Vaccine and Infectious Disease Division, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Clinical Research Division, Program in Immunology, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Seattle, WA 98109, USA
| | - James R Heath
- Institute of Systems Biology, Seattle, WA 98109, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98105, USA.
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Giardino Torchia ML, Moody G. DIALing-up the preclinical characterization of gene-modified adoptive cellular immunotherapies. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1264882. [PMID: 38090585 PMCID: PMC10713823 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1264882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/21/2023] [Accepted: 10/27/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The preclinical characterization of gene modified adoptive cellular immunotherapy candidates for clinical development often requires the use of mouse models. Gene-modified lymphocytes (GML) incorporating chimeric antigen receptors (CAR) and T-cell receptors (TCR) into immune effector cells require in vivo characterization of biological activity, mechanism of action, and preclinical safety. Typically, this characterization involves the assessment of dose-dependent, on-target, on-tumor activity in severely immunocompromised mice. While suitable for the purpose of evaluating T cell-expressed transgene function in a living host, this approach falls short in translating cellular therapy efficacy, safety, and persistence from preclinical models to humans. To comprehensively characterize cell therapy products in mice, we have developed a framework called "DIAL". This framework aims to enable an end-to-end understanding of genetically engineered cellular immunotherapies in vivo, from infusion to tumor clearance and long-term immunosurveillance. The acronym DIAL stands for Distribution, Infiltration, Accumulation, and Longevity, compartmentalizing the systemic attributes of gene-modified cellular therapy and providing a platform for optimization with the ultimate goal of improving therapeutic efficacy. This review will discuss both existent and emerging examples of DIAL characterization in mouse models, as well as opportunities for future development and optimization.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Gordon Moody
- Cell Therapy Unit, Oncology Research, AstraZeneca, Gaithersburg, MD, United States
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Mc Laughlin AM, Milligan PA, Yee C, Bergstrand M. Model-informed drug development of autologous CAR-T cell therapy: Strategies to optimize CAR-T cell exposure leveraging cell kinetic/dynamic modeling. CPT Pharmacometrics Syst Pharmacol 2023; 12:1577-1590. [PMID: 37448343 PMCID: PMC10681459 DOI: 10.1002/psp4.13011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2023] [Revised: 06/23/2023] [Accepted: 07/10/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Autologous Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR-T) cell therapy has been highly successful in the treatment of aggressive hematological malignancies and is also being evaluated for the treatment of solid tumors as well as other therapeutic areas. A challenge, however, is that up to 60% of patients do not sustain a long-term response. Low CAR-T cell exposure has been suggested as an underlying factor for a poor prognosis. CAR-T cell therapy is a novel therapeutic modality with unique kinetic and dynamic properties. Importantly, "clear" dose-exposure relationships do not seem to exist for any of the currently approved CAR-T cell products. In other words, dose increases have not led to a commensurate increase in the measurable in vivo frequency of transferred CAR-T cells. Therefore, alternative approaches beyond dose titration are needed to optimize CAR-T cell exposure. In this paper, we provide examples of actionable variables - design elements in CAR-T cell discovery, development, and clinical practice, which can be modified to optimize autologous CAR-T cell exposure. Most of these actionable variables can be assessed throughout the various stages of discovery and development as part of a well-informed research and development program. Model-informed drug development approaches can enable such study and program design choices from discovery through to clinical practice and can be an important contributor to cell therapy effectiveness and efficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Cassian Yee
- Department of Melanoma Medical OncologyThe University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterHoustonTexasUSA
- Department of ImmunologyThe University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer CenterHoustonTexasUSA
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Wang Y, Tong C, Lu Y, Wu Z, Guo Y, Liu Y, Wei J, Wang C, Yang Q, Han W. Characteristics of premanufacture CD8 +T cells determine CAR-T efficacy in patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma. Signal Transduct Target Ther 2023; 8:409. [PMID: 37875502 PMCID: PMC10598004 DOI: 10.1038/s41392-023-01659-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2023] [Revised: 09/10/2023] [Accepted: 09/18/2023] [Indexed: 10/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Although chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells have become an important treatment option for patients with relapsed/refractory B-cell malignancies, more than 60% of patients with diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL) treated with CAR-T cell therapies fail to achieve a durable response. To reveal changes in CAR-T cell therapy and identify response biomarkers, we conducted a retrospective analysis of pre-manufacture source T cells and CAR-T cell products and their association with outcome in 58 patients with r/rDLBCL who received tandem CD19/CD20 CAR-T cell therapy. We performed bulk RNA-Seq, single-cell RNA-Seq, and paired T cell receptor sequencing on CAR-T cell products and pre-manufacture T cells from DLBCL patients. We note that a CD8+ stem cell-like memory T cell population with a higher proportion and enhanced activating capacity of the CAR-T cell products was key to achieving durable clinical response. By analysing autologously-derived, pre-manufacture T cells, our data suggest that heterogeneity in the cellular and molecular features of pre-manufacture T cells contribute to the variation in efficacy after CAR-T cell therapy in DLBCL. The differences in anti-tumour efficacy of CAR-T cells among patients with different clinical outcomes appear to be due to the loss of CCR7 gene expression, coupled with increased expression of activation- and inhibitor-related genes in the CD8+ naïve-T cell populations among the apheresis T cells from patients with a poor molecular response. These findings significantly advance our understanding of the underlying molecular determinants of pre-manufacture T cell function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yao Wang
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
| | - Chuan Tong
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Yuting Lu
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Zhiqiang Wu
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Yelei Guo
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Yang Liu
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | | | - Chunmeng Wang
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Qingming Yang
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China
| | - Weidong Han
- Department of Bio-Therapeutic, The First Medical Center, Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
- Changping Laboratory, Beijing, PR China.
- National Clinical Research Center for Hematologic Diseases, The First Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University, Suzhou, China.
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Potenza A, Balestrieri C, Spiga M, Albarello L, Pedica F, Manfredi F, Cianciotti BC, De Lalla C, Botrugno OA, Faccani C, Stasi L, Tassi E, Bonfiglio S, Scotti GM, Redegalli M, Biancolini D, Camisa B, Tiziano E, Sirini C, Casucci M, Iozzi C, Abbati D, Simeoni F, Lazarevic D, Elmore U, Fiorentini G, Di Lullo G, Casorati G, Doglioni C, Tonon G, Dellabona P, Rosati R, Aldrighetti L, Ruggiero E, Bonini C. Revealing and harnessing CD39 for the treatment of colorectal cancer and liver metastases by engineered T cells. Gut 2023; 72:1887-1903. [PMID: 37399271 DOI: 10.1136/gutjnl-2022-328042] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 07/05/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE Colorectal tumours are often densely infiltrated by immune cells that have a role in surveillance and modulation of tumour progression but are burdened by immunosuppressive signals, which might vary from primary to metastatic stages. Here, we deployed a multidimensional approach to unravel the T-cell functional landscape in primary colorectal cancers (CRC) and liver metastases, and genome editing tools to develop CRC-specific engineered T cells. DESIGN We paired high-dimensional flow cytometry, RNA sequencing and immunohistochemistry to describe the functional phenotype of T cells from healthy and neoplastic tissue of patients with primary and metastatic CRC and we applied lentiviral vectors (LV) and CRISPR/Cas9 genome editing technologies to develop CRC-specific cellular products. RESULTS We found that T cells are mainly localised at the front edge and that tumor-infiltrating T cells co-express multiple inhibitory receptors, which largely differ from primary to metastatic sites. Our data highlighted CD39 as the major driver of exhaustion in both primary and metastatic colorectal tumours. We thus simultaneously redirected T-cell specificity employing a novel T-cell receptor targeting HER-2 and disrupted the endogenous TCR genes (TCR editing (TCRED)) and the CD39 encoding gene (ENTPD1), thus generating TCREDENTPD1KOHER-2-redirected lymphocytes. We showed that the absence of CD39 confers to HER-2-specific T cells a functional advantage in eliminating HER-2+ patient-derived organoids in vitro and in vivo. CONCLUSION HER-2-specific CD39 disrupted engineered T cells are promising advanced medicinal products for primary and metastatic CRC.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessia Potenza
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Balestrieri
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Martina Spiga
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Luca Albarello
- Pathology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Federica Pedica
- Pathology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Francesco Manfredi
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | | | - Claudia De Lalla
- Experimental Immunology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Oronza A Botrugno
- Functional Genomics of Cancer Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Cristina Faccani
- Experimental Immunology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Lorena Stasi
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Elena Tassi
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Silvia Bonfiglio
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Giulia Maria Scotti
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Miriam Redegalli
- Pathology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Donatella Biancolini
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Barbara Camisa
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Elena Tiziano
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Camilla Sirini
- Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Monica Casucci
- Innovative Immunotherapies Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Iozzi
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Danilo Abbati
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Fabio Simeoni
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Dejan Lazarevic
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Ugo Elmore
- Gastrointestinal Surgery Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Guido Fiorentini
- Gastrointestinal Surgery Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Giulia Di Lullo
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Giulia Casorati
- Experimental Immunology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Claudio Doglioni
- Pathology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Giovanni Tonon
- Center for Omics Sciences, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Functional Genomics of Cancer Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
| | - Paolo Dellabona
- Experimental Immunology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Riccardo Rosati
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
- Gastrointestinal Surgery Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Luca Aldrighetti
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
- Hepatobiliary Surgery Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Eliana Ruggiero
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Chiara Bonini
- Experimental Hematology Unit, IRCCS San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
- Vita-Salute San Raffaele University, Milan, Italy
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40
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Wang W, Al-Hajj M, Alavi AS. Detection and quantification of integrated vector copy number by multiplex droplet digital PCR in dual-transduced CAR T cells. Mol Ther Methods Clin Dev 2023; 30:403-410. [PMID: 37622159 PMCID: PMC10445099 DOI: 10.1016/j.omtm.2023.07.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/25/2020] [Accepted: 07/12/2023] [Indexed: 08/26/2023]
Abstract
The success of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cell therapies in refractory hematologic malignancies has prompted investigation of their efficacy in solid tumors. AUTO6NG is a dual-transduced GD2-targeting CAR that encodes distinct modules designed to enhance T cell activity in relapsed/refractory neuroblastoma. The ability to detect and precisely quantify vector copy number (VCN) for each integrated vector is essential for assessing the effect of each module on T cell tumor infiltration, persistence, and clinical activity. Droplet digital PCR (ddPCR) enables accurate, sensitive, and absolute quantification of specific nucleic acid sequences. Compared to standard detection of two targets, multiplex ddPCR assays allow simultaneous detection of up to four targets by selective modulation of signal amplitude while retaining the ability to quantify the target. We have developed a multiplex assay based on the two-channel system for simultaneous detection and quantification of three targets in AUTO6NG CAR T cells. The assay was highly specific, sensitive, accurate, and reproducible across time and samples. No differences were observed in measuring VCN between standard duplex and multiplex assays. Our results demonstrate that ddPCR is an accurate and cost-effective method for simultaneous detection of multiple targets in genomic DNA derived from engineered CAR T cells.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei Wang
- Autolus Therapeutics, The MediaWorks, 191 Wood Lane, W12 7FP London, UK
| | - Muhammad Al-Hajj
- Autolus Therapeutics, The MediaWorks, 191 Wood Lane, W12 7FP London, UK
| | - Alireza S. Alavi
- Autolus Therapeutics, The MediaWorks, 191 Wood Lane, W12 7FP London, UK
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41
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Bandara V, Foeng J, Gundsambuu B, Norton TS, Napoli S, McPeake DJ, Tyllis TS, Rohani-Rad E, Abbott C, Mills SJ, Tan LY, Thompson EJ, Willet VM, Nikitaras VJ, Zheng J, Comerford I, Johnson A, Coombs J, Oehler MK, Ricciardelli C, Cowin AJ, Bonder CS, Jensen M, Sadlon TJ, McColl SR, Barry SC. Pre-clinical validation of a pan-cancer CAR-T cell immunotherapy targeting nfP2X7. Nat Commun 2023; 14:5546. [PMID: 37684239 PMCID: PMC10491676 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41338-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 08/29/2023] [Indexed: 09/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell immunotherapy is a novel treatment that genetically modifies the patients' own T cells to target and kill malignant cells. However, identification of tumour-specific antigens expressed on multiple solid cancer types, remains a major challenge. P2X purinoceptor 7 (P2X7) is a cell surface expressed ATP gated cation channel, and a dysfunctional version of P2X7, named nfP2X7, has been identified on cancer cells from multiple tissues, while being undetectable on healthy cells. We present a prototype -human CAR-T construct targeting nfP2X7 showing potential antigen-specific cytotoxicity against twelve solid cancer types (breast, prostate, lung, colorectal, brain and skin). In xenograft mouse models of breast and prostate cancer, CAR-T cells targeting nfP2X7 exhibit robust anti-tumour efficacy. These data indicate that nfP2X7 is a suitable immunotherapy target because of its broad expression on human tumours. CAR-T cells targeting nfP2X7 have potential as a wide-spectrum cancer immunotherapy for solid tumours in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Bandara
- Molecular Immunology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia
| | - Jade Foeng
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Batjargal Gundsambuu
- Molecular Immunology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia
| | - Todd S Norton
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Silvana Napoli
- Molecular Immunology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia
| | - Dylan J McPeake
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Timona S Tyllis
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Elaheh Rohani-Rad
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Caitlin Abbott
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Stuart J Mills
- University of South Australia, STEM (Future Industries Institute) SA, Adelaide, 5095, Australia
| | - Lih Y Tan
- Centre for Cancer Biology, University of South Australia and SA Pathology, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia
| | - Emma J Thompson
- Centre for Cancer Biology, University of South Australia and SA Pathology, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia
| | - Vasiliki M Willet
- Reproductive Cancer Research Group, Discipline Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Victoria J Nikitaras
- Reproductive Cancer Research Group, Discipline Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Jieren Zheng
- Molecular Immunology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia
| | - Iain Comerford
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Adam Johnson
- Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, 98101, USA
| | - Justin Coombs
- Carina Biotech, Level 2 Innovation & Collaboration Centre, UniSA Bradley Building, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia
| | - Martin K Oehler
- Department of Gynaecological Oncology, Royal Adelaide Hospital, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Carmela Ricciardelli
- Reproductive Cancer Research Group, Discipline Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Allison J Cowin
- University of South Australia, STEM (Future Industries Institute) SA, Adelaide, 5095, Australia
| | - Claudine S Bonder
- Centre for Cancer Biology, University of South Australia and SA Pathology, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia
- Adelaide Medical School, The University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
| | - Michael Jensen
- Seattle Children's Research Institute, Seattle, WA, 98101, USA
| | - Timothy J Sadlon
- Department of Gastroenterology, Women's and Children's Health Network, North Adelaide, SA, 5006, Australia
| | - Shaun R McColl
- Chemokine Biology Laboratory, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, School of Biological Sciences, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5005, Australia
- Carina Biotech, Level 2 Innovation & Collaboration Centre, UniSA Bradley Building, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia
| | - Simon C Barry
- Molecular Immunology, Robinson Research Institute, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, SA, 5000, Australia.
- Carina Biotech, Level 2 Innovation & Collaboration Centre, UniSA Bradley Building, Adelaide, SA, 5001, Australia.
- Department of Gastroenterology, Women's and Children's Health Network, North Adelaide, SA, 5006, Australia.
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42
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Casirati G, Cosentino A, Mucci A, Salah Mahmoud M, Ugarte Zabala I, Zeng J, Ficarro SB, Klatt D, Brendel C, Rambaldi A, Ritz J, Marto JA, Pellin D, Bauer DE, Armstrong SA, Genovese P. Epitope editing enables targeted immunotherapy of acute myeloid leukaemia. Nature 2023; 621:404-414. [PMID: 37648862 PMCID: PMC10499609 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-023-06496-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2022] [Accepted: 07/28/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023]
Abstract
Despite the considerable efficacy observed when targeting a dispensable lineage antigen, such as CD19 in B cell acute lymphoblastic leukaemia1,2, the broader applicability of adoptive immunotherapies is hampered by the absence of tumour-restricted antigens3-5. Acute myeloid leukaemia immunotherapies target genes expressed by haematopoietic stem/progenitor cells (HSPCs) or differentiated myeloid cells, resulting in intolerable on-target/off-tumour toxicity. Here we show that epitope engineering of donor HSPCs used for bone marrow transplantation endows haematopoietic lineages with selective resistance to chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells or monoclonal antibodies, without affecting protein function or regulation. This strategy enables the targeting of genes that are essential for leukaemia survival regardless of shared expression on HSPCs, reducing the risk of tumour immune escape. By performing epitope mapping and library screenings, we identified amino acid changes that abrogate the binding of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies targeting FLT3, CD123 and KIT, and optimized a base-editing approach to introduce them into CD34+ HSPCs, which retain long-term engraftment and multilineage differentiation ability. After CAR T cell treatment, we confirmed resistance of epitope-edited haematopoiesis and concomitant eradication of patient-derived acute myeloid leukaemia xenografts. Furthermore, we show that multiplex epitope engineering of HSPCs is feasible and enables more effective immunotherapies against multiple targets without incurring overlapping off-tumour toxicities. We envision that this approach will provide opportunities to treat relapsed/refractory acute myeloid leukaemia and enable safer non-genotoxic conditioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriele Casirati
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Milano-Bicocca University, Milan, Italy
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
| | - Andrea Cosentino
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Department of Oncology and Hematology, University of Milan and Azienda Socio-Sanitaria Territoriale Papa Giovanni XXIII, Bergamo, Italy
| | - Adele Mucci
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
| | - Mohammed Salah Mahmoud
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Fayoum University, Fayoum, Egypt
| | - Iratxe Ugarte Zabala
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Jing Zeng
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
| | - Scott B Ficarro
- Department of Cancer Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Blais Proteomics Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Center for Emergent Drug Targets, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Denise Klatt
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
| | - Christian Brendel
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Alessandro Rambaldi
- Department of Oncology and Hematology, University of Milan and Azienda Socio-Sanitaria Territoriale Papa Giovanni XXIII, Bergamo, Italy
| | - Jerome Ritz
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
- Connell and O'Reilly Families Cell Manipulation Core Facility, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
| | - Jarrod A Marto
- Department of Cancer Biology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pathology, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Blais Proteomics Center, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Center for Emergent Drug Targets, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Danilo Pellin
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Daniel E Bauer
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Scott A Armstrong
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Pietro Genovese
- Division of Hematology/Oncology, Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA.
- Department of Pediatric Oncology, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, USA.
- Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA.
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43
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Bonini C, Chapuis AG, Hudecek M, Guedan S, Magnani C, Qasim W. Genome Editing in Engineered T Cells for Cancer Immunotherapy. Hum Gene Ther 2023; 34:853-869. [PMID: 37694593 PMCID: PMC10623081 DOI: 10.1089/hum.2023.128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 09/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Advanced gene transfer technologies and profound immunological insights have enabled substantial increases in the efficacy of anticancer adoptive cellular therapy (ACT). In recent years, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and European Medicines Agency have approved six engineered T cell therapeutic products, all chimeric antigen receptor-engineered T cells directed against B cell malignancies. Despite encouraging clinical results, engineered T cell therapy is still constrained by challenges, which could be addressed by genome editing. As RNA-guided Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats technology passes its 10-year anniversary, we review emerging applications of genome editing approaches designed to (1) overcome resistance to therapy, including cancer immune evasion mechanisms; (2) avoid unwanted immune reactions related to allogeneic T cell products; (3) increase fitness, expansion capacity, persistence, and potency of engineered T cells, while preserving their safety profile; and (4) improve the ability of therapeutic cells to resist immunosuppressive signals active in the tumor microenvironment. Overall, these innovative approaches should widen the safe and effective use of ACT to larger number of patients affected by cancer.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Bonini
- Experimental Hematology Unit, Division of Immunology, Transplantation and Infectious Diseases, IRCCS Ospedale San Raffaele Scientific Institute, Milan, Italy
| | - Aude G Chapuis
- Program in Immunology, Division of Translational Sciences and Therapeutics, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Oncology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Michael Hudecek
- Lehrstuhl für Zelluläre Immuntherapie, Medizinische Klinik und Poliklinik II, Universitätsklinikum Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Sonia Guedan
- Department of Hematology and Oncology, Hospital Clinic, August Pi i Sunyer Biomedical Research Institute (IDIBAPS), Barcelona, Spain
| | - Chiara Magnani
- Department of Medical Oncology and Hematology, University Hospital Zurich and University of Zurich, Comprehensive Cancer Center Zurich (CCCZ), Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Waseem Qasim
- UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, London, United Kingdom
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44
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Lu X, Lofgren SM, Zhao Y, Mazur PK. Multiplexed transcriptomic profiling of the fate of human CAR T cells in vivo via genetic barcoding with shielded small nucleotides. Nat Biomed Eng 2023; 7:1170-1187. [PMID: 37652986 DOI: 10.1038/s41551-023-01085-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/12/2022] [Accepted: 08/01/2023] [Indexed: 09/02/2023]
Abstract
The design of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells would benefit from knowledge of the fate of the cells in vivo. This requires the permanent labelling of CAR T cell products and their pooling in the same microenvironment. Here, we report a cell-barcoding method for the multiplexed longitudinal profiling of cells in vivo using single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq). The method, which we named shielded-small-nucleotide-based scRNA-seq (SSN-seq), is compatible with both 3' and 5' single-cell profiling, and enables the recording of cell identity, from cell infusion to isolation, by leveraging the ubiquitous Pol III U6 promoters to robustly express small-RNA barcodes modified with direct-capture sequences. By using SSN-seq to track the dynamics of the states of CAR T cells in a tumour-rechallenge mouse model of leukaemia, we found that a combination of cytokines and small-molecule inhibitors that are used in the ex vivo manufacturing of CAR T cells promotes the in vivo expansion of persistent populations of CD4+ memory T cells. By facilitating the probing of cell-state dynamics in vivo, SSN-seq may aid the development of adoptive cell therapies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaoyin Lu
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Shane M Lofgren
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Yuehui Zhao
- Department of Genetics, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA
| | - Pawel K Mazur
- Department of Experimental Radiation Oncology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA.
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45
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Li J, Xiao Z, Wang D, Jia L, Nie S, Zeng X, Hu W. The screening, identification, design and clinical application of tumor-specific neoantigens for TCR-T cells. Mol Cancer 2023; 22:141. [PMID: 37649123 PMCID: PMC10466891 DOI: 10.1186/s12943-023-01844-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2023] [Accepted: 08/16/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Recent advances in neoantigen research have accelerated the development of tumor immunotherapies, including adoptive cell therapies (ACTs), cancer vaccines and antibody-based therapies, particularly for solid tumors. With the development of next-generation sequencing and bioinformatics technology, the rapid identification and prediction of tumor-specific antigens (TSAs) has become possible. Compared with tumor-associated antigens (TAAs), highly immunogenic TSAs provide new targets for personalized tumor immunotherapy and can be used as prospective indicators for predicting tumor patient survival, prognosis, and immune checkpoint blockade response. Here, the identification and characterization of neoantigens and the clinical application of neoantigen-based TCR-T immunotherapy strategies are summarized, and the current status, inherent challenges, and clinical translational potential of these strategies are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiangping Li
- Division of Thoracic Tumor Multimodality Treatment, Cancer Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, 610041, People's Republic of China.
| | - Zhiwen Xiao
- Department of Otolaryngology Head and Neck Surgery, The Sixth Affiliated Hospital, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510655, People's Republic of China
| | - Donghui Wang
- Department of Radiation Oncology, The Third Affiliated Hospital Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510630, People's Republic of China
| | - Lei Jia
- International Health Medicine Innovation Center, Shenzhen University, Shenzhen, 518060, People's Republic of China
| | - Shihong Nie
- Department of Radiation Oncology, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Cancer Center, Chengdu, 610041, People's Republic of China
| | - Xingda Zeng
- Department of Parasitology of Zhongshan School of Medicine, Sun Yat-Sen University, Guangzhou, 510080, China
| | - Wei Hu
- Division of Vascular Surgery, Sichuan Academy of Medical Sciences & Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, School of Medicine, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 610072, People's Republic of China
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Collier-Bain HD, Brown FF, Causer AJ, Emery A, Oliver R, Moore S, Murray J, Turner JE, Campbell JP. Harnessing the immunomodulatory effects of exercise to enhance the efficacy of monoclonal antibody therapies against B-cell haematological cancers: a narrative review. Front Oncol 2023; 13:1244090. [PMID: 37681023 PMCID: PMC10482436 DOI: 10.3389/fonc.2023.1244090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 09/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) are standard care for many B-cell haematological cancers. The modes of action for these mAbs include: induction of cancer cell lysis by activating Fcγ-receptors on innate immune cells; opsonising target cells for antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity or phagocytosis, and/or triggering the classical complement pathway; the simultaneous binding of cancer cells with T-cells to create an immune synapse and activate perforin-mediated T-cell cytotoxicity against cancer cells; blockade of immune checkpoints to facilitate T-cell cytotoxicity against immunogenic cancer cell clones; and direct delivery of cytotoxic agents via internalisation of mAbs by target cells. While treatment regimens comprising mAb therapy can lead to durable anti-cancer responses, disease relapse is common due to failure of mAb therapy to eradicate minimal residual disease. Factors that limit mAb efficacy include: suboptimal effector cell frequencies, overt immune exhaustion and/or immune anergy, and survival of diffusely spread tumour cells in different stromal niches. In this review, we discuss how immunomodulatory changes arising from exposure to structured bouts of acute exercise might improve mAb treatment efficacy by augmenting (i) antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity, (ii) antibody-dependent cellular phagocytosis, (iii) complement-dependent cytotoxicity, (iv) T-cell cytotoxicity, and (v) direct delivery of cytotoxic agents.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Frankie F. Brown
- Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
- School of Applied Sciences, Edinburgh Napier University, Edinburgh, United Kingdom
| | - Adam J. Causer
- Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
| | - Annabelle Emery
- Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
| | - Rebecca Oliver
- Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
- Department of Haematology, Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, United Kingdom
| | - Sally Moore
- Department of Haematology, Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, United Kingdom
| | - James Murray
- Department of Haematology, Royal United Hospitals Bath NHS Foundation Trust, Bath, United Kingdom
| | - James E. Turner
- Department for Health, University of Bath, Bath, United Kingdom
- School of Sport, Exercise and Rehabilitation Sciences, University of Birmingham, Birmingham, United Kingdom
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Rothemejer FH, Lauritsen NP, Søgaard OS, Tolstrup M. Strategies for enhancing CAR T cell expansion and persistence in HIV infection. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1253395. [PMID: 37671164 PMCID: PMC10475529 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1253395] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric Antigen Receptor (CAR) T cell therapies are tremendously successful in hematological malignancies and show great promise as treatment and curative strategy for HIV. A major determinant for effective CAR T cell therapy is the persistence of CAR T cells. Particularly, antigen density and target cell abundance are crucial for the engagement, engraftment, and persistence of CAR T cells. The success of HIV-specific CAR T cells is challenged by limited antigen due to low cell surface expression of viral proteins and the scarcity of chronically infected cells during antiretroviral therapy. Several strategies have been explored to increase the efficacy of CAR T cells by enhancing expansion and persistence of the engineered cells. This review highlights the challenges of designing CAR T cells against HIV and other chronic viral infections. We also discuss potential strategies to enhance CAR T cell expansion and persistence in the setting of low antigen exposure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Frederik Holm Rothemejer
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Nanna Pi Lauritsen
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Ole Schmeltz Søgaard
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Martin Tolstrup
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
- Department of Infectious Diseases, Aarhus University Hospital, Aarhus, Denmark
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48
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Zhang P, Zhang G, Wan X. Challenges and new technologies in adoptive cell therapy. J Hematol Oncol 2023; 16:97. [PMID: 37596653 PMCID: PMC10439661 DOI: 10.1186/s13045-023-01492-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2023] [Accepted: 08/04/2023] [Indexed: 08/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Adoptive cell therapies (ACTs) have existed for decades. From the initial infusion of tumor-infiltrating lymphocytes to the subsequent specific enhanced T cell receptor (TCR)-T and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-T cell therapies, many novel strategies for cancer treatment have been developed. Owing to its promising outcomes, CAR-T cell therapy has revolutionized the field of ACTs, particularly for hematologic malignancies. Despite these advances, CAR-T cell therapy still has limitations in both autologous and allogeneic settings, including practicality and toxicity issues. To overcome these challenges, researchers have focused on the application of CAR engineering technology to other types of immune cell engineering. Consequently, several new cell therapies based on CAR technology have been developed, including CAR-NK, CAR-macrophage, CAR-γδT, and CAR-NKT. In this review, we describe the development, advantages, and possible challenges of the aforementioned ACTs and discuss current strategies aimed at maximizing the therapeutic potential of ACTs. We also provide an overview of the various gene transduction strategies employed in immunotherapy given their importance in immune cell engineering. Furthermore, we discuss the possibility that strategies capable of creating a positive feedback immune circuit, as healthy immune systems do, could address the flaw of a single type of ACT, and thus serve as key players in future cancer immunotherapy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pengchao Zhang
- Center for Protein and Cell-based Drugs, Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1068 Xueyuan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518055, People's Republic of China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, People's Republic of China
| | - Guizhong Zhang
- Center for Protein and Cell-based Drugs, Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1068 Xueyuan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518055, People's Republic of China.
| | - Xiaochun Wan
- Center for Protein and Cell-based Drugs, Institute of Biomedicine and Biotechnology, Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1068 Xueyuan Avenue, Nanshan District, Shenzhen, 518055, People's Republic of China.
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Sachdeva M, Taneja S, Sachdeva N. Stem cell-like memory T cells: Role in viral infections and autoimmunity. World J Immunol 2023; 13:11-22. [DOI: 10.5411/wji.v13.i2.11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2023] [Revised: 07/06/2023] [Accepted: 07/27/2023] [Indexed: 08/14/2023] Open
Abstract
Stem cell-like memory T (TSCM) cells possess stem cell properties including multipotency and self-renewal and are being recognized as emerging players in various human diseases. Advanced technologies such as multiparametric flowcytometry and single cell sequencing have enabled their identification and molecular characterization. In case of chronic viral diseases such as human immunodeficiency virus-1, CD4+ TSCM cells, serve as major reservoirs of the latent virus. However, during immune activation and functional exhaustion of effector T cells, these cells also possess the potential to replenish the pool of functional effector cells to curtail the infection. More recently, these cells are speculated to play important role in protective immunity following acute viral infections such as coronavirus disease 2019 and might be amenable for therapeutics by ex vivo expansion. Similarly, studies are also investigating their pathological role in driving autoimmune responses. However, there are several gaps in the understanding of the role of TSCM cells in viral and autoimmune diseases to make them potential therapeutic targets. In this minireview, we have attempted an updated compilation of the dyadic role of these complex TSCM cells during such human diseases along with their biology and transcriptional programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Meenakshi Sachdeva
- Department of Pediatrics, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 160012, India
| | - Shivangi Taneja
- Department of Endocrinology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 160012, India
| | - Naresh Sachdeva
- Department of Endocrinology, Post Graduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh 160012, India
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Kapitza L, Ho N, Kerzel T, Frank AM, Thalheimer FB, Jamali A, Schaser T, Buchholz CJ, Hartmann J. CD62L as target receptor for specific gene delivery into less differentiated human T lymphocytes. Front Immunol 2023; 14:1183698. [PMID: 37646032 PMCID: PMC10461316 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2023.1183698] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 07/24/2023] [Indexed: 09/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR)-expressing T cells are a complex and heterogeneous gene therapy product with variable phenotype compositions. A higher proportion of less differentiated CAR T cells is usually associated with improved antitumoral function and persistence. We describe in this study a novel receptor-targeted lentiviral vector (LV) named 62L-LV that preferentially transduces less differentiated T cells marked by the L-selectin receptor CD62L, with transduction rates of up to 70% of CD4+ and 50% of CD8+ primary T cells. Remarkably, higher amounts of less differentiated T cells are transduced and preserved upon long-term cultivation using 62L-LV compared to VSV-LV. Interestingly, shed CD62L neither altered the binding of 62L-LV particles to T cells nor impacted their transduction. The incubation of 2 days of activated T lymphocytes with 62L-LV or VSV-LV for only 24 hours was sufficient to generate CAR T cells that controlled tumor growth in a leukemia tumor mouse model. The data proved that potent CAR T cells can be generated by short-term ex vivo exposure of primary cells to LVs. As a first vector type that preferentially transduces less differentiated T lymphocytes, 62L-LV has the potential to circumvent cumbersome selections of T cell subtypes and offers substantial shortening of the CAR T cell manufacturing process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Kapitza
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Heidelberg, Germany
| | - Naphang Ho
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
| | - Thomas Kerzel
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
| | - Annika M. Frank
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
| | | | - Arezoo Jamali
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
| | - Thomas Schaser
- Research & Development, Miltenyi Biotec B.V. & Co. KG, Bergisch Gladbach, Germany
| | - Christian J. Buchholz
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
- German Cancer Consortium (DKTK), Heidelberg, Germany
- Frankfurt Cancer Institute, Goethe University, Frankfurt am Main, Germany
| | - Jessica Hartmann
- Molecular Biotechnology and Gene Therapy, Paul-Ehrlich-Institut, Langen, Germany
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